Asbestos – What is it?

Many of you may be wondering just what asbestos is and why you should care about asbestos. Asbestos is a naturally occurring mineral that is mined from the ground. It is a very versatile mineral with characteristics useful to industry and manufacturing; unfortunately, exposure to its fibers can have serious health effects. The fibers found in the mineral and are resistant to heat and fire, are non-electrically conductive, and they are chemically resistant. The fibers can easily be woven and spun making them versatile in their industrial and manufacturing applications.

Asbestos can be classified into two general forms: Serpentine asbestos and amphibole asbestos. Serpentine is the most common used in manufacturing due to the flexibility of the fiber; the more brittle amphibole fiber was less commonly used in manufacturing as the brittleness of fiber limited flexibility in fabrication. This means that exposure to the serpentine fiber is the most common exposure.

Many industries and products over the years have utilized asbestos; these include roofing products, insulation products, adhesives, mortars, ceiling and floor tiles, cement products, clutch, brake, and friction parts, fabrics, gaskets, and various coatings and sealants. Asbestos may be found in shipyards, power plants, schools, hospitals, public buildings, homes, automobiles, and heavy equipment and machinery.

So why care? The answer is simple; exposure to asbestos fibers can have serious health effects to the person exposed and maybe even those around him or her through secondary exposure.