Asbestos

Introduction

Asbestos is a widely used constituent in buildings and building materials, machines, transport vehicles and consumer products. Asbestos has a known historical use going back at least 4500 years when it was added as a reinforcing material to earthenware and cooking pots. Asbestos (Greek: inextinguishable) is the collective term for naturally occurring silicate minerals with a crystalline structure and a fibrous character. Inhalation of asbestos fibres may cause serious illnesses like lung cancer, mesothelioma and asbestosis. The European Union has banned all use of asbestos as well as the extraction, manufacture and processing of asbestos products. However,…