Asbestos Removal

Asbestos Danger

2007-07-04T17:35:00.001-07:00

Yesterday we tried to remove asbestos from a hospital central heating boiler. It was everywhere! our mechanics removed all suspicious of asbestos parts.

The most dangerous thing is that, the temperature was so high that the air in the room, was forbidden to breathe ... I will give you details after the further metrics and results.

Asbestos Removal Procedures

2007-06-27T14:30:00.000-07:00

Abatement From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Many buildings contain asbestos, which was used in spray-applied flame retardant, thermal system insulation, and in a variety of other materials.

Asbestos was sometimes "flocked" above false ceilings, inside technical ducts, and in many other small spaces where firefighters would have difficulty gaining access.
Structural components like panels were also used.

In residences, asbestos was often a component of a type of flocked acoustic ceiling called "popcorn ceiling" or "cottage cheese ceiling", until its production was banned in the U.S. in 1978.

However, the ban allowed installers to use up remaining stocks, so houses built as late as 1986 could still have asbestos in their acoustic ceilings.

The only way to be sure is to remove a sample and have it tested by a competent laboratory.

Depending on how and where it was applied, it might not pose any risk to most users of the building. If the fibers cannot become dislodged, they cannot be inhaled, and thus the asbestos poses no risk.

However, some methods of applying asbestos, particularly flocking, allow asbestos fibers to gradually drop off into the air. It poses hazards to maintenance personnel who have to drill holes in walls for installation of cables or pipes.

Even if the workers are protected, such maintenance operation may release fibers into the air, which may be inhaled by others. Interventions in areas where asbestos is present often have to follow stringent procedures.

Removal procedures

If removal is to be performed when users are still present in the building, it is usually necessary to relocate some users temporarily.

Typically, the part of the building from which asbestos is being removed has to be sealed off in order to prevent contamination of the other areas.

If the building is closed to normal users, it may be necessary to seal it off from outside atmosphere so that no accessible air is contaminated.

Examples of removal enterprises include the Jussieu Campus (begun circa 1996 and still going on as of 2005) and the Tour Montparnasse (in 2005, projected duration was 3 years if the tower was emptied of its users, and 10 years if it were not).

An asbestos-containing building that is to be torn down may have to be sealed, and to have its safely removed before ordinary demolition can be performed.

The removal may take longer and cost more than the actual demolition. For example, the former seat of parliament of East Germany, the Palast der Republik was stripped of most of its asbestos between 1998 and 2001, before it was finally demolished starting in 2006. The demolition process alone is expected to cost between 20 and 60 million Euros.

Asbestos Cancer Mesothelioma Video

2007-06-27T14:08:00.000-07:00

Mesothelioma is a form of cancer that is almost always caused by previous exposure to asbestos. In this disease, malignant cells develop in the mesothelium, a protective lining that covers most of the body's internal organs. Its most common site is the pleura (outer lining of the lungs and chest cavity), but it may also occur in the peritoneum (the lining of the abdominal cavity) or the pericardium (a sac that surrounds the heart).

Most people who develop mesothelioma have worked on jobs where they inhaled asbestos particles, or have been exposed to asbestos dust and fibre in other ways, such as by washing the clothes of a family member who worked with asbestos, or by home renovation using asbestos cement products.

Unlike lung cancer, there is no association between mesothelioma and smoking.

more information about mesothelioma: Wikipedia

Asbestos in Hospital Video

2007-06-27T14:00:00.000-07:00

Asbestos (amiante) in the Caen Hospital

Asbestos is everywhere, even more in health services providers!
This video will show you how safe is this hospital full of asbestos.
This place is dangerous for everyone who come into it. France won't do anything about it because of the huge economical and employment consequences.

Asbestos Advertising Video

2007-06-27T13:49:00.000-07:00

This clip is from the 1959 film, "Asbestos: a Matter of Time," by the Bureau of Mines (US Department of the Interior.) The entire film is available on GoggleVideo.

This clip describes key properties of asbestos and some of its uses in the 1950s. Inhaling asbestos dust, can cause asbestosis, lung cancer and mesothelioma. Asbestos manufacturers knew of these diseases by the 1930s.

Tens of thousands of (mostly) workers have been made sick and died from asbestos exposure.

For more information, go to the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) website - http://www.asbestosdiseaseawareness.org/

Asbestos Suit Video

2007-06-27T13:41:00.000-07:00

It is sure, that in the year 1959, nobody took care of dangerous asbestos...watch the online video

Asbestos Removal

2007-06-26T09:34:00.000-07:00

Asbestos removal may help prevent exposure to the asbestos fibers linked to cancer and other lung diseases. Asbestos removal should only be performed by qualified professionals, since the risks associate with an improperly conducted asbestos removal are quite high.

There are over 3,000 manufactured products that are known to contain asbestos; asbestos removal can therefore be an extensive operation. Individuals may not realize their home or business requires asbestos removal, since asbestos fibers are odorless and tasteless and were used so widely for many years. Asbestos removal experts can conduct an investigation, taking samples of various materials to determine whether asbestos removal is required. Taking samples yourself is never recommended, as releasing asbestos fibers can be more dangerous than foregoing asbestos removal entirely. In some cases, asbestos abatement may be accomplished through methods other than asbestos removal, such as encasement or encapsulation. These can be as satisfactory and much less expensive than asbestos removal. There are stringent requirements set by federal, state, and local authorities regarding the methods for asbestos removal and disposal. Further information is available through organizations such as the EPA and OSHA, and though asbestos removal laws do not vary much between states, individuals should always ensure that anyone hired for asbestos removal purposes is in full compliance with the laws and regulations. If an asbestos removal is occurring on a property that you rent, you can ask if the asbestos removal professionals have the proper training and qualifications. It is illegal to conduct an asbestos removal if you are anyone other than the property owner or a qualified asbestos removal specialist.

