Chrysotile is a type of asbestos and belongs to the asbestos mineral group. Asbestos is a general term given to a group of naturally occurring silicate minerals that can be separated into flexible fibers.

There are two main mineralogical classifications of asbestos—serpentine and amphibole—based on the type of rock that forms the asbestos. These classifications are further divided into serpentine asbestos (chrysotile) and amphibole asbestos (amosite, crocidolite, fibrous tremolite, fibrous anthophyllite, and fibrous actinolite).

The use of chrysotile dates back more than 2,000 years for various daily applications, such as materials for cremation cloths (used in the cremation process), oil lamp wicks, and more. Russia, Italy, and Canada were among the first three countries in recorded history to commence large-scale commercial mining of chrysotile mineral extracts in the early 19th century

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