Lab Safety

Safety Overview

• Dress appropriately
• Wear your PPE
• Locate safety equipment
• No food or drinks will be permitted in
the lab
Safety Overview

• Keep round bottom flasks in cork

rings
• Never force glassware into a
connection/joint, use grease
• Change your gloves if in contact
with organic solvents
• Do not use Bunsen burners unless
otherwise instructed
• Keep all volatile chemicals in the
fume hood
• Never dispose of organic solvents
in a sink, use the waste containers
Using Safety
Equipment
• Locate all safety equipment when
you enter the lab
• In case of a fire, the lab has a fire
extinguisher, fire blanket, and fire
alarm
• In the event of a large chemical spill
on a person, use the safety shower
for 15 minutes and remove clothing
• If you get chemicals in your eyes,
use the eyewash station for 15
minutes
• Use the first aid kit for minor
injuries
• If ANY of the above hazards occurs
in the lab, tell the instructor or TA
Personal Protective
Equipment (PPE)
• Wear closed-toed shoes and long pants
• Long hair should be tied back
• Wear your lab coat, safety goggles, and
gloves whenever work is being done in
the lab
• If you wear glasses, you will have to
wear safety glasses over them
• Loose jewelry and accessories should
not be worn in the lab
• Do not wear PPE outside the lab or while
eating or drinking
• Do not touch doorknobs with gloves on
• When removing gloves, avoid touching
the outside of the gloves with your bare
hand
Spills in the Lab
• Understand the hazards of the
chemicals in the lab by reading the
SDS before lab
• Locate the spill kit when you arrive
at the lab
• When a spill occurs, use the
absorbent found in the spill kit or
use paper towels initially if the spill
is small enough
• Dispose of the labelled bag of used
absorbent in the solid waste
container
• For an acidic spill, use the sodium
bicarbonate and for bases use citric
or ascorbic acid to neutralize them
• If glassware is broken, carefully
dispose of it in the broken glass
container
• If a spill occurs, ALWAYS notify the
instructor or TA
Lab Safety Symbols

• Note the warning signs

posted in the lab
• Familiarize yourself
with the NFPA and
GHS labelling systems
• Be careful around gas
cylinders
References
• http://www.mhollier.com/SyllabiAndSchedules/Perimeter%20College%
20Safety%20Training%20PowerPoint%20Presentation.pdf\
• https://www.chemsafetypro.com/Topics/USA/NFPA_704_Label_NFPA_R
ating.html
• https://ehs.princeton.edu/news/know-your-hazard-symbols-pictograms
• https://troutunderground.com/Lab-Glassware-Ml-Round-Bottom-Flask/
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dust_explosion#/media/File:Staubexplosi
on.jpg
• https://www.chemicals.co.uk/blog/why-is-ppe-important-in-the-
workplace
• https://www.csusm.edu/shs/laboratorysafety/chemicalspill.html