Non-asbestos fibre content of selected consumer products

The use of asbestos in consumer products such as joint compounds and modelling clays has been banned since these products, in normal use, have the potential to produce high levels of fibrous dusts in ambient air. However, we were concerned that the asbestos fibres present in these products would be replaced by other fibrous materials. X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy analyses were performed to identify the crystalline components, including mineral fibres, in a selection of 45 samples. Using quantitative X-ray diffractometry, it was established that the fibrous content of several consumer products was in the range of 1-5%. The widespread use of attapulgite in cat litters, joint and spackling compounds and to a lesser extent in art supplies was confirmed. It was also shown that the attapulgite fibres detected were generally in the same size range as chrysotile, with diameters of 0.03-0.5 microns and lengths up to 4 microns.