Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Asbestos - Civil Engineering Material

Asbestos is considered a Civil Engineering material, because of its properties. It was used widely in the 19th century,  and it is used throughout the history. It was detected in the early 19th century in the England, and in many countries up to 1930. It was not banned up to 1970 in the USA, and court alleged the companies for not telling the truth about asbestos, which they knew since 1930. Many deaths were reported, due to inhaling of the asbestos fibers, which causes many diseases.
Properties and uses:
It is a fibrous material, having white & blue color.
It has the fire proofing, electric proof properties, so it was widely used for making the insulating boards, used in the building construction as a reinforcing material. It was also used to make fire proof dressing.
It has good tensile strength so it was used in the construction purposes, mixed with the cement it forms the asbestos  cement.
It has shining property, so it was used in the floors and the walls and ceilings too for the finishing.

Sources of the Asbestos(Producers): Russia,China, Kazakhstan, Brazil are the countries who has produced a remarkable amount of the asbestos till now. It was banned by the EU nations after knowing the hazards.
Health Hazards: 
There are six types of asbestos, having different minerals. The two major names, are Chrysotile and Amphibole. Chrysotile is the one which is mined today too, because it has less hazards properties. The use of the Amphibole is totally banned in Canada too because it stays in the lungs for much time when inhaled and can cause the cancer. The people who are prone to hazards with this material are the electricians, plumbers, masons, painters etc. It was widely used in the building construction before the 1970, so be careful to work with those buildings.

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