Asbestos Conveyor Belt
Industrial conveyor belts reinforced with woven asbestos for heat resistance in foundries and bakeries.
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Description
Asbestos conveyor belts were manufactured for industrial applications where the conveyed material or the operating environment involved high temperatures. Standard rubber conveyor belts would degrade, ignite, or fail when exposed to hot materials such as molten glass, fresh castings, baked goods, hot-pressed products, or the radiant heat of furnaces and kilns. Asbestos-reinforced belts provided a solution by incorporating woven chrysotile asbestos fabric as the structural reinforcement layer, sometimes combined with a heat-resistant rubber or silicone compound coating.
The asbestos content in these belts varied widely depending on the construction. Some belts used asbestos only in the woven reinforcement plies, with rubber covers on both surfaces, resulting in a relatively low exposure risk during normal operation. Others, designed for extreme temperature applications such as foundry casting lines or glass annealing lehrs, were constructed almost entirely from woven asbestos fabric with minimal or no rubber covering. In the latter configuration, the belt surface directly contacted the conveyed material and shed fibres through normal wear.
Major industrial belt manufacturers including Dunlop, Goodyear, Fenner, Continental, and Bridgestone produced asbestos-reinforced conveyor belts for global markets from the 1930s through the mid-1990s. These belts were installed in steel works, iron foundries, glass manufacturing plants, bakeries and food processing lines (for oven conveyors), laundries (for flatwork ironer belts), cement plants, and chemical processing facilities.
The risk from asbestos conveyor belts depends on their construction and condition. Rubber-covered belts with internal asbestos reinforcement present a low risk when the rubber cover is intact, as the asbestos fibres are fully encapsulated. However, as the belt wears, cracks, or is cut during replacement, the asbestos reinforcement is exposed. All-asbestos fabric belts shed fibres continuously during operation, creating airborne exposure in the immediate vicinity.
Modern heat-resistant conveyor belts use aramid (Kevlar) fabric, fibreglass mesh, silicone-coated polyester, or PTFE (Teflon) belting materials that provide superior heat resistance and durability without any asbestos content.
Pays où on le trouve couramment
Marques commerciales
Comment l'identifier
Asbestos conveyor belts may be difficult to identify visually because the asbestos is often concealed within the belt construction. Look for belts with a woven fabric layer visible at the edges, splice points, or worn areas. The fabric may appear grey-white and fibrous. Belts operating in high-temperature environments in pre-1995 installations should be suspected. All-asbestos belts are distinctive: they appear as woven fabric with no rubber cover and feel cloth-like rather than rubber-like. Any suspect belt should be sampled and tested.
Risque sanitaire et friabilité
Ce matériau a un niveau de risque de 2 sur 5.
Il est classé comme non-friable, ce qui signifie que les fibres d'amiante sont fermement liées dans la matrice du matériau. En bon état et non perturbé, le risque de libération de fibres est faible. Cependant, couper, percer, poncer ou casser le matériau peut libérer des fibres dangereuses.
Que faire si vous trouvez ce matériau
Do not cut, tear, or abrade a suspect conveyor belt without precautions. If replacement is planned, wet the belt surface before cutting to suppress dust. Use sharp tools for clean cuts rather than sawing or grinding which generates more dust. Remove the old belt in the longest practicable sections to minimise the number of cuts. Seal removed belt material in heavy-duty polyethylene wrapping and label as suspected asbestos waste. Have a sample tested, and dispose of confirmed asbestos belts at a licensed waste facility.
Questions fréquentes
Where were asbestos conveyor belts commonly used?
How can I tell if a conveyor belt contains asbestos?
Are bakery conveyor belts a risk?
What replaced asbestos in heat-resistant conveyor belts?
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