Is this asbestos in my exhaust pipe?

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roma165

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Hi all,
I’m starting a project to renew my exhaust system by adding a silencer. I’m concerned with the possibility that there is asbestos in the isolation material that cover my exhaust pipe. In that case I want to apply some precausion.

Can you check if you recognize any asbestos in the material shown in the enclosed pictures?

https://www.dropbox.com/s/9yr557xz5krb02n/IMG_0508.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/elrk2i1lkmf9493/IMG_0510.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/y6dhwa2amflx55r/IMG_0512.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/pj6qmov8howshis/IMG_0514.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/ek7ozxu7vlxeqp4/IMG_0516.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/f0wy7as2oqx5e5p/IMG_0580.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/vbevesxw97ys6kw/IMG_0582.JPG?dl=0

Extra info:
It's a steel motor boat with a Diesel engine OM 636 marine. The boat has been renewed sometime 20 years ago by two owners before me and there are no information whatsoever on the components used. The exhaust system is dry with only a pipe that run from the heat exchanger of the engine all way to the stern of the boat with no other elements in between.

Thank you.

Best regards,
Gianluca.
 
It is not possible to tell from pictures as the substitutes are very similar, the aluminium foil casing hiding the fibrous material makes it even more difficult, if it is less than 40 years old it should not be but who can tell what may have been used from old stock. If you take a sample to a lab. they will tell you, once you know you will have to deal with it appropriately which may require specialist help. Undisturbed encased asbestos fibres are not dangerous but because the damage to lungs is so serious, extreme care is demanded if it can be disturbed.
I think you should seek help closer to home.
 
I am no expert but some of the pics seem to show ordinary house insulation with a foil cover. 0516 has the appearance of asbestos but so did lots of other materials. If the work was done 'only' 20 years ago then the dangers of asbestos were well known.
 
Balance of probabilities that it is not. IIRC asbestos is more randomly fibrous in 'plastered' installations.

If you want to chip some off and take it to a local asbestos removal firm for verification, then soak it in PVC glue thinned down to the consistency of soup. This makes everything stick together. PPE also
 
It looks to me very much like standard fibreglass quilt. Certainly the orange/yellow appearance is typical of fibreglass quilt. Also the metal foil covering with the grid pattern to it is typical of commercial pipe insulation with fibreglass. Asbestos lagging usually has a cloth/canvas backing to it rather than foil. Only way to be certain though is to have a sample analysed by a lab.

Asbestos was still in use in construction into the 1990's. Who knows when it ceased in boat manufacture, especially diy refits and the like where people might have had bits lying around in their shed.
 
roma165 said:
Hi all,
I’m starting a project to renew my exhaust system by adding a silencer. I’m concerned with the possibility that there is asbestos in the isolation material that cover my exhaust pipe. In that case I want to apply some precausion.

Can you check if you recognize any asbestos in the material shown in the enclosed pictures?

https://www.dropbox.com/s/9yr557xz5krb02n/IMG_0508.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/elrk2i1lkmf9493/IMG_0510.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/y6dhwa2amflx55r/IMG_0512.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/pj6qmov8howshis/IMG_0514.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/ek7ozxu7vlxeqp4/IMG_0516.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/f0wy7as2oqx5e5p/IMG_0580.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/vbevesxw97ys6kw/IMG_0582.JPG?dl=0

Extra info:
It's a steel motor boat with a Diesel engine OM 636 marine. The boat has been renewed sometime 20 years ago by two owners before me and there are no information whatsoever on the components used. The exhaust system is dry with only a pipe that run from the heat exchanger of the engine all way to the stern of the boat with no other elements in between.

Thank you.

Best regards,
Gianluca.
Click to expand...

Looks like glass fibre or mineral wool to me!

Not sure what pcatterall is seeing in 0516

Identifying asbestos insulation was part of my job at one time.

Even without the special polarised light microscopy techniques used in a lab you can be pretty sure to recognise asbestos fibres with a powerful magnifier or an ordinary low power microscope . Glass and mineral wool fibres are discrete fibres. Asbestos fibres can be broken down into finer fibres
 
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