Mineralogical and Morphological Characterization of Industrially Used Pyrophyllite from Pütürge (Malatya, Türkiye): Assessing Asbestiform Habit for Health Risk

Date

2025-04-29

Author

Aykasım, Devin
Toksoy Köksal, Fatma

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In Pütürge region of Malatya, Türkiye, there are important deposits of pyrophyllite, a mineralwidely utilized in industrial applications such as white cement production. In this study,pyrophyllite samples from the region are subjected to detailed mineralogical and morphologicalcharacterization. Bulk powder and clay fraction analyses conducted via X-ray diffraction (XRD)revealed that the samples predominantly consist of pyrophyllite, quartz, muscovite, and kaolinite,with occasional illite. Scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive spectroscopy(SEM-EDS) confirmed a high purity level of pyrophyllite, with rutile as the primary impurity in thestudied samples.Morphological analysis of pyrophyllite using SEM highlighted presence of dominant lamellarcrystals with a minor occurrence of fibrous habit. Given the widespread industrial usage ofpyrophyllite in Türkiye, this observation raised concerns about its asbestiform nature due topotential health risks, including respiratory diseases such as asbestosis, lung cancer, andmesothelioma, which result from the inhalation of fine, elongated fibers capable of penetratingdeep into the lungs and causing long-term damage to lung tissue and the pleura. However,whether all fibrous minerals pose health risks remains a topic of ongoing debate in contemporaryresearch. According to the criteria established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA),asbestiform fibers are defined by their aspect ratios, fibril width, and specific morphologicalfeatures. Pyrophyllite fibers observed in this study exhibit mean aspect ratios of 4:1 to 10:1 forfibers longer than 5 μm in contrary to the definition of EPA. In addition, widths ranging between0.4 μm and 3.5 μm, and no occurrences of fiber bundles or spayed ends are observed, althoughsome fibers demonstrated curvature. Based on these observations, it is concluded that the fibrouspyrophyllite in the analyzed samples does not exhibit asbestiform characteristics and thereforedoes not pose a health risk in industrial applications.

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https://hdl.handle.net/11511/119689

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Department of Geological Engineering, Conference / Seminar