Chemistry Stack Exchange
Chemistry Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [safety]

Questions regarding chemical and lab safety. This includes questions about proper lab procedure, safe chemical handling, and such.

514 questions
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Is this poor laboratory safety?

I'm a formulation chemist. My co-worker, is also a formulation scientist but has no previous formal training in chemical safety or lab chemistry settings. I always work in the hood unless I’m just mixing fruit extracts or something non-volatile. My…
user98623
22
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4 answers

How can I clean my lab coat?

Over the course of my studies, my lab coat has absorbed a non-negligible amount of different chemicals, some of them nasty organic polymers, some are more insoluble inorganic compounds like $\ce{Cr2O3}$. Even after washing the lab coat some stains…
tschoppi
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3 answers

How to dispose of pure potassium

I have about 2g of 99.5% Potassium. I want to get rid of it, right now it's in a glass jar sealed. What is the proper protocol? I was going to combust it in water and wash it down the drain but the by-product potassium hydroxide is caustic and…
Albert Renshaw
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18
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2 answers

How to properly dispose of sodium...or store it properly

While performing an inventory of my school's chemical storage closet today, my fellow teacher and I found some sodium tucked away in the back corner of our flammables cabinet. One container appears to have leaked the oil the sodium was being stored…
Meg Coates
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15
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3 answers

Practical safety of storing potassium

Potassium ($\ce{K}$) seems to be the transitional alkali metal in terms of safety. Lighter than $\ce{K}$ and we can store under oil with no worries. Heavier than $\ce{K}$ and only ampules will work. $\ce{K}$ is such that even under oil it can absorb…
user467
14
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1 answer

What is the meaning of the '2' on some Compressed Gas Hazard signs in the lab?

The main chemistry prep room at my institution (and also at the ambulance station) is labelled with the standard green compressed gas sign. However, there is a small '2' included within the diamond. None of the chemistry technicians, tutors or…
Rory
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Why do seemingly reliable sources give NFPA 704 Health ratings ranging from 1-4 for elemental mercury?

Recently a user posted the question Do Mercury have a NFPA 704 classification?. Why the present question is not a duplicate: Although there is no accepted answer to the above question, I think it's a fairly obvious "yes", and that my question…
airhuff
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12
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What would be an appropriate way to clean up equipment contaminated with ethidium bromide?

I want to clean up some old equipment that was used to visualize nucleic acids with ethidium bromide. It's a UV table, built from glass and metal (stainless steel, I assume). Ethidium bromide is generally considered scary in a biological lab…
Mad Scientist
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How to store methanol

We will be buying methanol by a about 200 liters at a time, I was wondering what I should consider when storing it. So far I know that it should be in the shade earthed with a copper stake in a secondary plastic container wash empty containers…
Adripants
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8
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2 answers

How can I be safe and protect myself using trimethyl tin chloride?

I will be using trimethyl tin chloride (1M in THF) in a few days for the first time. Looking at the MSDS, it looks like it is very toxic and has noxious vapors. Are there any more standard precautions for working with it other than the…
scientifics
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7
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2 answers

Should I have a pair of shoes that I wear only in the lab?

I bought some very nice heavy leather boots when I was working in a solid state synthesis lab, mainly with selenium and sulfur compounds, a few years back. I probably did spill small quantities of some very basic/acidic solutions with some…
J. LS
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What does the label of stability: 0 mean on an MSDS sheet?

I was reading an MSDS sheet on bleach. There is a section named NFPA. Under that is are the words, Health Hazard: 3, Flammability:0, Stability:0 Does that mean that Bleach is highly unstable?
Matt Majee-Gy
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Determining actual safety from a vague material safety data sheet

My desktop computer system employs a liquid cooling loop featuring a 6-litre external reservoir and radiator combination "cooling tower" unit. It isn't a cooling tower in the strict sense as it does not achieve temperature reduction through any…
Dai
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7
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Testing for ammonia by smelling it?

My chemistry teacher taught us that one of the ways to see if we had produced ammonia gas in a reaction was if it released a pungent smell (Even BBC supported that here!…
N A
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7
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What legal guidelines exist for completeness of a Materials Safety Data Sheet?

I know that the answer to this question will vary by country, but some aspects must be similar amongst those countries that have authorities overseeing chemical and industrial hygiene. The Wikipedia article on the topic is not so good. My…
Ben Norris
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