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Thermasil (Keene)

Thermasil was a calcium silicate pipe and block insulation, reinforced with asbestos, that later came under Keene.1,2 Keene's report published by the EPA in 1990 says it was produced from 1956 to 1972 by three companies in turn: Ehret, Baldwin-Ehret-Hill, and Keene Building Products Corporation.3 An insurance company's 1981 list of asbestos products, compiled from other companies' answers in lawsuits, lists it under Keene as made from 1956 to 1972, with Baldwin-Ehret-Hill in its note column.2

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Who made and sold it

In December 1956 the Ehret Magnesia Manufacturing Company advertised "NEW EHRET THERMASIL" pipe and block insulation, for temperatures up to 1200 F, in Asbestos, the industry's trade journal.4 In 1958 Ehret announced a catalog describing "Ehret Thermasil calcium silicate insulation."5 A 1959 Navy list of approved products names Baldwin-Ehret-Hill, Inc. of Trenton, New Jersey, with its plant at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania.6 A 1960 Baldwin-Ehret-Hill ad said Thermasil, teamed with sheet aluminum, was used throughout a Texas refinery.7 Its headline called Thermasil calcium silicate, while its text spoke of "THERMASIL 85% Magnesia."7 In 1965 a Baldwin-Ehret-Hill bulletin described it as "a molded, hydrous calcium silicate insulation" reinforced with "selected long asbestos fibers," and explained how it inhibited stress-corrosion of stainless steel piping, vessels and other equipment up to 1200°F.1

How much asbestos it contained

Keene's 1990 report says Thermasil was reinforced with amosite asbestos fibers, though it notes that one witness testified it contained chrysotile.3 It says Thermasil contained approximately 10% amosite from 1956 to February 1969.3 The amount was then reduced to approximately 8.6% until 1970, and then to 2%, and in November 1972 all remaining asbestos was removed.3 The 1981 list gives 11 in the column read as percent asbestos.2 Keene also says the remnants from the molding process were sold as Thermasil cement.3

Pictures

How Thermasil (Keene) looked: labels, photographs and catalog pages from our library. Each picture has its own page and library number, so it can be cited on its own.

What each document says

Every statement about Thermasil (Keene) in the documents, in each document's own words.

Asbestos Magazine, 1965, July 1965

  • Use: “inhibits stress-corrosion of stainless steel piping, vessels and equipment up to 1200°F”, said by Baldwin-Ehret-Hill, Inc., as recorded by Asbestos (magazine), p. 161
  • Description: “molded, hydrous calcium silicate insulation reinforced with selected long asbestos fibers”, said by Baldwin-Ehret-Hill, Inc., as recorded by Asbestos (magazine), p. 161

The Travelers Insurance Company's Product Information Booklet for Its Asbestos Seminar (1980–1981)

  • Made from: “56”, p. 82
  • Made until: “72”, p. 82
  • Form: “PIPECOVER & BLOCK”, p. 82
  • Description: “BALDWIN-EHRET-HILL”, p. 82
  • Asbestos content: “11”, p. 82

Asbestos; Publication of Identifying Information (1990)

  • Made from: “produced 1956 to 1972 by Ehret, BEH, and KBPC”, said by Keene Corporation, as recorded by U.S. EPA, Federal Register 55 FR (Feb. 13, 1990), p. 5151, p. 113
  • Asbestos fiber: “reinforced with amosite asbestos fibers”, said by Keene Corporation, as recorded by U.S. EPA, Federal Register 55 FR (Feb. 13, 1990), p. 5151, p. 113
  • Asbestos content: “approximately 10% amosite asbestos fiber from 1956 to February 1969”, said by Keene Corporation, as recorded by U.S. EPA, Federal Register 55 FR (Feb. 13, 1990), p. 5151, p. 113
  • Change: “asbestos reduced to about 8.6% (Feb 1969), to 2% (1970), removed November 1972”, said by Keene Corporation, as recorded by U.S. EPA, Federal Register 55 FR (Feb. 13, 1990), p. 5151, p. 113
  • Made until: “produced 1956 to 1972 by Ehret, BEH, and KBPC”, said by Keene Corporation, as recorded by U.S. EPA, Federal Register 55 FR (Feb. 13, 1990), p. 113
  • Description: “a lightweight, molded, hydrous calcium silicate insulation, manufactured from a blend of special inorganic ingredients”, said by Keene Corporation, as recorded by U.S. EPA, Federal Register 55 FR (Feb. 13, 1990), p. 113
  • Form: “remnants from the molding process sold as Thermasil cement”, said by Keene Corporation, as recorded by U.S. EPA, Federal Register 55 FR (Feb. 13, 1990), p. 5151, p. 113

Asbestos Magazine, 1956, December 1956

  • Sold from: “NEW EHRET THERMASIL”, p. 24
  • Temperature limit: “for temperatures up to 1200 F”, p. 24

Asbestos Magazine, 1958, December 1958

  • Description: “Ehret Thermasil calcium silicate insulation”, said by Ehret Magnesia Mfg. Company, as recorded by Asbestos (magazine), p. 185

Military Qualified Products List (1951–1995)

