Tremolite-Asbestos Presence in Roman Archaeological Site of Micia, Romania

This paper reports the first evidence of the presence of the mineral tremolite asbestos in Roman building materials from the Micia archaeological site (Romania), thus contributing to the understanding of the implications of ancient building materials. The Micia archaeological site includes both a fo...

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Main Authors: Rodica-Mariana Ion, Marius Gheorghe Barbu, Valentin Ioan Gurgu, Sofia Slamnoiu-Teodorescu, Anca Irina Gheboianu, Gabriel Vasilievici, Lorena Iancu, Ramona Marina Grigorescu, Elvira Alexandrescu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-04-01
Series:Crystals
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4352/15/5/430
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author Rodica-Mariana Ion
Marius Gheorghe Barbu
Valentin Ioan Gurgu
Sofia Slamnoiu-Teodorescu
Anca Irina Gheboianu
Gabriel Vasilievici
Lorena Iancu
Ramona Marina Grigorescu
Elvira Alexandrescu
author_facet Rodica-Mariana Ion
Marius Gheorghe Barbu
Valentin Ioan Gurgu
Sofia Slamnoiu-Teodorescu
Anca Irina Gheboianu
Gabriel Vasilievici
Lorena Iancu
Ramona Marina Grigorescu
Elvira Alexandrescu
author_sort Rodica-Mariana Ion
collection DOAJ
description This paper reports the first evidence of the presence of the mineral tremolite asbestos in Roman building materials from the Micia archaeological site (Romania), thus contributing to the understanding of the implications of ancient building materials. The Micia archaeological site includes both a fort and a civilian Roman military settlement that was inhabited by both civilians and soldiers from various Roman troops. Over time, since the late 2nd century AD, the settlement has undergone significant reconstruction, especially after some fires. Tremolite asbestos is a non-flammable mineral that, due to its fibrous properties, was used in the past in building materials, although it poses health risks when inhaled. To highlight it, several advanced and highly sensitive scientific techniques are used in this work to discover the presence of tremolite asbestos and to examine its structure, composition, and morphology inside the investigated samples. Tremolite asbestos is typically white to gray or greenish in color, characterized by thin, needle-like fibers that can easily become airborne and inhaled. It is a crystalline mineral that usually forms long, straight, sharp fibers. Under high magnification in optical microscopy or in scanning electron microscope images, correlated with other performant analytical techniques (XRD, WDXRF, FTIR, Raman, BET, TGA), tremolite asbestos appears as elongated, slender fibers—often bundled or intertwined—with smooth or slightly striated surfaces.
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spelling doaj-art-7f8df2e30511418a9bd71c746cf343d22025-08-20T02:33:38ZengMDPI AGCrystals2073-43522025-04-0115543010.3390/cryst15050430Tremolite-Asbestos Presence in Roman Archaeological Site of Micia, RomaniaRodica-Mariana Ion0Marius Gheorghe Barbu1Valentin Ioan Gurgu2Sofia Slamnoiu-Teodorescu3Anca Irina Gheboianu4Gabriel Vasilievici5Lorena Iancu6Ramona Marina Grigorescu7Elvira Alexandrescu8Doctoral School of Materials Engineering Department, Valahia University of Targoviste, 13 Aleea Sinaia, 130004 Targoviste, RomaniaMuseum of Dacian and Roman Civilization Deva, 39 Blvd. 1 Decembrie, 330005 Deva, RomaniaInstitute of Multidisciplinary Research for Science and Technology, Valahia University of Targoviste, 13 Aleea Sinaia, 130004 Targoviste, RomaniaMaterials Engineering and Mechanics Department, Valahia University of Targoviste, 13 Aleea Sinaia, 130004 Targoviste, RomaniaInstitute of Multidisciplinary Research for Science and Technology, Valahia University of Targoviste, 13 Aleea Sinaia, 130004 Targoviste, RomaniaNational Institute for Research & Development in Chemistry and Petrochemistry—ICECHIM Bucharest, 202 Spl. Independentei, 060021 Bucharest, RomaniaNational Institute for Research & Development in Chemistry and Petrochemistry—ICECHIM Bucharest, 202 Spl. Independentei, 060021 Bucharest, RomaniaNational Institute for Research & Development in Chemistry and Petrochemistry—ICECHIM Bucharest, 202 Spl. Independentei, 060021 Bucharest, RomaniaNational Institute for Research & Development in Chemistry and Petrochemistry—ICECHIM Bucharest, 202 Spl. Independentei, 060021 Bucharest, RomaniaThis paper reports the first evidence of the presence of the mineral tremolite asbestos in Roman building materials from the Micia archaeological site (Romania), thus contributing to the understanding of the implications of ancient building materials. The Micia archaeological site includes both a fort and a civilian Roman military settlement that was inhabited by both civilians and soldiers from various Roman troops. Over time, since the late 2nd century AD, the settlement has undergone significant reconstruction, especially after some fires. Tremolite asbestos is a non-flammable mineral that, due to its fibrous properties, was used in the past in building materials, although it poses health risks when inhaled. To highlight it, several advanced and highly sensitive scientific techniques are used in this work to discover the presence of tremolite asbestos and to examine its structure, composition, and morphology inside the investigated samples. Tremolite asbestos is typically white to gray or greenish in color, characterized by thin, needle-like fibers that can easily become airborne and inhaled. It is a crystalline mineral that usually forms long, straight, sharp fibers. Under high magnification in optical microscopy or in scanning electron microscope images, correlated with other performant analytical techniques (XRD, WDXRF, FTIR, Raman, BET, TGA), tremolite asbestos appears as elongated, slender fibers—often bundled or intertwined—with smooth or slightly striated surfaces.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4352/15/5/430asbestostremoliteMiciaRoman buildings
spellingShingle Rodica-Mariana Ion
Marius Gheorghe Barbu
Valentin Ioan Gurgu
Sofia Slamnoiu-Teodorescu
Anca Irina Gheboianu
Gabriel Vasilievici
Lorena Iancu
Ramona Marina Grigorescu
Elvira Alexandrescu
Tremolite-Asbestos Presence in Roman Archaeological Site of Micia, Romania
Crystals
asbestos
tremolite
Micia
Roman buildings
title Tremolite-Asbestos Presence in Roman Archaeological Site of Micia, Romania
title_full Tremolite-Asbestos Presence in Roman Archaeological Site of Micia, Romania
title_fullStr Tremolite-Asbestos Presence in Roman Archaeological Site of Micia, Romania
title_full_unstemmed Tremolite-Asbestos Presence in Roman Archaeological Site of Micia, Romania
title_short Tremolite-Asbestos Presence in Roman Archaeological Site of Micia, Romania
title_sort tremolite asbestos presence in roman archaeological site of micia romania
topic asbestos
tremolite
Micia
Roman buildings
url https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4352/15/5/430
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AT valentinioangurgu tremoliteasbestospresenceinromanarchaeologicalsiteofmiciaromania
AT sofiaslamnoiuteodorescu tremoliteasbestospresenceinromanarchaeologicalsiteofmiciaromania
AT ancairinagheboianu tremoliteasbestospresenceinromanarchaeologicalsiteofmiciaromania
AT gabrielvasilievici tremoliteasbestospresenceinromanarchaeologicalsiteofmiciaromania
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AT ramonamarinagrigorescu tremoliteasbestospresenceinromanarchaeologicalsiteofmiciaromania
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