to the new and old lapidarist
Aug 8, 2014 10:48:28 GMT -5
gingerkid, rockjunquie, and 4 more like this
Post by transcendental on Aug 8, 2014 10:48:28 GMT -5
My recent find of asbestos got me thinking....There is a post in this portion of the forum about lapidary safety, along with another post elsewhere on the forum about serpentine safety, and a steady influx of new members both to the forum and the hobby. I felt compelled to create a post for those of you I've come to know over the past 2 months and those of you I've yet be introduced to reminding you all that even the most seasoned veteran to lapidary arts is not impervious to risk whether it be machine related or mineral, and to those of you new to the hobby to ensure a safe working environment and proper disposal of waste as to ensure the safety of others. Aside from the obvious risk related to the machinery side of lapidary arts many minerals are known to be toxic via ingestion or inhalation. Many contain heavy metals that prolonged exposure to can lead to complications, others are silicate based and cause respiratory issues, and leading back to my asbestos find, there are 6 main types of mineral classified as asbestos (many more related but not classified at this point in time) that can be found in a myriad of host rocks. Below is a list of the more commonly used stones and their toxic properties:
Actinolite - asbestos
Adamite - zinc, copper
Amazonite - copper
Amber - toxic dust, fumes, possible trapped bacteria or virii, possible ingestive toxicity
Angelite - lead, sulphur
Anthophyllite - asbestos
Aragonite - sometimes contains lead
Atacamite - copper
Atlantisite - contains Serpentine (see below)
Auricalcite - zinc and copper
Azurite - copper
Boji-stones/Kansas Pop Rocks - may contain sulphur
Bronchantite - copper
Celestite aka Celestine - aluminum
Cerrusite - sulphur, molybdenum
Chalcantite (aka "blue shit") - copper
Chalcopyrite (Peacock Stone, Peacock Ore) - copper and sulphur
Charoite - barium, strontium
Chrysacolla (Chrysocolla) - copper
Chrysotile - asbestos
Cinnabar - mercury, VERY TOXIC
Cobaltocalcite (Pink Cobalt Calcite) - cobalt
Conicalcite - copper
Copper - copper
Coral - organic, may contain bacteria as well as pollutants from toxic materials in the water it forms in
Chrysoprase - nickel
Crocidolite - asbestos
Cuprite - copper
Diopside - copper
Dioptase - copper
Eliat Stone - copper
Emerald - aluminum
Feldspar - aluminum
Fluorite - source of dangerous gas hydrofluoride
Garnet - aluminum
Gem Silica - copper
Galena/ Galenite - lead
Garnierite (Genthite, Falcondoite) - nickel
Hematite - iron
Hiddenite - aluminum
Howlite - boron, boron oxide, borate
Iolite - aluminum
Jade (Jadeite) - aluminum, iron
Jade (Nephrite) - aluminum, iron, titanium
Kambaba Jasper - cyanobacteria and possible cyanotoxins
Kansas Pop Rocks - may contain sulphur
Kunzite - aluminum
Kyanite - aluminum
Labradorite - aluminum
Lapis Lazuli - may contain copper, sulphur
Leopard (Skin) Jasper - iron
Marcasite (Markasite) - sulphur
Magnetite (Lodestone) - iron in large quantities
Malachite - copper
Merlinite - barite, iron
Meteorite - may contain many toxic substances
Mohawkite - copper, arsenic
Moldavite - aluminum
Molybdenum - molybdenum
Moonstone - may contain aluminum or other toxic substances
Mother of Pearl - organic, may contain bacteria as well as pollutants from toxic materials in the water it forms in
Ocean Jasper - iron
Opal - toxic dust for inhalation at least
Paraiba Blue Quartz - aluminum in the tourmaline component
Pearl - organic, may contain bacteria as well as pollutants from toxic materials in the water it forms in
Psiomelane - barium
Pyrite (Fool's Gold, Inca Gold) - sulphur
Quartz (all types) - toxic dust for inhalation
Realgar - sulfur, arsenic
Rhodocrosite (Rhodochrosite) - lead
Rose Quartz - iron / titanium
Ruby - aluminum
Sapphire - aluminum
Sepentine (fibrous type) - asbestos
Sodalite - aluminum
Spinel - may contain aluminum, zinc
Stibnite - lead, antimony
Smithsonite (Galmei, Zinc spar)- zinc, may contain copper
Spinel - aluminum
Spodumene (incl Kunzite, Hiddenite) - aluminum
Strawberry Quartz (natural) - hematite/iron inclusions
Stromatolite - cyanobacteria and possible cyanotoxins
