Heres another one.
When a crew does an asbestos abatement, do they build a tent around the engine or can they do it out in the open, just wet the material down and remove it?
And, where is the asbestos? I know its all around the boiler and steam dome under the jacket, and on the cylinders, but what about the air pump? I dont think so.

thanks
Alan

adofmsu@aol.com

Alan,

When the engine that was in Beaumont had its asbestos removed, a tent was indeed erected around it. Not only was engine itself abated, no doubt the ground around it was too; such ground may also contain oil or creosote.

Asbestos was used as an insulation, and could be found under the boiler jacket, around the steam dome, under the cylinder jacket, and on any steam piping. I would imagine where it was actually found varied from engine to engine, depending on the size of the engine.

If it was a steam driven air pump, the pipes leading to the pump and maybe the pump itself may have been insulated with asbestos. I'm sure there are others who can answer that one for sure.

-James Hefner
Hebrews 10:20a

> Heres another one.
> When a crew does an asbestos abatement, do
> they build a tent around the engine or can
> they do it out in the open, just wet the
> material down and remove it?
> And, where is the asbestos? I know its all
> around the boiler and steam dome under the
> jacket, and on the cylinders, but what about
> the air pump? I dont think so.

> thanks
> Alan


Surviving World Steam Locomotives
james1@pernet.net

Strictly speaking, the locomotive should be inside a temporary closure with a negative pressure system to collect fibers of the asbestos as it is churned up in the air. Asbestos can be wet using a surfactant to soak the water into the fibers, and then removed like wet paste. Asbestos lagging covered the boilers, and was wound around the pipes in a gauze-like fiber. What was once thought to be the ultimate safety tool for insulating boilers turned out to be rather nasty stuff. In Ron Ziel's first book, "The Twilight of Steam", he shows a Burlington 2-10-4 (#6316) being torn apart in Sterling, Ill. The showers of asbestos lagging that rained out of the ripped apart boil are like a heavy blizzard! I would say with some confidence that all over the country, scrap yards and railroad shops are knee deep in the deadly white powder. Asbestos does not leach in the soil, however, so it stays in place once it's wet and buried.
It's interesting to note that asbestos apparently does not cause cancer in Canada, were it is still mine with abandon, and tumble-weeds of the fibers roll along the open pits. :-)


glueck@saturn.caps.maine.edu

Alan, there is a better than average chance that insulation high in Astuff content is around the steam cyllinders of the air pumps. Please be careful.

Dave

irondave@bellsouth.net

If a large portion is to be done such as boiler and or cylinders then a tent or full envelope is required as has been stated. (One additional thing about doing a job in a "tent", air samples must be taken to ensure it is environmentally safe to dismantle the enclosure).

However, if a relatively small item like a length of pipe insulation is to be done, what is refered to as a glove bag is be used. It wraps around the pipe and is sealed allowing access through gloves like working in a sand blasting cabinet. It contains the needed tools, wipes, etc. to get the job done in an enclosed space. There are regulations on this practice as to amount abated and or area dealt with.

Do the effects of asbestos on the body change as the fibers age?

Will stuff that has been sitting in the weather for fifty years be less dangerous because it has chemically broken down more? Or will it be more so because it is physically broken down more, and maybe able to penetrate the lung tissue better? What about the stuff that had been on an operating locomotive for years as opposed to asbestos freshly applied?

angelinanotgrimk@aol.com

> Do the effects of asbestos on the body
> change as the fibers age?

> Will stuff that has been sitting in the
> weather for fifty years be less dangerous
> because it has chemically broken down more?
> Or will it be more so because it is
> physically broken down more, and maybe able
> to penetrate the lung tissue better? What
> about the stuff that had been on an
> operating locomotive for years as opposed to
> asbestos freshly applied?

From what I remember from science class many years ago. The A stuff is actually a type of mineral. Its molicule is hooked shaped on both ends which is what makes it form into a fabric so easily. It's this hook shape that causes problems when it is breathed in, it will literally catch in the tissue in the lungs. Once it has hooked the tissue it is only a matter of time before damage to the lung can get serious. The following link to the American Lung Association web site has more info if your interested.


American Lung Association: Asbestos
crisolite@aol.com