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Did you work with Alfa Laval plate heat exchanger (PHE) inter-plate gaskets, allegedly incorporating compressed asbestos fiber (CAF) elastomer-bonded sheet materials for high-temperature service in dairy, refinery, and chemical process duty? According to publicly filed asbestos litigation records, it allegedly contained asbestos. Here is what it was, who was exposed, and who is responsible. Alfa Laval plate heat exchanger (PHE) inter-plate gaskets, allegedly incorporating compressed asbestos fiber (CAF) elastomer-bonded sheet materials for high-temperature service in dairy, refinery, and chemical process duty, sold from the 1950s until late the 1980s. Plaintiffs allegedly identified Alfa Laval plate heat exchanger gaskets as asbestos-containing in publicly filed U.S. asbestos personal-injury and wrongful-death litigation, with alleged exposure during periodic PHE tear-down and re-gasketing. Alleged chrysotile-reinforced elastomer gasket strip installed in the peripheral groove of each stainless PHE plate; released as friable fiber when gaskets were scraped, wire-brushed, or replaced during periodic PHE disassembly, cleaning-in-place tear-down, and re-gasketing performed by millwrights, refinery mechanics, and dairy maintenance workers. Workers allegedly exposed around this product included Millwrights, Pipefitters, Refinery Mechanics, and Dairy and Food Plant Maintenance. Asbestos claims are brought against the companies that made the products. If you worked with or around Alfa Laval plate heat exchanger (PHE) inter-plate gaskets, allegedly incorporating compressed asbestos fiber (CAF) elastomer-bonded sheet materials for high-temperature service in dairy, refinery, and chemical process duty and were later diagnosed with mesothelioma, asbestosis, or another asbestos-related disease, you may have a legal claim against the manufacturer. This is educational information from an independent publisher — not a law firm — and is not legal advice.
Product Description
Alfa Laval AB (Lund, Sweden; U.S. operations historically in Richmond, VA and Warminster, PA) allegedly manufactured and distributed plate heat exchangers (PHEs) throughout the mid-twentieth century for refinery lean/rich amine service, dairy pasteurization, chemical process cooling, and marine lube-oil duty. Plaintiffs alleged in publicly filed U.S. asbestos personal-injury and wrongful-death litigation that the peripheral gaskets installed in each PHE plate groove were manufactured from compressed asbestos fiber (CAF) elastomer-bonded sheet stock through the late 1980s, and that Alfa Laval supplied replacement gasket sets and re-gasketing kits into aftermarket service well after original installation.
Because PHE service requires periodic gasket replacement — typically every 12 to 36 months in fouling process streams — plaintiffs alleged that Alfa Laval’s aftermarket gasket kits were a recurring asbestos-exposure source for the same worker crews across decades.
Workers Exposed
Plaintiffs allegedly identified the following trades as exposed during Alfa Laval PHE service:
- Refinery millwrights and mechanics scraping baked-on gasket residue from stainless plates with hand tools during turnaround.
- Dairy and food-plant maintenance workers re-gasketing PHE stacks after clean-in-place cycles.
- Pipefitters and boilermakers disassembling PHE frames for plate inspection.
- Marine engineers servicing shipboard PHE lube-oil coolers.
Alleged exposure mechanisms included dry-scraping cured elastomer/asbestos strip, wire-brushing plate grooves, and cutting replacement gasket sheet stock to length on the deck plate.