ABSTRACT
This chapter aims to develop the relationship between workspaces as geometric entities containing boundary surfaces and atmospheric confinement. It explores the relationship between geometry and confinement, existing knowledge about confinement in actual confined spaces and the generation of contaminated atmospheres, and tools for predicting hazard. Analytical studies performed by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) provided the first quantitative evidence for the dominant role of atmospheric hazards in accidents associated with confined spaces. Analysis of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) data presented in the first chapter demonstrated the similar ranking of atmospheric hazards present during both types of accident. Enabling personnel to recognize conditions conducive to atmospheric confinement is an outcome of utmost importance. In almost all situations examined by NIOSH and OSHA, management and workers failed to recognize the importance of boundary surfaces formed by structures in trapping atmospheric contaminants.
