Asbestos

Base Information

• Chemical Name: Asbestos
• CAS No.: 1332-21-4
• Molecular Formula: CaMg3(SiO3)4
• Molecular Weight: 0
• Mol file: 1332-21-4.mol

Synonyms:Asbestos,fibers;7N05;7R-F9;7RF10;AT 7-1;Asbestos syntheticfibers;BK 6-20;BP 3-50;BP 5-65;Calidria HPP;Calidria R-G 244;Carey 4T;Chlorobestos 25;FAPM 410-120;Ferodo C3C;HPO (mineral);K 6-20;M 3-60;M4-5;M 5-60;M 6-40;MTM;Mountain cork;Mountain leather;Mountain wood;PRZh2-30;SM 1 (mineral);SM 2 (mineral);Sepiolex 3;Sepiolex 5;

Chemical Property of Asbestos

Chemical Property:

• PSA: 0.00000
• LogP: 0.00000

Purity/Quality:

98% ^*data from raw suppliers

Safty Information:

• Pictogram(s): T
• Hazard Codes: T
• Statements: 45-48/23
• Safety Statements: 53-45

MSDS Files:

Total 1 MSDS from other Authors

Useful:

• Description: Asbestos is a fibrous silicate of magnesium and calcium. However, the “extender”, known as “asbestine”, that has come to the forefront in paint making, is really a ring silicate of magnesia and slightly alkaline, but without the fibrous texture of asbestos or amianth. Asbestine pulp (as a certain variety of the material mined at the foot of the Adirondack mountains is known to the trade), although it is sold in the dry powdered form, belongs really to the soapstone or talc variety. But it is not as unctuous as either of those, has a harder texture, and is of whiter color than either soapstone or talc.
• Physical properties: White or greenish (chrysotile), Blue (crocidolite), or gray-green (amosite) fibrous, odorless solids; freezing/ melting point5600 C (Decomposes). Hazard identification (based on NFPA-704 M Rating System): Health 2; flammability 0; reactivity 0. Insoluble in water. Asbestos is a generic term that applies to a number of naturally occurring, hydrated mineral silicates incombustible in air and separable into filaments. The most widely used in industry in the United States is chrysotile, a fibrous form of serpentine. Other types include amosite, crocidolite, tremolite, anthophyllite, and actinolite.
• Uses: Asbestine pulp or asbestine in its various varieties has been used for many years by manufacturers of paints, not so much as an adulterant, but rather to make the paint more buoyant in order to keep it from settling to any extent, as this compound is of very low-specific gravity and a great oil absorber. Thermal and electrical insulation; fireproofing; cement products Although asbestos use dates back at least 2,000 years, modern industrial use began around 1880. Use of asbestos peaked in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when more than 3,000 industrial applications or products were listed. Asbestos has been used in roofing, thermal and electrical insulation, cement pipe and sheets, flooring, gaskets, friction materials, coatings, plastics, textiles, paper, and other products (ATSDR 2001, HSDB 2009). The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission banned use of asbestos in general-use garments, but asbestos may be used in fire-fighting garments if they are constructed to prevent release of asbestos fibers (HSDB 2009). Domestically used asbestos fibers are classified into seven quality categories or grades. Grades 1, 2, and 3 include the longer, maximum-strength fibers and generally are used in the production of textiles, electrical insulation, and pharmaceutical and beverage filters. Grades 4, 5, and 6 are medium-length fibers used in the production of asbestoscement pipes and sheets, clutch facings, brake linings, asbestos paper, packaging, gaskets, and pipe coverings. Grade 7 includes short fibers generally used as reinforcers in plastics, floor tiles, coatings and compounds, some papers, and roofing felts (OSHA 1986). The four commercially important forms of asbestos have been chrysotile, amosite, anthophyllite, and crocidolite (IARC 1973); however, commercial use of anthophyllite was discontinued by the 1980s (IPCS 1986, HSDB 2009). Chrysotile, amosite, and particularly crocidolite all have extremely high tensile strengths and are used extensively as reinforcers in cements, resins, and plastics. Although chrysotile is most adaptable to industrial use, crocidolite and amosite are particularly useful in combination with chrysotile for adding specific properties, such as rigidity (OSHA 1986). By the 1990s, chrysotile accounted for more than 99% of U.S. asbestos consumption (ATSDR 2001). By 2008, chrysotile was the only type of asbestos used in the United States (Virta 2008); 64% of chrysotile used was categorized as grade 7 asbestos (with fiber lengths less than 3 mm), followed by grades 4, 5, and 3 (Virta 2002a, 2009). In 1973, when U.S. consumption of asbestos was at its peak, the major markets included asbestos cement pipe (24%), flooring (22%), roofing (9%), friction products, such as automobile brakes and clutches (8%), and packing and gaskets (3%) (Virta 2002a). In 2009, roofing products accounted for about 65% of U.S. consumption; the remaining 35% was attributed to “other uses” (USGS 2010).