What is asbestos?
Asbestos is a group of naturally occurring fibrous minerals. These minerals, found in soil and rocks in many parts of the world, are made of magnesium, silicon, and other elements. Some asbestos fibers are curly (or “serpentine”). The most common asbestos in industrial use, known as chrysotile, or white asbestos, has curly fibers. Other asbestos fibers are straight and needle-like (or “amphibole”). These include amosite, crocidolite, tremolite, actinolite, and anthophyllite. Asbestos fibers are resistant to heat and many chemicals. As a result, asbestos has been used as an insulating material since ancient times. Since the industrial revolution, asbestos was used to insulate factories, schools, homes, and ships, to make automobile brake and clutch parts, roofing shingles, ceiling and floor tiles, cement, and textiles, and hundreds of other products. During the first half of the 1900s, growing evidence demonstrated that asbestos is a health hazard causing scarring of the lungs. In the e
Asbestos is the name of a group of highly fibrous minerals with separable, long, and thin fibers. Separated asbestos fibers are strong enough and flexible enough to be spun and woven. Asbestos fibers are heat resistant, making them useful for many industrial purposes. Because of their durability, asbestos fibers that get into lung tissue will remain for long periods of time. For more information on asbestos, see ATSDR’s Toxicological Profile on Asbestos. Other ATSDR resources include the Public Health Statement on Asbestos, which is the summary chapter from the Toxicological Profile, and the ToxFAQs for Asbestos, which is a shorter question and answer version.
The term “asbestos” has been given to six naturally occurring mineral fibers that have been used for commercial purposes. It can be found in hundreds of countries on just about every continent. These fibers belong to two separate mineral groups, known as serpentine and amphibole. A Detailed Diagram of Where Asbestos Can Be Found in the HomeThe serpentine group, usually of a curly form, contains only one asbestiform variety, referred to as chrysotile. The amphibole group, which is straight and needle-like, contains five asbestiform varieties: anthophyllite, grunerite (amosite), riebeckite (crocidolite), tremolite, and actinolite. The U.S. Bureau of Mines has listed more than 100 mineral fibers as “asbestos-like” fibers, but the United States government only regulates the six aforementioned forms (primarily due to effective lobbying on behalf of the asbestos and stone industries). These very fine fibers are separable, hundreds of times thinner than human hairs, and too small to be seen w
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