A breakthrough in asbestos abatement will help building owners save money, time, and labor by avoiding the removal and disposal of asbestos-containing material. The new method was collaboratively developed by W.R. Grace and Co. and the Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory. DOE’s Office of Science and Technology, through its Deactivation and Decommissioning Focus Area, contributed a portion of the funds to develop this innovative technology. Grace in Boca Raton, Florida is the world’s leading producer of spray-applied fireproofing.

The new technique, which chemically neutralizes asbestos while it remains in place, does not affect the fire rating of the fireproofing material. A foamy solution, directly sprayed onto asbestos-containing material, chemically digests asbestos fibers and changes them into harmless minerals, which are not regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The process uses a chemical agent to convert asbestos into a nontoxic and nonfibrous form. Extensive, full-scale tests have confirmed that the use of the new product would reduce asbestos to less than one percent of treated fireproofing’s weight, which is considered nonasbestos material by EPA.

The new product, soon to be commercially available, provides several advantages. Not only will building owners save money by avoiding the physical removal of asbestos, but they will also save the expense of waste disposal since the asbestos conversion process produces no waste. This new technique of converting asbestos into a harmless material will speed up the safe abatement of asbestos at thousands of schools, hospitals, houses, and other buildings.