BASALT INSTEAD OF ASBESTOS

Basalt has quickly been included in the category of the most important compositional and structural materials of the 21st century, and it is high time for it to be developed in Azerbaijan. This was told R+ by Azerbaijani merited geologist Vasif Xalilzada. Why is it so important? The thing is that the basalt fibre is kind of similar to asbestos materials in their characteristics. However, asbestos and asbestos-containing dusts are classified as carcinogens of fibrogenic action. At present, their industrial production and applications not only are drastically reduced but even prohibited in a number of countries. Thus, the relevance of replacing brittle asbestos-containing materials with flexible and safe materials based on basalt fibres is beyond any doubt.

Pros and cons of asbestos

The World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) urge people to be wary of asbestos. "It came to the point," Xalilzada says, "that in the industrialised countries (the USA, Europe) relevant directives have been adopted and approved at the level of governments prohibiting not only the production of asbestos-based products but even the importation of such products or raw materials from abroad. According ILO data, the annual number of deaths due to contact with this substance is in the range of 100,000-140,000 people. The EU figures are more impressive - about 500,000 deaths every year."

But what are these asbestos products? The scientist says that the scope of asbestos application is actually very broad, and the inhabitants are even not aware how often they come into contact with it. Asbestos pipes, corrugated asbestos board, veneer, fabric for clothing of metallurgists and fire-fighters. After all, asbestos shields from harmful radiation, bacteria and even radioactive substances. This mineral is used in different filters and banknotes as it imparts them the necessary flexibility and strength. As can be seen, asbestos products adequately serve their intended purposes with respect to many specifications, but the harm caused to human health outweighs any benefits. For this reason, the use of asbestos has been prohibited in the United States and Europe. However, such products continue to be sold by Russia, which ranks first in terms of the volume of production and manufacture of asbestos-containing products. Consequently, Russia's economic losses due to the ban of asbestos will be enormous, given that more than half of the output is exported including to Azerbaijan.

It should be noted, the scientist continues, that environmental problems, along with some other factors, played a major role in certain curtailment of the world production of asbestos-containing products over the last decades. In the process of industrial development of deposits of asbestos and its processing, as well as in using asbestos-containing products, the environment is contaminated with small, needle-like particles of asbestos invisible to the naked eye, which accumulate in the lungs of humans and other living beings and lead to fatal consequences in a short period of time. Today, the urgency of replacing brittle asbestos-containing materials with flexible and safe materials cannot be doubted, he says.

In addition, the achievements of science and technology in the identification of new types of minerals which by their technological and environmental performance as mineral wool and composite fillers are by far superior not only to asbestos but other mineral-fibre materials also contributed to reduction in the production of asbestos-containing products. Meanwhile, ordinary cenotypal basalt, which is one of the most widespread minerals on earth, proved to be an adequate substitute for asbestos and a number of other asbestos-based fine-fibre fillers of composite materials. In Azerbaijan, such basalt is found in the Kalbacar District, which is now occupied by Armenia, and in the mountainous zone of Talis-Lerik-Astara.

Basalt capabilities

"On the basis of basalt fibres," the scientist explains, "a large range of filtration, structural, reinforcing, sound-absorbing and insulating materials is produced. This includes rolls and mats, cardboard, plates, filtration mats, sheets and shaped basalt fibre-reinforced polymers (BFRP), coarse and fine fibre, wear-resistant parts and many more. Basaltic ash is used for production of high-quality anti-corrosion coatings. Plus basalt is used as a filler for concrete and is the main raw material for the production of acid-resistant powder."

Basalt fibres have unique qualities: a high level of physical, mechanical and chemical characteristics, high resistance to aggressive media and vibration, durability (at least 100 years), retention of stable properties during long term use in a variety of conditions, and good adhesion to various binders, which in turn defines them as a promising material for new composite materials - BFRP and BFRP products for various purposes. Basalt fibres are environmentally friendly, incombustible, and explosion-proof and do not emit hazardous substances in the air and water environments. They can completely replace carcinogenic asbestos in all areas of its application exhibiting superior properties, including thermal insulation, which is higher by more than threefold!

Leading scientists from various countries rightly consider basalt fibres as the basis of the materials science of the 21st century and predict that they will have bright prospects in the course of further technical progress. World experience shows that the basalt fibre products originally designed for aviation and rocket technology have been widely used in the construction industry, energy and utilities sectors and many other sectors of the economy in the last 15-20 years.

As is known, the future costs associated with the construction of various monumental and especially high-rise buildings for particular purposes can be estimated based on the density of the materials used. In this context, it should be noted that the density of mineral (basalt) wool is lower than the density of steel by 200-fold, reinforced concrete - by 60-fold, and brick - by 45-fold. Meanwhile, the thermal conductivity of basalt wool is by two orders of magnitude lower than that of reinforced concrete and by the order of magnitude lower than that of brick. An important aspect is that the production of mineral wool is almost waste-free.

It should be added that basalt fibres are usually obtained from cheap single-component raw material, i.e. basalt, through a one-step process, which contributes to its cheap cost that is lower by 15-20 per cent as compared to glass and by many time over as compared to other fibres. In production, 1 kg of raw material actually yields 1 kg of finished basalt fibre, and one wagon of basalt yields 20 wagons of basalt wool. Installations for the production of basalt fibres are environmentally friendly, compact and emit practically no industrial wastes in operation.

Vasif Xalilzada says that a preliminary survey of the basalt crop line on the daylight surface in the mountainous area of Qorni Talis indicate a possible presence of large volumes of high quality basalts suitable for use without additional charging of raw material. Geological and prospecting works on the preliminary assessment of resources and quality of raw materials in Qorni Talis continue. There is no doubt that the necessary resources will be successfully identified here.

"It is unfortunate that Azerbaijan is currently neither producer nor consumer of basalt products. I would like to encourage entrepreneurs and relevant state agencies of Azerbaijan to finally pay attention to our inexhaustible resources of basalts. Their integrated development would contribute to a sharp rise of the non-oil sector of Azerbaijan and the creation of new jobs in the sphere of industrial production in the mountainous and foothill regions."