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Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute (JASRI) RIKEN SPring-8 Center, Harima Institute |
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| SPring-8 high brilliant X-ray has achieved a less than 0.1 weight % asbestos detection by powder diffraction. | |
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Asbestos had been widely utilized as convenient building material for long period. But, that is now one of the most topical materials causing critical social health problem, because many cases about causal relationship between asbestos and lung mesothelioma have been reported. Asbestos is a sort of mineral ores in a form of fiber. The diameter of asbestos fiber is as long as one five-thousandth of the human hair. The X-ray powder diffraction has been adopted as a quantitative analysis method to detect trace of the fiber materials. However, the conventional analytical method for screening and detection of asbestos use has several intrinsic problems with regard to analytical precision exemplified by the detectable concentration limit close to the legally regulated concentration, and in addition time consuming. Groups in Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute (JASRI) and RIKEN SPring-8 Center, Harima Institute, attempted to improve the analytical technique of asbestos by use of advanced powder diffraction method and 1,000,000 times higher brilliant X-ray emanating from SPring-8 than that of laboratory X-ray source. As the result, they found extraordinary improvement of detectable asbestos concentration limit; asbestos can be detected by 0.02 weight % concentration in 5 seconds measurement with a sample on-a-filter paper. This improved analytic method is about hundred times more sensitive than that of the conventional method by which detectable concentration is limited up to 1.0 weight % concentration. At SPring-8, they are now tackling to develop the high-throughput method based on the present results and shall establish the highest-speed and the highest-precision routine-characterization system of asbestos. |
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