Overview
Refinery workers, employees at oil refineries and petrochemical plants, faced extensive asbestos exposure from the thousands of insulated pipes, vessels, pumps, and heat exchangers required for petroleum processing. Refineries were among the most asbestos-intensive industrial environments.
Oil refineries required asbestos insulation on virtually every pipe, vessel, and piece of equipment due to the high temperatures involved in petroleum processing. Workers were surrounded by asbestos throughout their shifts.
Asbestos in Refineries
| Equipment | Asbestos Type | Exposure Level |
|---|---|---|
| Process piping | Calcium silicate, magnesia | Very High |
| Heat exchangers | Block and blanket insulation | Very High |
| Distillation columns | External lagging | High |
| Pumps and compressors | Gaskets, packing, insulation | High |
| Storage tanks | Tank insulation | Moderate |
How Refinery Workers Were Exposed
Daily Operations
Refinery operators worked amid asbestos throughout their shifts:
- Monitoring equipment wrapped in asbestos insulation
- Walking through pipe racks with asbestos-lagged pipes
- Adjusting valves with asbestos packing
- Working in control rooms near insulated equipment
Maintenance and Turnarounds
Maintenance work created the highest exposure:
- Removing insulation to access equipment
- Replacing gaskets in pumps and valves
- Repacking valve stems
- Working during major turnarounds when insulation was disturbed plant-wide
Refinery turnarounds, major maintenance shutdowns, exposed all workers on site to high asbestos levels as insulation was stripped from equipment throughout the facility.
Refinery Jobs at Risk
Every refinery position ran into some exposure. Process operators spent their shifts moving between insulated columns, maintenance mechanics repaired pumps and heat exchangers, instrument technicians serviced control lines in fiber-lagged racks, pipefitters tied in process piping, and insulators applied and stripped Kaylo pipe covering. Refineries in Texas, Louisiana, and California ran on Johns Manville and Owens Corning insulation from 1940 through the 1980s.
Related Industry
Related Occupations
- Pipefitters, Refinery piping
- Insulators, Insulation work
- Boilermakers, Vessel work
- Millwrights, Equipment maintenance
- Operating engineers, Equipment operation
Health Consequences
Refinery workers face elevated risk of mesothelioma, a cancer of the chest or abdominal lining; asbestosis, a progressive scarring of the lungs; lung cancer, with risk multiplied among smokers; and pleural disease that thickens the lining around the lungs.
Legal Options
Refinery workers diagnosed with mesothelioma typically pursue several tracks in parallel. Insulation and gasket manufacturers including Johns Manville, Owens Corning, and Garlock established asbestos trust funds through bankruptcy reorganization. Trust claims often run alongside product-liability suits against solvent insulation manufacturers, premises-liability claims against refinery owners, and workers’ compensation through a former employer.