Fiber-cement products (or asbestos cement) use approximately 90% of the world chrysotile production. Roofing tiles, insulating material, partitions, pipes and water tanks are only some of the examples. Containing less than 10% of chrysotile asbestos fibers and approximately 90% of cement and aggregates, these products are more economical, durable, light and resistant. In Brazil, the asbestos fiber cement sector operates 17 plants, located in 10 States. They employ more than 5 thousand people in the production of 1.3 million tons of products a year.

Other products made with fiber cement:

• Pipes: although they are not commonly used in Brazil, fiber cement pipes have been used extensively in the world to transport drinking water; in irrigation, drainage and sewage systems; in ducts for air-conditioning, ventilation and electrical wiring.
• • Panels: used for civil construction, both for commercial and industrial facilities, they offer numerous advantages because they are versatile and incombustible. In airports, they don’t interfere with radio or radar waves.

Brake pads and linings, clutch discs for cars, trucks, tractors, subway trains and cranes are just some examples.

No other material, besides asbestos, is capable of providing, individually, the characteristics that these products require: mechanical and thermal resistance (to cold and heat), durability and the ability to withstand the attack of chemical agents, such as oil and grease. These materials usually contain 25 to 70% of asbestos, which is generally fixated in a resin matrix and encapsulated.

OCloth made with asbestos thread is flexible, impermeable and has the advantage of serving as thermal and electrical insulators. They are also known for their chemical and mechanical resistance. One kilo of fiber can produce up to 20 thousand meters of thread. For this reason, asbestos is used for making materials such as:

• lagging for boilers, automobile engines, water and sewage pipes, as well as equipment used in the chemical and oil industries;
• special protective clothing (overalls, aprons, gloves);
• Fireproof walls and partitions.

The filtering capacity of asbestos and its resistance to bacteria makes it specially suited for filters used in the pharmaceutical or beverage industry (beer and wines) and in the chlorine-sodium industry. Other types of filters and diaphragms are also made for use with liquids, vapors or gas, at temperatures of up to 600º C, because they are resistant to many chemical agents.

Asbestos fibers, when aggregated to a matrix, then covered or fixated by substances such as resin and graphite, can be made into paper or cardboard laminates. These laminates are used for thermal and electrical insulation in ovens, boilers, greenhouses and pipes for maritime use.

Asbestos cloth and cardboard is used to produce couplings, different types of clutch linings, in addition to mastic and special compounds. These products are used in the oil and automotive industry in which characteristics such as thermal resistance and tensile strength, as well as reaction and action towards chemical and biological agents are key.

The aeronautical and air and space industries consider asbestos an important ally, as it is the ideal material to make plates and other elements used for thermal insulation. The mineral is used to protect supersonic airplanes, rockets and spaceships.

This application is still not as important as the others. Asbestos is more commonly used in tiles or continuous mats, also known are vinyl flooring. Flooring tiles are made with asbestos fibers (around 10%), resin, dyes and additives. Because of the asbestos in them, these tiles are dimensionally stable, resistant, durable, and have antiskid properties.

Asbestos fibrils have properties that other natural materials do not have:

• Homogeneity;
• Chemical stability even in environments with different pH;
• Large specific surface, which enables the absorption of a large number of molecules;
• The external surface is basic and compatible with water.

Recent papers from UNICAMP indicate that asbestos can be used as:

• Cleaning agents for rivers because they absorb molecules from detergents;
• As ancillary material for the reuse of certain reagents in industrial processes (e.g.: enzymes);
• They allow isomers to become separated in drug synthesis.