Some Places You Might Find Asbestos

Asbestos is a naturally occurring fibrous silicate mineral. The archeologists have studied a lot on asbestos, and after a lot of research, they have found evidence that is being used as far back as the stone age to strengthen ceramic pots.it is an excellent electric insulator and is highly heat resistant.

Materials Containing asbestos can be found in many places. It is present in thousands of buildings all across the world, like offices, homes, and hospitals. Knowing where these materials are, helps in avoiding accidental disturbance of deadly fibers.

Asbestos is harmful as when materials that contain asbestos are damaged or when they are disturbed, their fibres are then gradually released into the air .when these types of fibres are inhaled they can be harmful and can cause serious disease. These kinds of diseases will not affect you immediately it will take time to grow to be developed but once when they are recognized and diagnosed, it is often too late to do anything at that time.

It can cause cancer, a serious scarring condition of the lungs that can cause pleural thickening which can damage your lungs.

It can be used in a wide variety of places, here are some places we can find asbestos

Asbestos found in industrial property

1. Asbestos in the sprayed coating is used on, ceilings, walls and beams, and thermal spray coatings are used to restore the dimensions of components that have been worn and corroded, such as painting rolls and undersized bearings

2. Asbestos cement is used in the water tanks, the Roofs of the houses, panels gutters and downpipes, Soffits and insulating board

3. Loose full insulation, In older homes specifically they may be found in insulation and flooring adhesive to roof shingles
4. In Lagging they were used in boilers and the pipes
5. AIB
6. It was commonly used as fireproofing material.
7. They are being used in Textiles Eg fire blankets
8. Flat sheet for partition Used in the separation of walls portion contains asbestos
9. They are being used in decorative materials
10. Automotive parts include asbestos in Brake pads, clutches, hood liners, gaskets, and valves containing asbestos

Asbestos is added to vinyl products that are used in flooring and primarily as a fireproofing material. On the other hand, the workers who developed asbestos-related diseases from handling asbestos vinyl products have successfully sued the manufacturers and now they have received compensation.

Asbestos found in residential property

They are mostly used in pipe lagging and loose-fill insulation, now they are being used in AIB tiles, partition wall, interior window panel, floor tiles, barge moulding, super six awning, moulded telecommunications, window moulding, skylight, manhole frames, gully trap surrounds, textile in the fuse holders, cement downpipes, side flashing, rainwater heads, door moulding, woven fencing product, texture ceiling, fence panel, loose-fill insulation, stormwater trap, etc.

It is also being found in sprayed insulation in locations such as various mechanical rooms, steel reinforcing beams, and some ceilings in older buildings. asbestos-containing floor and it is difficult to differentiate ceiling tiles from other tiles By vision so we do laboratory tests to understand the difference between them.

Buildings that were constructed before 2000 contain asbestos materials that’s why they are most commonly used during construction and renovation. 

Asbestos is well recognized as a health hazard and its use is now highly regulated by both OSHA and EPA .this fiber associated with these health risks are too small to be seen with the naked eye. Breathing asbestos can cause a buildup of scar-like tissue in the lungs called asbestosis and result in loss of lung function that often progresses to disability and death .it also causes cancer of the lung and other diseases such as mesothelioma of the pleura which is a fatal malignant tumour of the membrane.

Asbestos was Incorporated into moldable synthetic plastic to make it stronger and resistant to heat. Asbestos plastic products were used in cars, planes, and electrical components, and included name brands such as Bakelite and Noramite.

Asbestos cement products, including asbestos cement sheets and pipes, currently make up approximately 90% of the world’s asbestos Production. The vast majority is used to make asbestos roofing. While asbestos cement sheet production remains legal to import the product in some countries.

Fibrous asbestos cement is more durable than drywall and easier to work with than concrete, and it has numerous applications in construction, including use as roofing and siding. 

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