Document g2rXY5oepnZR79E4DBLgo1NmG

Ford Motor Company February 5> 1971 20000 Rotunda Drive Dearborn, Michigan 48121 Mailing Address P 0. Box 2053 Dearborn, Michigan 48121 Miss Jody Glick 9321 3t. Andrews' Place College Park, Maryland 20740 Deur Miss Glick: In your recent letter to Dr. Ferencc you requectpd information pertaining to asbestos usage in friction materials. Ford Motor Company, unlike General Motors and Chrysler, does not manufacture any of its friction materials for brakes or clutches. However, we do have the information you requested. Piece this request was for your Science Fair project, T will send you only that information which you could not reasonably expect to find in a large public library, along with some key references to aid your library research. - Brake lining and clutch facing manufacturing methods and formulation are usually considered to be proprietary information by friction material manufacturers. However some detailed information may be obtained from the Chemical Abstracts on friction material patents. I have enclosed as a background on .this subject a copy of "Automotive Brake Linings". Automotive clutch facings are made by a similar process to some of the brake Linings; either through resin impregnation of asbestos-based yarns and then winding or weaving, or by making a "wet mix" of resin, asbestos, and fillers and then pressing to shape. In general clutch facings contain more'rubber and clay, use longer fiber asbestos. The asbestos used in both brake and clutch materials is of the chrysotile type and comes primarily from mines in Quebec, Canada. Information on this form of asbestos can be obtained from the Asbestos Textile Institute, Quebec Asbestos Mining Association, and major suppliers such as Jchns-Manville Corporation or Asbestos Corporation, Ltd. (Thetford Mines, Quebec, Canada). Technical information on chrysotile asbestos"is in the'literature, generally pre-1945, with the best papers by Mr. M. S. Badollet. t 011987 1 PRODUCED by ford SCF-FORD-0696 Micp Jcdy Click 2 Febrj ny 5, 1571 Temperatures involve'! in the operation of brakes and clutches may be confusing. At the friction irr.crfnc flash' temperatires approach, and cometimes exceed, 1000'JC. The brake lining or cl.itch facing hulk tc-mper.-.tcre. normally is below 200'C, hut may reach 3^-,0C with severe usage ar.d rcrurally marked hy heavy smoke, rapid wear, and "fade" of friction. Portions cf a presently unpublished paper "Wear of Brake Materials" have been marked to provide added background on brake temperatures. The asbestos effluents from brake and clutch operation are currently receiving a great deal cf attention. Mr. Lynch of the National Center for Urban and Industrial Health has published a paper in the Journal of Air Pollution Control Association, Dec. 1$68, Vol'. 18, No. 12, pp 824-826. Several recent papers on asbestos epidemiology have been written by Dr. I. J. Selikoff, of City Univer sity of New York, Mt. Sinai School of Medicine. Samples of asbestos also have been enclosed. They have been sealed in plastic bags for your protection. If you must open the bags, please read the enclosed article by Dr. Selikoff first. Indiscriminate handling of loose, dry asbestos should be avoided. I hope that the information supplied will provide an adequate start for your timely and relevant research project. Should you find further need for information, feel free to usk. r. L nee rely yours, Amo! 0 AnVrson Scinitific Pcrearch Stuff enclosures eg 011988 i | PRODUCED BY FORD