To learn more about your legal rights and responsibilities in regards to asbestos removal, you may wish to contact an attorney who has experience in working with asbestos removal cases.

To find buildings in your state that contain asbestos, select a state. You will also find asbestos abatement or asbestos removal, various statewide asbestos products, as well as links to how you might be able to help victims of Asbestos exposure.

Source: Asbestos News

Asbestos

2007-06-26T09:05:00.000-07:00

Asbestos (a misapplication of Latin: asbestos "quicklime" from Greek ἄσβεστος: a, "not" and sbestoas, "extinguishable") describes any of a group of minerals that can be fibrous, many of which are metamorphic and are hydrous magnesium silicates. These minerals, together with their occurrences, uses, and associated hazards, have been discussed in detail by Guthrie and Mossman (1993).

The name is derived for its historical use in lamp wicks; the resistance of asbestos to fire has long been exploited for a variety of purposes. Asbestos was used in fabrics such as Egyptian burial cloths and Charlemagne's tablecloth (which according to legend, he threw in a fire to clean). Asbestos occurs naturally in many forms (see below); it is mined from metamorphic rocks.

When asbestos is used for its resistance to fire or heat, the fibers are often mixed with cement or woven into fabric or mats. Asbestos is used in brake shoes and gaskets for its heat resistance, and in the past was used on electric oven and hotplate wiring for its electrical insulation at elevated temperature, and in buildings for its flame-retardant and insulating properties, tensile strength, flexibility, and resistance to chemicals. The inhalation of asbestos fibers, however, can cause a number of serious illnesses, including cancer. Since the mid 1980s, many uses of asbestos are banned in multiple countries.

Types of asbestos and associated fibres

Chrysotile asbestos

Asbestos fibers

"White" asbestos
Chrysotile, CAS No. 12001-29-5, is obtained from serpentine rocks. Chrysotile, along with other types of asbestos, have been banned in dozens of countries and is only allowed in the United States and Europe in very limited circumstances. Applications where Chrysotile might be used include the use of joint compound. There is no safe level of exposure to crysotile that is recognized. It is more flexible than amphibole types of asbestos; it can be spun and woven into fabric. Chrysotile does not persist in the lungs after inhalation; but is transferred to the plura (the lining of the lungs) where mesothelioma, a fatal asbestos related cancer develops. Over 90% of the asbestos used in the United States is Chrysotile asbestos, making it one of the major causes of asbestos-related diseases in the U.S.

"Brown" asbestos
Amosite, CAS No. 12172-73-5, is a trade name for the amphiboles belonging to the Cummingtonite - Grunerite solid solution series, commonly from Africa, named as an acronym from Asbestos Mines of South Africa. One formula given for Amosite is Fe7Si8O22(OH)2. This type of asbestos, like all asbestos, is very hazardous.

"Blue" asbestos
Riebeckite, CAS No. 12001-28-4, also known under the variety name of Crocidolite, is an amphibole from Africa and Australia. It is the fibrous form of the amphibole riebeckite. Blue asbestos is commonly thought of as the most dangerous type of asbestos (see above and below). One formula given for Crocidolite is Na2Fe2+3Fe3+2Si8O22(OH)2. This type of asbestos is very hazardous.
Notes: chrysotile commonly occurs as soft friable fibers. Asbestiform amphibole may also occur as soft friable fibers but some varieties such as amosite are commonly straighter. All forms of asbestos are fibrillar in that they are composed of fibers with widths less than 1 micrometer that occur in bundles and have very long lengths. Asbestos with particularly fine fibers is also referred to as "amianthus". Amphiboles such as tremolite have a sheetlike crystalline structure. Serpentine (chrysotile) has a stringlike crystalline structure.(Inorganic Chemistry, E. de Barry Barnett and C. L. Wilson). Crysotile asbestos is often contaminated with tremolite, creating an additional hazard.
Other asbestos
Other regulated asbestos minerals, such as tremolite asbestos, CAS No. 77536-68-6, Ca2Mg5Si8O22(OH)2; actinolite asbestos (or smaragdite), CAS No. 77536-66-4, Ca2(Mg, Fe)5Si8O22(OH)2; and anthophyllite asbestos, CAS No. 77536-67-5, (Mg, Fe)7Si8O22(OH)2; are less commonly used industrially but can still be found in a variety of construction materials and insulation materials and have been reported in the past to occur in a few consumer products.

Other natural and not currently regulated asbestiform minerals, such as richterite, Na(CaNa)(Mg,Fe++)5[Si8O22](OH)2, and winchite,(CaNa)Mg4(Al,Fe3+)Si8O22(OH)2, may be found as a contaminate in products such as the vermiculite containing Zonolite insulation manufactured by W.R. Grace and Company. These minerals are thought to be no less harmful than tremolite, amosite, or crocidolite, but since they are not regulated, they are referred to as "asbestiform" rather than asbestos although may still be reltated to diseases and hazardous.

In 1989 the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) passed the Asbestos Ban and Phase Out Rule which was subsequently overturned in the case of Corrosion Proof Fittings v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 1991. This ruling leaves many consumer products that can still legally contain trace amounts of asbestos. For a clarification of products which legally contain asbestos visit the EPA's clarification statement.

SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA