X-ray and infrared spectroscopy study on contamination of asbestos in Thai commercial cosmetic talc powder product

Abstract

It is well-known that asbestos such as asbestosis and mesothelioma is a fiber causing lung diseases. Talc is used for commercial applications for example paints, plastics, papers, ceramics, construction materials, and cosmetics. It is well-known that the cosmetic talc powder is used for preventing diaper rash as a deodorant. The sampling in this work has been done from various commercial products in Thailand. Their microstructure and elemental composition are analyzed using a scanning electron microscope coupled with an energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer (SEM-EDS). A small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and infrared spectroscopy (IR) based on synchrotron radiation are also carried out to determine their phase composition and functional groups. It has been found that fibers with asbestos-like shapes are present in some samples. The main composition of oxygen, silicon, and magnesium in samples are in the form of the functional groups that associate with absorption band in the range of 3600-3700 cm -1 of IR spectra. It is proposed that there are 6 from 17 samples that possibly have asbestos contamination.