Evaluation of asbestos dispersion during laser ablation of rocks containing Naturally Occurring Asbestos (NOA).

Health risks are often overlooked when the short-term consequences are not immediately apparent. During restoration work, cleaning actions can generate particles that pose health risks to workers through inhalation. This is particularly true in the case of asbestos fibres that might be spread out from the laser cleaning of buildings or heritage artifacts made of stone, such as serpentinite and other ultramafic rocks, that have a high probability of containing asbestos (e.

Assessing potentially toxic elements (PTEs) content in asbestos and related groundwater: A review of the levels detected.

This article provides a review of published literature on the concentration levels of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) in asbestos minerals like chrysotile, actinolite, amosite (asbestiform grunerite), anthophyllite, crocidolite (asbestiform riebeckite) and tremolite and their potential to release PTEs into groundwaters worldwide. A large number of PTEs, such as Fe, Cr, Ni, Mn, Co and Zn, may be hosted by asbestos minerals, and their release in the lung environment can cause different health problems as well as their intake via drinking water. The review highlights that amosite is the phase with the highest PTEs content, followed by crocidolite, actinolite, anthophyllite, tremolite and chrysotile.

Advanced argillic alteration at Cave di Caolino, Lipari, Aeolian Islands (Italy): Implications for the mitigation of volcanic risks and the exploitation of geothermal resources.

Four sites in the western sector of Lipari Island with still active hydrothermal activity are here considered. The petrography (mesoscopic observations and XRPD) and geochemistry (major, minor and trace elements chemistry) of ten representative and extremely altered volcanic rocks were characterized. Two types of parageneses of altered rocks are discriminable, one rich in silicate phases (opal/cristobalite, montmorillonite, kaolinite, alunite and hematite) and one in sulphates (gypsum, plus minor amounts of anhydrite or bassanite).

Hydrogeochemical and isotopic characterization of the Gioia Tauro coastal Plain (Calabria - southern Italy): A multidisciplinary approach for a focused management of vulnerable strategic systems.

This work pursues the hydro-geochemical and isotopic characterization of the complex groundwater system of the Gioia Tauro Plain, one of the most important industrialized and agricultural coastal areas of southern Italy. The anthropic pressure exposes the water resources at risk of depletion and quality degradation making the plain groundwater a system of high scientific and social interest. The plain is characterized by a shallow aquifer, mostly recharged by local rains and a deep aquifer apparently less influenced by local precipitation.