threshold limit value (TLV)

The concentration in air to which it is believed that most workers can be exposed daily without an adverse effect (i.e., effectively, the threshold between safe and dangerous concentrations). The values were established (and are revised annually) by the ACGIH and are time-weighted concentrations (TWA) for a 7- or 8-h workday and 40-h workweek, and thus are related to chronic effects. A short-term exposure limit (STEL) is defined as a 15-min TWA exposure, which should not be exceeded at any time during a workday even if the 8-h TWA is within the TLV-TWA.
Source:
PAC, 2001, 73, 993 (Risk assessment for occupational exposure to chemicals. A review of current methodology (IUPAC Technical Report)) on page 1024