The Dangers of Exposure to Asbestos
Before it was banned, asbestos was used in thousands commercial products. According research, exposure to asbestos can cause cancer and a host of other health issues.
It is impossible to tell just by looking at something whether it is made of asbestos. Neither can you smell or taste it. Asbestos can only be identified when the material containing it is broken, drilled, or chipped.
Chrysotile
At its peak, chrysotile made up for 90% of the asbestos that was produced. It was employed in a variety of industries, including construction, insulation, and fireproofing. If workers are exposed to asbestos, they may develop mesothelioma along with other asbestos-related diseases. Thankfully, the use this hazardous mineral has declined dramatically since mesothelioma awareness began to increase in the 1960's. It is still found in many of the products we use today.
Chrysotile is safe to use if you have a comprehensive safety and handling plan in place. Workers handling chrysotile are not exposed to a significant amount of risk at the present safe exposure levels. The inhalation of airborne fibres has been found to be strongly linked with lung cancer and lung fibrosis. This has been proven both for intensity (dose) as well as duration of exposure.
In one study mortality rates were compared between a facility which used largely chlorosotile to make friction materials and national death rates. The study found that after 40 years of processing low levels of chrysotile there was no significant rise in mortality at this factory.
Chrysotile fibres tend to be shorter than other types of asbestos. They can penetrate the lungs and then enter the bloodstream. They are more likely to cause health issues than fibres that are longer.
It is extremely difficult for chrysotile fibres be in the air or pose a health risk when mixed with cement. Fibre cement products have been extensively used throughout the world, especially in buildings like hospitals and schools.
Research has demonstrated that amphibole asbestos, such as amosite, crocidolite, or crocidolite, is less likely than chrysotile to cause diseases. Amphibole asbestos forms have been the primary cause of mesothelioma and various asbestos-related illnesses. When chrysotile is mixed in with cement, it creates an extremely durable and flexible building product that can withstand extreme weather conditions and other environmental hazards. It is also easy to clean after use. Asbestos fibres are easily removed by a professional, and then disposed of.
Amosite
Asbestos is a grouping of fibrous silicates that are found in a variety of rock formations. It is divided into six groups which include amphibole (serpentine), tremolite (tremolite) anthophyllite (crocidolite) and anthophyllite.
Asbestos minerals are made up of long, thin fibers that range in length from extremely thin to broad and straight to curled. These fibres are found in nature as individual fibrils or bundles with splaying ends called fibril matrix. Asbestos minerals are also found as a powder (talc) or mixed with other minerals and sold as vermiculite and talcum powder that are widely used in consumer products such as baby powder cosmetics, face powder and baby powder.
The greatest asbestos use was during the first two-thirds of 20th century in the period when it was employed in shipbuilding, insulation, fireproofing, and other construction materials. The majority of asbestos exposures for work were in the air, but certain workers were also exposed to asbestos-bearing rock fragments and vermiculite that was contaminated. Exposures varied from industry to industry, era era and even geographical location.
Most of the asbestos exposures that workers were exposed to was due to inhalation. However, certain workers were exposed via skin contact or through eating contaminated food. Asbestos is now only found in the environment due to the natural weathering of mined minerals and deterioration of contaminated products like insulation, car brakes, clutches, as well as floor and ceiling tiles.
It is becoming clear that non-commercial amphibole fibers could also be carcinogenic. These are fibers that do not form the tightly woven fibrils of the amphibole and serpentine minerals, but instead are flexible, loose and needle-like. These fibres are found in the mountains and cliffs from a variety of countries.
Asbestos gets into the environment primarily as airborne particles, but it can also be absorbed into water and soil. This happens both through natural (weathering and erosion of asbestos-bearing rocks) and anthropogenic (disintegration and disposal of asbestos-containing wastes at landfill sites) sources. Asbestos contamination of surface and ground water is mostly due to natural weathering. However, it has also been caused by human activities like milling and mining demolition and dispersal of asbestos-containing materials and the disposal of contaminated dumping soil in landfills (ATSDR 2001). Asbestos fibres that are emitted from the air are the primary cause of disease among those exposed to asbestos in their occupation.
Crocidolite
Inhalation exposure to asbestos is the most common way people are exposed to the dangerous fibres, which can be absorbed into the lungs and cause serious health issues. These include asbestosis and mesothelioma. Exposure to fibers can occur in a variety of ways including contact with contaminated clothing, or building materials. This kind of exposure is especially dangerous when crocidolite (the blue asbestos form) is involved. Crocidolite is smaller and more fragile fibers that are easier to breathe in and may lodge deeper in lung tissue. It has been associated with more mesothelioma cancer cases than other types of asbestos.
The main types are chrysotile as well as amosite. The most well-known forms of asbestos are chrysotile and epoxiemite, which together comprise 95% all commercial asbestos used. The other four asbestos types aren't as well-known, but can still be found in older structures. They are less dangerous than amosite or chrysotile however they could still be dangerous when combined with other minerals or when mined near other mineral deposits such as vermiculite and talc.
Numerous studies have proven that there is a link between stomach cancer and asbestos exposure. The evidence is not conclusive. Certain researchers have cited an SMR (standardized death ratio) of 1.5 (95% confidence interval: 0.7-3.6), for all asbestos workers, whereas others report an SMR of 1,24 (95% confidence interval: 0.76-2.5), for those working in mines and chrysotile mills.
dayton asbestos law firm , the International Agency for Research on Cancer, has classified all forms of asbestos as carcinogenic. All asbestos types can cause mesothelioma but the risk is different based on how much exposure, what type of asbestos is involved, and the length of time that exposure lasts. IARC has declared that the best choice for individuals is to avoid all forms of asbestos. If someone has been exposed to asbestos in the past and suffer from an illness such as mesothelioma and other respiratory ailments They should seek advice from their physician or NHS 111.
Amphibole
Amphiboles are a collection of minerals that form needle-like or prism-like crystals. They are an inosilicate mineral made up of double chains of SiO4 molecules. They have a monoclinic structure of crystals, but some have an orthorhombic structure. The general formula of an amphibole is A0-1B2C5T8O22(OH,F)2. The double chains contain (Si, Al)O4 tetrahedrons linked together in rings of six tetrahedrons. Tetrahedrons may be separated by strips of octahedral site.
Amphibole minerals can be found in metamorphic and igneous rocks. They are usually dark and hard. They are sometimes difficult to differentiate from pyroxenes as they share similar hardness and color. They also have a similar the cleavage. Their chemistry can allow for a variety of compositions. The chemical compositions and crystal structures of the various mineral groups in amphibole could be used to identify them.
Amphibole asbestos includes chrysotile and the five types of asbestos: amosite, anthophyllite (crocidolite) amosite (actinolite), and amosite. Each type of asbestos comes with its own distinct properties. The most harmful type of asbestos, crocidolite, is composed of sharp fibers that are easy to inhale into the lung. Anthophyllite ranges from brown to yellowish in color and is composed of magnesium and iron. This variety was used to make cement and insulation materials.
Amphiboles can be difficult to study due to their complicated chemical structure and the numerous substitutions. A detailed analysis of the composition of amphibole minerals requires specialized techniques. The most common methods for identifying amphiboles is EDS, WDS, and XRD. However, these methods only provide approximate identifications. These techniques, for example, cannot distinguish between magnesio hastingsite and magnesio hastingsite. These techniques also don't differentiate between ferro-hornblende or pargasite.