Physics:Asbestiform
Asbestiform is a crystal habit. It describes a mineral that grows in a fibrous aggregate of high tensile strength, flexible, long, and thin crystals that readily separate.[1] The most common asbestiform mineral is chrysotile, commonly called "white asbestos", a magnesium phyllosilicate part of the serpentine group. Erionite, part of the zeolite group is found in asbestiform habit and is highly carcinogenic.[2][3] Other asbestiform minerals include the zeolite mordenite,[4] riebeckite, an amphibole whose fibrous form is known as crocidolite or "blue asbestos", and brown asbestos, a cummingtonite-grunerite solid solution series. Another Zeolite that has come to light recently that is asbestiform is fibrous Ferrierite.[5][6]
The United States Environmental Protection Agency explains that, "In general, exposure may occur only when the asbestos-containing material is disturbed or damaged in some way to release particles and fibers into the air."[7]
"Mountain leather" is an old-fashioned term for flexible, sheet-like natural formations of asbestiform minerals which resemble leather. Asbestos-containing minerals known to form mountain leather include: actinolite, palygorskite, saponite, sepiolite, tremolite, and zeolite.[8]
See also
References
- ↑ Committee on Asbestos: Selected Health Effects, 2006, Asbestos: Selected Cancers, National Academies Press, ISBN 978-0309101691
- ↑ Stevens, Michael E.; Paustenbach, Dennis J.; Lockhart, Noah J.; Busboom, Dalton E.; Deckard, Blake M.; Brew, David W. (15 March 2024). "The presence of erionite in North American geologies and the estimated mesothelioma potency by region" (in en). Inhalation Toxicology 36 (3): 158–173. doi:10.1080/08958378.2024.2322496. PMID 38583132. Bibcode: 2024InhTx..36..158S.
- ↑ Scarfì, Sonia; Almonti, Vanessa; Mirata, Serena; Passalacqua, Mario; Vernazza, Stefania; Patel, Janki Prakash; Brook, Martin; Hamilton, Ayrton et al. (January 2025). "In vitro cyto- and geno-toxicity of asbestiform erionite from New Zealand". Environmental Research 265. doi:10.1016/j.envres.2024.120415. PMID 39579848. Bibcode: 2025ER....26520415S. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0013935124023223. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
- ↑ Thomas, John A.; Ballantyne, Bryan (May 1992). "Toxicological Assessment of Zeolites" (in en). Journal of the American College of Toxicology 11 (3): 259–273. doi:10.3109/10915819209141860. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.3109/10915819209141860. Retrieved 24 December 2025.
- ↑ Mattioli, Michele; Ballirano, Paolo; Pacella, Alessandro; Cangiotti, Michela; Di Lorenzo, Fulvio; Valentini, Laura; Meli, Maria Assunta; Roselli, Carla et al. (14 May 2022). "Fibrous Ferrierite from Northern Italy: Mineralogical Characterization, Surface Properties, and Assessment of Potential Toxicity". Minerals 12 (5): 626. doi:10.3390/min12050626. Bibcode: 2022Mine...12..626M.
- ↑ Gualtieri, Alessandro F.; Gandolfi, Nicola Bursi; Passaglia, Elio; Pollastri, Simone; Mattioli, Michele; Giordani, Matteo; Ottaviani, Maria Francesca; Cangiotti, Michela et al. (1 July 2018). "Is fibrous ferrierite a potential health hazard? Characterization and comparison with fibrous erionite" (in en). American Mineralogist 103 (7): 1044–1055. doi:10.2138/am-2018-6508. 103844219. Bibcode: 2018AmMin.103.1044G. https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Is-fibrous-ferrierite-a-potential-health-hazard-and-Gualtieri-Gandolfi/2d81cbd9232a2eabdf4d99413c0510886b0e56be. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
- ↑ "More Information on Asbestos Removal" (in en-AU). 2019-07-21. https://asbestosremovalbrisbane.com.au/more-information-on-asbestos-removal/.
- ↑ "Mountain Leather". https://www.mindat.org/min-9168.html.
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