Russian contractors are increasingly turning to the use of asbestos-cement materials in major repair programs across the country. Roofs are covered with slate, houses are sheathed with facade panels, pipes are used in the construction of water pipes, sewerage systems, drainage systems and garbage chutes. Asbestos is chosen for its reliability and availability in the domestic market - in the face of rising prices for building materials, it is one of the few ways for a contractor to stay in the budget. In turn, the residents of the renovated houses have a question - whether it bears asbestos harmfor health man?
What is asbestos?
First, let's define the terms. Asbestos Is the commercial name for a group of fibrous materials that differ significantly in their properties. Scientists distinguish two groups asbestos – chrysotile and amphibole. Chrysotile is mined in Russia and Kazakhstan, well-known amphibole deposits are mainly concentrated in South Africa, Finland, Australia, several quarries are located in Italy and France.
Today only chrysotile is mined in the world. asbestos. It is a magnesium hydrosilicate (3MgO • 2SiO2 • 2H2O), acid-soluble and alkali-resistant. Its brother, amphibole asbestos, was finally banned from mining in the last third of the 20th century. It is subdivided into several types (crocidolite, amosite, tremolite, actinolite and others), united by the presence of iron in the formula. It gives them acid resistance and a harder structure. If chrysotile asbestos can be compared to threads of yarn, then amphiboles are more like miniature needles. All types of "mountain flax" (this is also called asbestos) have very thin fibers - their length is about 5 microns.
What is made from asbestos?
Asbestos used in the production of over 300 types of industrial materials. These are, first of all, building materials and mechanical engineering. Slate, facade slabs, pressure and non-pressure pipes, siding, refractory cardboard, thermal insulation, and much more are made from asbestos fiber and Portland cement. Persistence when heated provided asbestos use in protective equipment for workers in hot shops, firefighters, brake pad linings and filters for the chemical industry are made of it. Asbestos the only materials on the market have the status of "NG" (non-combustible). This means that they do not burn at any temperature - on average, chrysotile fibers can withstand heating up to 1500 ° C, which is comparable to the heat of a blast furnace.
Where is asbestos used?
Asbestos-cement materials are widely used in construction. Their availability and reliability have ensured them the status of "people's" - major repair programs, private housing construction and the construction of new buildings are increasingly turning to use asbestos. So, the regional services of the Ministry of Emergency Situations recommend using asbestos fabrics for creating a passive fire safety system in private houses. Apartment buildings are often clad in brightly colored façade panels made of asbestos pipes are made garbage chutes, with their help they lay sewerage and water supply.
Also asbestos used in:
- Mechanical engineering
- Shipbuilding (thermal insulating elements of boilers for nuclear icebreakers)
- Rocketry
- Creation of protective gear
- Military industry (system of protection against napalm "Soda")
Video: Chrysotile asbestos - what is it and is it harmful to health?
Is asbestos harmful to health?
The existing concerns of a number of citizens about the potential harmasbestos have a number of reasons. The main one is the prohibition of amphibole asbestosaccompanied by a massive information campaign. Many politicians, public figures and journalists, mainly from Western Europe, spoke out against the use of "mountain flax". Why? The fact is that amphibole fibers asbestos resistant to acids. Once in the lungs of a person, they remain there for many years - alveolar macrophages, the body's cleaning cells, cannot dissolve them. As a result, amphibole asbestos really does harm to health, provoking serious illnesses, including oncology.
Chrysotile asbestoson the contrary, it dissolves with acids (recall that the place of iron in its formula is taken by magnesium). Alveolar macrophages remove its particles from the body in a short period of time. Moreover, chrysotile fiber is soft, while amphiboles are hard and additionally injure tissues. Geography plays an important role here - according to the study "Exposure to asbestos and man-made fibers in production and the risk of lung cancer: case-control study in Europe ”, conducted in 2006, it can be argued that in Western Europe the number of asbestos-related diseases is relatively high, while in the countries of the Warsaw Pact (socialist camp) tends to statistical error. It follows that the rhetoric of the Western movement is against “harmful» asbestos not applicable to chrysotile - it was directed against the problem of the influence on human health of amphiboles.
Is asbestos dangerous in everyday life?
The effect of the anti-asbestos movement was so high that now a number of citizens are wary of chrysotile asbestos. In fact, chrysotile cement materials are safe for humans. They are chemically inert when heated do not emit vapors, do not conduct electricity, do not burn, do not melt or react with water or soil. For example, asbestos pipes do not oxidize when exposed to water, and salt deposits do not form inside them. Moreover, they are not susceptible to chemical processes in the soil - you can safely plant garden crops in them, since fertilizers will not interact in any way with asbestos.
Fears of meeting asbestos fiber in its "pure" form is also groundless. After enrichment at the plant, the fiber is sealed in sealed packages in a special ventilated workshop and sent to production. There, say, in the case of slate, it is added to the potland cement and pressed (or left to dry). Cement sticks to fibers, incl. they significantly reduce their volatility.
Can asbestos be misused?
Improper use of asbestos-containing products is possible, but all negative consequences can be associated only with the usual injuries when interacting with building materials (say, drop a sheet of slate on your leg). Subject to safety precautions during construction or repair work asbestos products are no different from analogues. As we have said, chrysotile fiber asbestos removed from the human body in a short period and cannot cause it harm - alveolar macrophages dissolve them.
Asbestos products are widely used as thermal insulation materials, so the question often arises - what to do with asbestoswhen heatedcan he suddenly become harmful? Chrysotile fibers can withstand very high temperatures, and when they are exceeded, they become brittle, but do not catch fire. True, with such heating, the steel pipe will melt earlier, but these are parts. Asbestos materials cannot be used in such a way that the fibers cause harmfor health human when heated - on the contrary, they are one of the most reliable and simple solutions for creating a fire safety system.
Is there a danger in contact with asbestos for children and the elderly?
Asbestos products are safe for health all categories of citizens. Of course, as with any building materials, children must not be allowed to construction work without the supervision and accompaniment of adults. However, the problem here is not in the special properties. asbestos, but in basic safety precautions. Construction is not a place for children. Otherwise, products with chrysotile fibers asbestos does not bear harmfor health all categories of citizens, whether they are pensioners, children or pregnant women.
It is important to note that safety asbestos with controlled use, it is confirmed by numerous scientific studies both in Russia and abroad. In our country, the official position of the government of the Russian Federation, recorded in Decree No. 869 of July 31, 1998, accumulates this knowledge, declaring - chrysotile asbestos can be used without risk of applying harm to health.
Analogs and substitutes for material
To date, there is no full-fledged analogue of chrysotile asbestos. By the totality of its useful properties, it is a unique material. Of course, in some parameters it has competitors, but in such a way that they combine, say, incombustibility, strength, durability, chemical inertness and market availability - such no offers yet. The last point, by the way, is provided by the leading position of Russia in the world in terms of production, enrichment and production of finished products based on asbestos fibers.
So, today we can confidently assert with confidence - asbestos products are safe for all categories of citizens, regardless of their age. On the contrary, it is the key to the safety and reliability of the building.
Sources:
- https://chrysotile.ru/
- http://government.ru/docs/all/27869/