Eternit is a

registered trademark The registered trademark symbol, , is a typographic symbol that provides notice that the preceding word or symbol is a trademark or service mark that has been registered with a national trademark office. A trademark is a symbol, word, or wor ...

for a brand of

fibre cement Fibre cement is a composite building and construction material, used mainly in roofing and facade products because of its strength and durability. One common use is in fiber cement siding on buildings. Material description The term "cement" ori ...

currently owned by the

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

company Etex. Fibre is often applied in building and construction materials, mainly in roofing and facade products.

Material description

The term "cement" originates from the Latin word "''Caementum''", which signifies chopped stone. Cement describes a binding substance, which will react chemically with water and develop into a material hard as stone. In fibre cement there is a fibre reinforcement, which contributes to making the fibre-cement material even stronger and to better withstand

tension Tension may refer to: Science * Psychological stress * Tension (physics), a force related to the stretching of an object (the opposite of compression) * Tension (geology), a stress which stretches rocks in two opposite directions * Voltage or el ...

. Together with a carefully planned production process, fibre cement makes it possible to develop strong and long-lasting construction materials. Today

is considered as a material physically suited for construction products such as cladding and roofing.

Material history

Fibre-reinforced cement-products were invented in the late 19th century by the Austrian Ludwig Hatschek. Principally he mixed 90%

cement A cement is a binder, a chemical substance used for construction that sets, hardens, and adheres to other materials to bind them together. Cement is seldom used on its own, but rather to bind sand and gravel ( aggregate) together. Cement mi ...

and 10% asbestos fibres with water and ran it through a

cardboard Cardboard is a generic term for heavy paper-based products. The construction can range from a thick paper known as paperboard to corrugated fiberboard which is made of multiple plies of material. Natural cardboards can range from grey to light ...

machine. Originally, the fibres were of asbestos and the material was commonly used as siding in house buildings due to its low cost, fire-resistance, water tightness, light weight, and other useful properties. Asbestos is harmful to

health Health, according to the World Health Organization, is "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity".World Health Organization. (2006)''Constitution of the World Health Organiza ...

and produces

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from transformed, malign ...

s years after professional or occasional exposure (

asbestosis Asbestosis is long-term inflammation and scarring of the lungs due to asbestos fibers. Symptoms may include shortness of breath, cough, wheezing, and chest tightness. Complications may include lung cancer, mesothelioma, and pulmonary heart d ...

). Starting from the seventies, asbestos use became progressively prohibited; however, in several countries, it is still used for building materials. Safer fibre alternatives, based on e.g.

cellulose fiber Cellulose fibers () are fibers made with ethers or esters of cellulose, which can be obtained from the bark, wood or leaves of plants, or from other plant-based material. In addition to cellulose, the fibers may also contain hemicellulose and ...

s were developed in the eighties and applied to secure the widely known strength of fibre cement. In countries where asbestos use has been phased out, fibre cement was among the last remaining asbestos-containing materials on the market. The reason is that the asbestos fibres are intimately bound to the cement matrix and were first considered to be well immobilized in the cement and less prone to be released in the environment, suspended in the air, and inhaled in the lung than in other materials or applications such as

thermal insulation Thermal insulation is the reduction of heat transfer (i.e., the transfer of thermal energy between objects of differing temperature) between objects in thermal contact or in range of radiative influence. Thermal insulation can be achieved with ...

or flocking in which bare asbestos fibres were used. However, asbestos fibres are inevitably released during machining operations of the objects made of fibre-cement and by long-term erosion of the materials exposed to atmospheric

weathering Weathering is the deterioration of rocks, soils and minerals as well as wood and artificial materials through contact with water, atmospheric gases, and biological organisms. Weathering occurs ''in situ'' (on site, with little or no movement) ...

and

wind Wind is the natural movement of air or other gases relative to a planet's surface. Winds occur on a range of scales, from thunderstorm flows lasting tens of minutes, to local breezes generated by heating of land surfaces and lasting a few ho ...

when cement degrades.

Occupational health Occupational safety and health (OSH), also commonly referred to as occupational health and safety (OHS), occupational health, or occupational safety, is a multidisciplinary field concerned with the safety, health, and welfare of people at wor ...

concerns and the protection of workers in the fibre-cement

factories A factory, manufacturing plant or a production plant is an industrial facility, often a complex consisting of several buildings filled with machinery, where workers manufacture items or operate machines which process each item into another. T ...

have finally led to the progressive elimination of asbestos from these products. For health reasons, it is recommended that existing fibre-cement products that are in good condition are left undisturbed and possibly encapsulated, to prevent fibre release.Bygga hus: Eternit - byta ut eller bevara
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Material usage

Fibre cement is a main component of long-lasting

building material Building material is material used for construction. Many naturally occurring substances, such as clay, rocks, sand, wood, and even twigs and leaves, have been used to construct buildings. Apart from naturally occurring materials, many man-ma ...

s. The main application areas are roofing and

cladding Cladding is an outer layer of material covering another. It may refer to the following: *Cladding (boiler), the layer of insulation and outer wrapping around a boiler shell *Cladding (construction), materials applied to the exterior of buildings ...

. The list below gives some common applications. Internal cladding: * Wet room applications –

tile Tiles are usually thin, square or rectangular coverings manufactured from hard-wearing material such as ceramic, stone, metal, baked clay, or even glass. They are generally fixed in place in an array to cover roofs, floors, walls, edges, or o ...

backer boards *

Fire protection Fire protection is the study and practice of mitigating the unwanted effects of potentially destructive fires. It involves the study of the behaviour, compartmentalisation, suppression and investigation of fire and its related emergencies, as we ...

Partition wall A wall is a structure and a surface that defines an area; carries a load; provides security, Shelter in place, shelter, or soundproofing; or, is decorative. There are many kinds of walls, including: * Walls in buildings that form a fundamental ...

s *

Window sill A windowsill (also written window sill or window-sill, and less frequently in British English, cill) is the horizontal structure or surface at the bottom of a window. Window sills serve to structurally support and hold the window in place. The ...

s * Ceilings and floors External cladding: * Flat sheets as base and/or architectural facing * Flat sheets for e.g. wind shields, wall copings, and soffits *

Corrugated The term corrugated, describing a series of parallel ridges and furrows, may refer to the following: Materials *Corrugated fiberboard, also called corrugated cardboard *Corrugated galvanised iron, a building material composed of sheets of cold-r ...

sheets * Slates as architectural full and partial facing * Underroof *

Plank Plank may refer to: * Plank (wood), flat, elongated, and rectangular timber with parallel faces * Plank (exercise), an isometric exercise for the abdominal muscles *Martins Creek (Kentucky), the location of Plank post office * ''The Plank'' (1967 f ...

s Roofing: * Slates * Corrugated sheets Fibre-cement products have found a wide usage in various sectors of construction: industrial, agricultural, domestic and residential buildings, mainly in roofing and cladding applications, for new constructions and

refurbishment Refurbishment may refer to: *Refurbishment (electronics) *Antiques restoration *Automotive restoration See also *Conservation and restoration of immovable cultural property *Reconstruction (architecture) * Remanufacturing *Renovation Ren ...

projects.

References

{{Reflist Asbestos Building materials Cement Concrete Composite materials