The Genesis of Asbestos and Asbestiform Mineral

INTRODUCTION THE term asbestos, as commonly used, includes half a dozen minerals all having a well-developed fibrous structure, but differing in chemical composition and in some of their physical, properties. In its strict application the name is limited to the fibrous varieties of the monoclinic amphiboles. Commercially, however, the most important of the asbestiform minerals is chrysotile, a fibrous variety of serpentine. About 95 per cent. of the asbestos used in manufacturing is chrysotile, and it commands a much higher price than any of the other fibrous minerals now on the market. Although the production of asbestos has increased rapidly in recent years, comparatively little has been published concerning its origin. The present paper is preliminary in its nature, and therefore does not pretend to exhaust the subject. The ideas herein developed are the result of field investigation, laboratory experiments in the growth of fibrous