Table 3.

Analytical methods to screen talc for asbestos.

Method	Advantages	Disadvantages
X-ray Diffraction (XRD)	Rapid screening technique	Lacks adequate sensitivity and specificity to screen for asbestos and should be used along with more sensitive methods
Polarized Light Microscopy (PLM)	Standard method for identification of asbestos	May lack sensitivity for some materials that contain a low percentage of asbestos, should be used in tandem with TEM
Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM)	Most sensitive method to identify asbestos	Time-consuming sample preparation, more expensive comparatively