Determination of asbestos in plasters, fillers and tile adhesives - New guideline VDI 3866, sheet 5:2017-06 contradictory
In June 2017 the guideline VDI 3866, sheet 5 left its two-year draft stage and is valid in its new version. With detailed descriptions of preparation and testing methods for individual groups of substances, it offers useful innovations for practical use in asbestos laboratories.
Based on the proven BIA (IFA) method 7487 and ISO 22262-2, it describes preparation and analysis methods which also allow the analysis of technical products < 1% by mass asbestos with an estimated detection sensitivity of 0.001% or better.
However, there are striking contradictions between Annex B ("Analysis of samples with low asbestos contents < 1 %") and the main part of the Directive, in particular with regard to the filter density in suspension analysis and the magnification to be applied for the detection of thin fibres of 0.2 µm.
It is also astonishing that all specifications listed in Annex B to the VDI were not included in the draft of 2015 and were not published in a revised draft within the 2 years up to the final version, so that objections and a constructive dialogue were not possible.
Despite the fact that the detection limit for asbestos is 100 times lower, qualitative findings with an estimation of the mass content are still "not a finding in the sense of the GefStoffV in order to determine whether the 0.1% limit has been exceeded or not". Ultimately, only the elaborate IFA (BIA) method 7487 and ISO 22262-2 are available for this purpose.
