Chrysotiles are delicately fibrous varieties of materials that separate easily into silky and flexible fibers of greenish or yellowish colors.
Most of the common asbestos of commercial use consists of chrysotiles since it has been established that chrysotile is less hazardous than amphibole asbestos because the fibers of chrysotiles will dissolve in human lungs and amphiboles (silicate minerals including asbestos) will not.
Asbestos is a general term applied to a certain mineral which forms soft, silky, flexible fibers and the most common asbestos is chrysotile, a variety of the mineral serpentine, a magnesium silicate from which the longer fibers are woven into yarn for use in brake linings and heat-resistant tapes and cloth and they withstand fire, insulate against heat and sounds, are light in weight, can be made into pliable fabrics, and they resist soil, corrosion, and vermin.