Arthur M. Langer

Asbestos exposure during brake lining maintenance and repair

Abstract Data obtained on asbestos exposure of garage mechanics during brake lining maintenance and repair work show that fiber concentrations frequently in excess of regulated limits are common. The presence of chrysotile, ranging from 2 to 15%, in brake drum dusts, was demonstrated by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, selected area electron diffraction, and electron microprobe analyses. Unaltered chrysotile was found, both in fiber and fibril form, in air and brake drum dust samples. The chrysotile asbestos content of personal air samples, taken during automobile brake repair work, was measured both by optical and electron microscopic techniques. While a positive correlation exists between the types of measurements, the present technique of optically counting asbestos fibers may considerably underestimate the levels of total asbestos exposure.

CHEMICAL CHARACTERIZATION OF UNCOATED ASBESTOS FIBERS FROM THE LUNGS OF ASBESTOS WORKERS BY ELECTRON MICROPROBE ANALYSIS

Lung tissues have been obtained from workmen with defined asbestos fiber exposure. These tissues have been prepared by the carbon extraction technique and examined with the electron microprobe analyzer. The uncoated fibers present in these specimens have been chemically characterized and compared with standard reference asbestos samples. The bulk chemistry of the fibers observed in lung tissues is similar to that of the reference fibers so that identification may be made. However, a statistical analysis of the measured emission characteristics from anthophyllite and amosite indicates that some magnesium loss has taken place. This loss appears to correlate with the magnesium content of the fibers. A slight iron increase was also noted in the same fibers, probably related to an incipient asbestos body formation.

The mineral nature of asbestos

Fibrous minerals are common in nature but asbestiform minerals are rare. The unique mineralogical characteristic common to all the asbestos minerals is their morphologic form (or habit of crystallization) as polyfilamentous fiber bundles. The individual fibrils within the bundles have a tendency to be very long with a narrow range of diameters and grow with their long fiber axis in parallel orientation to the bundle length. The asbestiform habit imparts to the asbestos minerals sufficient flexibility and tensile strength so that most can be woven into cloth. In the past application has focused on their ability to insulate against the transfer of heat. However, these minerals possess other properties which make them useful in many industrial applications.

Drywall construction and asbestos exposure

The rapid development of the drywall construction trade in the United States is described. It is estimated that some 75,000 U.S. construction workers are currently employed in this trade. The use of a variety of spackle and taping compounds is shown to be associated with significant asbestos exposure; air samples taken in the breathing zone by drywall tapers during sanding of taping compounds show fiber concentrations exceeding, by several times, the maximum level permitted by United States Government regulations. These findings are given together with the result of a clinical field survey of drywall construction workers demonstrating that asbestos disease may be an important health hazard in this trade.

Desquamative interstitial pneumonia associated with chrysotile asbestos fibres.

The drywall construction trade has in the past been associated with exposure to airborne asbestos fibres. This paper reports a drywall construction worker with 32 years of dust exposure who developed dyspnoea and diminished diffusing capacity, and showed diffuse irregular opacities on chest radiography. He did not respond to treatment with corticosteroids. Open lung biopsy examination showed desquamative interstitial pneumonia. Only a single ferruginous body was seen on frozen section, but tissue examination by electron microscopy showed an extraordinary pulmonary burden of mineral dust with especially high concentrations of chrysotile asbestos fibres. This report emphasises the need to consider asbestos fibre as an agent in the aetiology of desquamative interstitial pneumonia. The coexistent slight interstitial fibrosis present in this case is also considered to have resulted from exposure to mineral dust, particularly ultramicroscopic asbestos fibres.

Characterisation of palygorskite specimens from different geological locales for health hazard evaluation.

Palygorskite, a fibrous clay mineral, is being used as a substitute for asbestos in some applications. Nine specimens obtained from different geological locales were studied for mineral purity, elemental composition, fibre size distribution, and surface binding characteristics. The membranolytic activity of each was determined using a human erythrocyte model. The membranolytic behaviour and surface binding characteristics were compared with three chrysotile specimens employed as positive controls. The palygorskite specimens derived from the different geological locales display a range of physicochemical properties. This study shows the importance of selecting several mineral specimens for a health hazard evaluation. The current carcinogenic classification of the mineral may be limited due to the number of specimens used for that particular evaluation.

Inorganic particles in cigars and cigar smoke.

A number of crystalline and optically isotopic inorganic materials are used in the manufacture of reconstituted tobacco sheets. These sheets, used primarily in inexpensive cigars, often contain diatomaceous earth, which exists in part in the silica mineral form cristobalite, a known fibrogen. Diatom fragments with this crystalline form have been observed in the main smoke stream of cigars made with these tobacco sheets.

Association of Tremolite Habit with Biological Potential: Preliminary Report

Tremolite is an amphibole mineral which occurs naturally in three distinct morphological forms or mineral habits. It may occur as asbestos, splintery fibres or in massive crystalline deposits. Mineral habit is determined at the time of its crystallization and conversion to a different habit would require re-crystallization. The massive crystalline deposits, on crushing may yield elongated fibrous-looking particles referred to as acicular cleavage fragments (Langer et al., 1979). Tremolite’s ability to form these three habits imparts it with a range of physico-chemical properties.

Identification and enumeration of asbestos fibers in the mining environment: mission and modification to the Federal Asbestos Standard.

Since the promulgation of the first Federal Asbestos Standard by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in 1972, other federal agencies have modified the standard to better carry on their own unique missions. The instruments used to identify and measure asbestos, the sampling protocol, and the criteria used to define asbestos, have been modified to some degree. The Mine Safety and Health Administration regulates and controls asbestos dust in the mining and mineral commodity industries. However, crushed stone and processed ores contain mineral fragments that are frequently difficult to distinguish from asbestos. Mineral nomenclature, instruments for particle analysis, and sampling strategy must be accommodated to some degree to make asbestos control workable and meaningful. Precedent in other agencies has made consideration of these changes possible. Newly identified amphibole asbestos minerals have further complicated the agencys regulatory charge. Changes in its Asbestos Standard are now being considered. Crushed taconite ore in the Eastern Mesabi highlights many of these issues.

Surface character and membranolytic activity of rutile and anatase: two titanium dioxide polymorphs.

Biological studies of two titanium dioxide polymorphs, rutile and anatase, have produced conflicting results. Generally, the in vivo and in vitro methods used to evaluate pneumoconiotic dusts have shown the polymorphs to be inert, but occasionally both minerals have been reported to produce effects consistent with biologically active minerals. Many of these reports failed to specify which polymorph was used experimentally. While this limited the value of the data, the problem was further compounded by the variation in the surface properties of each polymorph depending on whether the specimen was a naturally occurring mineral or was made synthetically. Five naturally occurring and 11 synthetically produced titanium dioxide specimens were studied. The physical characterisation of each specimen entailed the determination of the polymorph type(s) by continuous scan x ray diffraction and the size distribution by transmission electron microscopy. The ability of each specimen to lyse erythrocytes was determined and compared with quartz. Only two, both synthetic rutiles, were found to be active. The hydrogen bonding ability of the surfaces of these rutiles were compared with inert rutile and quartz. The binding properties of the active rutile have been found to be consistent with those properties associated with biologically active quartz. The surface properties of rutile are the determinants of its activity. Because natural and synthetic rutiles possess different surface properties, they display different activities.