Safety in the Laboratory

The best rule for laboratory safety is to think, and to think ahead. When you are adequately prepared you will work safely and more efficiently and profit more for your time invested. The chemistry laboratory is a dangerous place but probably no more so than the home kitchen or workshop. Accidents happen primarily when people use the wrong techniques, don't know what they are doing, or rush. Please read the following safety rules carefully and follow them whenever you work in the laboratory.

Many of the substances encountered in the organic lab are toxic, flammable, or both. However, exposure has been minimized due to the small scale at which we work. Also, most operations involving heating chemicals are done without flames. It is still important to use correct techniques in handling chemicals and to know the hazards that are present. Every student is responsible for knowing and following the safety guidelines outlined by the instructor on the first day. Important: Safety goggles must be worn in the lab at all times. These must be provided by the student and are available for purchase in the Centre Shoppes. The instructor must approve goggles purchased elsewhere. All students must wear long pants or skirts and shoes with covered toes (no shorts or sandals) in the lab. Failure to follow the safety procedures will result in dismissal from the class with a grade of U.

• Safety glasses must be worn at all times in the laboratory. This regulation is treated very conscientiously.
• During the first laboratory period familiarize yourself with the location and operation of all safety equipment in the laboratory. These features include the safety shower, fire extinguisher, laboratory first aid kits, eye wash station, and fire alarm. Please familiarize yourself with the alternate exits from the lab. The safety shower should be used if your clothing catches on fire or if a corrosive chemical is spilled on you in quantities that cannot be easily flushed away at the laboratory faucets.
• Cuts and burns are the most common injuries occurring in chemistry laboratories. The best immediate first aid for such accidents is to flush with copious amounts of water to assure that any chemicals are washed out of a cut or off of irritated skin. Consult the laboratory instructor about further first aid measures. If you come to the laboratory with a cut or burn, it is important that the wound be protected by an appropriate bandage.
• Most laboratory chemicals used in this course are toxic, particularly in the concentrations handled. The exceptions to this are so few as to make any tasting utterly foolish.
• Regulatory action by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration requires all chemical suppliers to provide, for all of their products, copies of Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS). These documents describe the appropriate handling precautions, disposal procedures, and first aid steps for each substance.
• The Chemistry program keeps a file of all of these MSDS documents in the stockroom. You should consult that file if you are uncertain about the properties of any chemical.
• Clothing. Shoes must be worn at all times. There is often broken glass or spilled chemicals on the laboratory floor. Loose fitting clothes, especially long sleeves and neckties, are a definite safety hazard. They can easily fall into beakers or knock over a hazardous chemical.
• Long hair, if left hanging loosely, can be a real hazard. Please keep long hair "tied back" in some fashion.
• Jewelry can also catch on protruding objects and lead to accidents. Just drop your watch, rings, bracelets, and necklaces into a free pocket when you come to lab.
• Never place coats, books, or other belongings on the bench or floor where they will interfere with your work, be damaged by reagent spills, or pose a safety problem.
• Any experiment involving the use of, or production of, poisonous or irritating gases must be performed in the hoods.
• Food and beverages are not allowed in the laboratory. Use of all tobacco products in the lab is likewise not allowed.
• Horseplay and unauthorized experiments are strictly forbidden.
• Never use mouth suction to pipet liquids. Instead, use a pipet bulb to apply suction.
• Read the label carefully before taking anything from a bottle. Many chemicals have similar names, such as sodium sulfate and sodium sulfite; it is obvious that the use of the wrong reagent can spoil an experiment or, in some cases, cause a serious accident.
• Do not carry reagent bottles to your work space. This is a matter of courtesy to the other students in the class, and it minimizes the possibility of contamination of the reagent. Obtain the required quantities of chemicals from the reagent shelf by taking clean test tubes or beakers to the reagent area.
• Do not insert spatulas or medicine droppers into reagent bottles. Remove a liquid reagent from the stock container by pouring it into a clean beaker. Solid reagents may be transferred by gentle rotation of the container.
• Never return excess reagent to the original container. It is true that high purity chemicals are expensive, but the hazards involved and the possibility of ruined experiments due to contaminated supplies are a greater consideration than the costs involved.
• Dispose of all trash and chemicals properly.
  • Ordinary trash cans are provided for paper.
  • Special receptacles (often a cardboard box labeled Glass) are provided for disposal of broken glass.
  • Low toxicity water soluble liquids (alcohols, acetone, dilute acids, etc.) and low toxicity water-soluble solids are best disposed of by flushing down the sink with large volumes of water.
  • Specially marked disposal cans are available for water immiscible liquids.
  • Whenever strong oxidizing agents, particularly toxic substances or materials requiring special handling are used in the lab, detailed instructions will be given and appropriate disposal facilities will be provided.
• Report all accidents and spills to the laboratory instructor immediately.