  • Made at: “Plant: Valley Forge, Pa.” (at Valley Forge, Pa.) (the plant: Valley Forge, Pennsylvania), p. 606
  • Description: “qualified under QPL-2781 as Thermasil, Grade I, Class b, listed under Ehret Magnesia Mfg. Co. (QPL-2781-18)” (as of 1959-01-06), p. 516
  • Description: “qualified under QPL-2781 as Thermasil, Grade I, Class b, listed under Keene Corp., Industrial Insulation Div. (QPL-2781-36)” (as of 1969-05-27), p. 1056
  • Description: “qualified under QPL-2781 as Thermasil (Grade I Class b; Grade II Class d; Grade III Class e Types I and II)” (as of 1 August 1972), p. 1086
  • Made at: “Plant: Valley Forge, PA” (as of 1 August 1972) (the plant: Valley Forge, Pennsylvania), p. 1086
  • Description: “qualified under QPL-2781 as Thermasil, maker listed as Keene Insulation & Contracting Div.” (as of 19 February 1976), p. 1296

Asbestos Magazine, 1960, May 1960

  • Use: “used throughout a Texas refinery, with sheet aluminum jacketing” (sales to unnamed Texas refinery), p. 637
  • Description: “Thermasil calcium silicate insulation / "THERMASIL 85% Magnesia"”, p. 637

Travelers Asbestos Products Printout, July 1981

  • Made from: “56”, p. 268
  • Description: “BALDWIN-EHRET-HILL”, p. 268
  • Made until: “72”, p. 268
  • Form: “PIPECOVER,BLOCK & CEMENT”, p. 268
  • Asbestos content: “11”, p. 268

Kind of product

We list Thermasil (Keene) with pipe covering and block insulation, insulating cement and coatings and asbestos-reinforced plastics, from how the documents describe its form. Those pages explain how such products exposed workers.

Trades that worked with products like it: Insulators and Insulation Workers, Pipefitters and Plumbers, Boilermakers, Electricians and Electrical Workers.

Other pipe covering and block insulation by Keene (4)

Mono-block · Enduro · Thermalite · Alba-cel

Pipe covering and block insulation by other makers (272)

Thermobestos · Superex (Johns-Manville) · Careytemp (Philip Carey) · Kaylo (Owens-Corning) · Unibestos (Union Asbestos & Rubber Co.) · Tempcheck (Philip Carey) · Therm-o-bestos (Johns-Manville) · Therm-O-Flake (Illinois Clay Products) · Thermalite 85% Magnesia (Baldwin-Ehret-Hill) · Thermalite 85% Magnesia (Ehret Magnesia Manufacturing Co.) · Thermasil (Baldwin-Ehret-Hill) · Thermasil (Ehret Magnesia Manufacturing Co.) · Thermo Fire Felt (Johns-Manville) · Thermobestos pipe covering · Thermowrap (Johns-Manville) · Train Pipe Covering (Johns-Manville) · Tri-calite (Crown Cork & Seal) · Trica-mag (Crown Cork & Seal) · Tricalite (Mundet Cork) · Type 19 (Crown Cork & Seal) · and 252 more: all pipe covering and block insulation

Other insulating cement and coatings by Keene (6)

Enduro · Thermalite · Number One Plus · Powerhouse · Super Powerhouse · MW50

Insulating cement and coatings by other makers (318)

Thermobestos · Superex (Johns-Manville) · Asbestile (Johns-Manville) · 85 Magnesia (Johns-Manville) · Prasco (Fibreboard) · Swetcheck (Eagle-Picher) · T-60 (Combustion Engineering) · Temp-Sure I-c 250 (Insul-Coustic) · Tempcheck (Philip Carey) · Thermalcoat (M. H. Detrick) · Thermalite 85% Magnesia (Baldwin-Ehret-Hill) · Thermalkote (Flintkote) · Thermobestos Cement (Johns-Manville) · Thermokote (Ryden Industries) · Thermomix 700 (Johns-Manville) · Thermomix 720 (Johns-Manville) · Thermomix 770 (Johns-Manville) · Thermomix 810 (Johns-Manville) · Trica-mag (Crown Cork & Seal) · Trowel and Spray Grade (Baldwin-Ehret-Hill) · and 298 more: all insulating cement and coatings

See also

  • Keene: the company's history, documents, people, products and plants
  • Keene on our products page: what the documents say about the company's asbestos products, with sources

References

  1. Asbestos Magazine, 1965, July 1965 (July 1, 1965), p. 16.
  2. The Travelers Insurance Company's Product Information Booklet for Its Asbestos Seminar (1980–1981) (April 30, 1981), p. 8.
  3. Asbestos; Publication of Identifying Information (February 13, 1990), p. 11.
  4. Asbestos Magazine, 1956, December 1956 (December 1, 1956), p. 2.
  5. Asbestos Magazine, 1958, December 1958 (December 1, 1958), p. 18.
  6. Military Qualified Products List (1951–1995) (October 26, 1959), p. 60.
  7. Asbestos Magazine, 1960, May 1960 (May 1, 1960), p. 63.
  8. Travelers Asbestos Products Printout, July 1981 (July 1, 1981), p. 26.

Mentioned on this site

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“Thermasil (Keene).” AsbestosClaims.Law Library. https://asbestosclaims.law/library/products/keene-thermasil.

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This page is provided for general informational purposes and does not constitute legal advice. Every asbestos case turns on its own facts, exposure history, diagnosis, deadlines, available evidence, and applicable law. Reviewing this page does not create an attorney-client relationship. For advice about your specific situation, call 833-4-ASBESTOS for a free case review.