Sulphur - sulphur
Sunstone - Aluminum
Tiger's Eye - asbestos
Topaz - aluminum
Tourmaline - aluminum
Tremolite - asbestos
Turquoise - copper
Unakite - aliminum/iron
Uranium - radioactive mineral
Vanadanite - lead
Variscite - aluminum
Wulfenite - lead, molybdenum
Now this thread was not created to scare anyone away from lapidary arts but just to serve as a reminder that mother nature can be a cruel woman and as with any hobby or pastime there is a safe way and an unsafe way to go about it. As always I wish you all happy hounding, sawing, grinding amd tumbling and I look forward to seeing many more of your wonderful works and living vicariously thru your adventures with live and admiration
Actinolite - asbestos
Adamite - zinc, copper
Amazonite - copper
Amber - toxic dust, fumes, possible trapped bacteria or virii, possible ingestive toxicity
Angelite - lead, sulphur
Anthophyllite - asbestos
Aragonite - sometimes contains lead
Atacamite - copper
Atlantisite - contains Serpentine (see below)
Auricalcite - zinc and copper
Azurite - copper
Boji-stones/Kansas Pop Rocks - may contain sulphur
Bronchantite - copper
Celestite aka Celestine - aluminum
Cerrusite - sulphur, molybdenum
Chalcantite (aka "blue shit") - copper
Chalcopyrite (Peacock Stone, Peacock Ore) - copper and sulphur
Charoite - barium, strontium
Chrysacolla (Chrysocolla) - copper
Chrysotile - asbestos
Cinnabar - mercury, VERY TOXIC
Cobaltocalcite (Pink Cobalt Calcite) - cobalt
Conicalcite - copper
Copper - copper
Coral - organic, may contain bacteria as well as pollutants from toxic materials in the water it forms in
Chrysoprase - nickel
Crocidolite - asbestos
Cuprite - copper
Diopside - copper
Dioptase - copper
Eliat Stone - copper
Emerald - aluminum
Feldspar - aluminum
Fluorite - source of dangerous gas hydrofluoride
Garnet - aluminum
Gem Silica - copper
Galena/ Galenite - lead
Garnierite (Genthite, Falcondoite) - nickel
Hematite - iron
Hiddenite - aluminum
Howlite - boron, boron oxide, borate
Iolite - aluminum
Jade (Jadeite) - aluminum, iron
Jade (Nephrite) - aluminum, iron, titanium
Kambaba Jasper - cyanobacteria and possible cyanotoxins
Kansas Pop Rocks - may contain sulphur
Kunzite - aluminum
Kyanite - aluminum
Labradorite - aluminum
Lapis Lazuli - may contain copper, sulphur
Leopard (Skin) Jasper - iron
Marcasite (Markasite) - sulphur
Magnetite (Lodestone) - iron in large quantities
Malachite - copper
Merlinite - barite, iron
Meteorite - may contain many toxic substances
Mohawkite - copper, arsenic
Moldavite - aluminum
Molybdenum - molybdenum
Moonstone - may contain aluminum or other toxic substances
Mother of Pearl - organic, may contain bacteria as well as pollutants from toxic materials in the water it forms in
Ocean Jasper - iron
Opal - toxic dust for inhalation at least
Paraiba Blue Quartz - aluminum in the tourmaline component
Pearl - organic, may contain bacteria as well as pollutants from toxic materials in the water it forms in
Psiomelane - barium
Pyrite (Fool's Gold, Inca Gold) - sulphur
Quartz (all types) - toxic dust for inhalation
Realgar - sulfur, arsenic
Rhodocrosite (Rhodochrosite) - lead
Rose Quartz - iron / titanium
Ruby - aluminum
Sapphire - aluminum
Sepentine (fibrous type) - asbestos
Sodalite - aluminum
Spinel - may contain aluminum, zinc
Stibnite - lead, antimony
Smithsonite (Galmei, Zinc spar)- zinc, may contain copper
Spinel - aluminum
Spodumene (incl Kunzite, Hiddenite) - aluminum
Strawberry Quartz (natural) - hematite/iron inclusions
Stromatolite - cyanobacteria and possible cyanotoxins
Sulphur - sulphur
Sunstone - Aluminum
Tiger's Eye - asbestos
Topaz - aluminum
Tourmaline - aluminum
Tremolite - asbestos
Turquoise - copper
Unakite - aliminum/iron
Uranium - radioactive mineral
Vanadanite - lead
Variscite - aluminum
Wulfenite - lead, molybdenum
Now this thread was not created to scare anyone away from lapidary arts but just to serve as a reminder that mother nature can be a cruel woman and as with any hobby or pastime there is a safe way and an unsafe way to go about it. As always I wish you all happy hounding, sawing, grinding amd tumbling and I look forward to seeing many more of your wonderful works and living vicariously thru your adventures with live and admiration