Aluminum Smelters and Asbestos Exposure FAQ
Aluminum is critical to many products we use daily, from beer cans to cars to aircraft. It’s light, strong, and like other metals, must be heated to very high temperatures to melt.
This industrial process was helped along for decades by asbestos, which insulated equipment and was part of safety gear worn by workers. The mineral fiber shielded them from heat but may have caused them cancer years or decades after their exposure.
How Did Aluminum Smelters Expose Workers to Asbestos?
The smelting process starts with extracting alumina from the mineral bauxite in a two-step process. Bauxite is heated and mixed with chemicals, and the alumina is filtered out. Huge amounts of electricity are used to dissolve what becomes aluminum, which is separated from other materials, and collected. The process involves heat as high as 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit.
That extreme heat is one reason asbestos was used in smelters for insulation, fire protection, equipment, and protective clothing.
Why Was Asbestos Used in Aluminum Smelters?
Asbestos is a natural mineral fiber that’s resistant to heat, fire, and electricity.
For hundreds of years up to the late 1970s, asbestos was in thousands of products because of these and other properties, including aluminum smelters.
Intact asbestos products aren’t dangerous. Problems arise when fibers come loose when products are installed, disturbed, age, repaired, or replaced. You can’t see a fiber because it’s too small, but they’re visible when enough is in the air or collected on floors or equipment. Anyone in the area may swallow or inhale them.
What Happens When Asbestos Fibers From Aluminum Smelters Enter the Body?
Asbestos fibers are highly toxic when they get into the body. If they are:
- Inhaled, they may cause lung cancer, asbestosis (severe breathing problems), and a fatal cancer of the membrane lining the chest cavity, lungs, and heart (pleural and pericardial mesothelioma)
- Swallowed, they may travel through the digestive tract and cause peritoneal mesothelioma, which affects membranes lining abdominal organs and the abdominal cavity
Asbestos was mainly used as heat insulation and to prevent fires. As time passed, medical research showed asbestos’ health threats, but those profiting from asbestos, including employers, denied the truth for decades. It wasn’t until the late 1970s that government regulations greatly reduced its use.
Where Was Asbestos Used in Aluminum Smelters?
The smelting process carries a risk of overheating equipment and accidental fires. Asbestos was widely used in these facilities to reduce and control these risks. Asbestos helped keep equipment handling molten metal hot, making the process more efficient. Workers also used protective clothing containing asbestos.
Asbestos-containing refractory materials were used for insulation in very high-temperature settings like a smelter. They included:
- Firebrick
- Blocks
- Cement
- Paste
- Insulation
How Were Aluminum Smelter Workers Exposed to Asbestos?
Dry asbestos cement mixes were mixed with water, creating clouds of fibers, then applied in the production area. High heat would deteriorate the masonry in a smelter, so it was insulated with asbestos.
But it could only do so much, so after enough damage was done, asbestos-coated masonry would be demolished and replaced, putting fibers into the air.
What Health Risks Do Aluminum Smelter Workers Face After Asbestos Exposure?
Instead of enjoying their “golden years,” many older and retired workers are dealing with serious asbestos-related diseases decades after exposure, including:
- Lung cancer
- Asbestosis
- Pleural mesothelioma
- Peritoneal mesothelioma
- Other asbestos-related cancers
These cancers are expensive to treat, debilitating, painful, and nearly always fatal.
Can Aluminium Smelter Works Get Compensated for Asbestos Exposure?
Yes, if you or a loved one has had health issues due to asbestos exposure from aluminum smelters, you can be compensated for the damages you’ve faced.
Decades of legal claims and litigation have driven the asbestos industry out of business. To get bankruptcy protection from these liabilities, companies created trust funds for injured workers now worth billions of dollars. This money can pay medical costs and compensate those who worked in aluminum smelters who are harmed by asbestos.
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If you or a loved one worked at an aluminum smelter and are diagnosed with mesothelioma or another asbestos-related disease, you may have legal rights to compensation. Satterley & Kelley lawyers can answer your questions, discuss these rights, and how to protect them. You can call our Louisville office at 502-589-5600 or toll-free at 855-385-9532. You can also fill out our contact form and schedule a free initial consultation.
Click here for more information about other workers exposed to asbestos.