Web Release Date: April 27,
A Novel Approach for the In-Situ Chemical Elimination of Chrysotile from Asbestos-Containing Fireproofing Materials
and
W. R. Grace & Co., 7500 Grace Drive, Columbia, Maryland 21044, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, New York 11973, and W. R. Grace & Co., 62 Whittemore Avenue, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02140
Received for review April 16, 1999
Revised manuscript received March 27, 2000
Accepted March 31, 2000
Abstract:
We report here the development of a method for the chemical digestion of chrysotile asbestos in asbestos-containing fireproofing to levels lower than the regulatory threshold. The resulting fireproofing, no longer defined as asbestos-containing, can remain in place with properties intact. In the process, chrysotile fibers are digested without generating excessive gaseous byproducts, and the foam-based delivery system essentially eliminates release of airborne fibers. New X-ray diffraction methods quantified chrysotile levels with far greater precision than standard optical microscopic methods. Full-scale field testing confirmed the laboratory phase of the project. Fire testing of the treated fireproofing showed that the treated material functions as well as the original fireproofing.
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