Practice

SAFE
Science

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WHY LAB SAFETY?

• Protect yourself from laboratory hazards.

• Protect others from laboratory hazards.

• Comply with regulations.

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Lab safety: Practicing Safe Science
Ask Questions BEFORE you start
Plan safety in your experiment
Good lab practices
Hazard Communication – you must notify anyone
who enters your area of risks
Reduce risks to acceptable levels.
Concern for others and the environment – we must
protect the public and the environment

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 Risk Assessment
Risk assessments on lab procedures should be done
before initiating them. They should answer the
following:

What are the hazards?

What might happen?
How likely is it to happen?
How serious are the consequences if it happens?
What are the possible exposures?
How can I mitigate exposure?

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LAB SAFETY
 General Safety Rules
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

1. Always wear a lab coat.

2. Wear safety goggles to protect your eyes

from chemicals, heated materials, or things
that might be able to shatter.
3. No eating and drinking allowed in a lab in
any case.
General Safety Rules
4. After handling chemicals, always wash
your hands with soap and water.
5. During lab work, keep your hands away
from your face.
6. Tie back long hair.
 General Safety Rules
7. Roll up loose sleeves.
8. Know the location of the fire extinguisher.
9. Take to the lab station only what is necessary.
Emergency Showers &
Eyewash Stations

• Immediate washing of the skin and eye with generous amounts of

water is the most effective first aid treatment for chemical burns
(unless chemical reacts unfavorably to water-MSDS)
 Glassware Safety
1. Chipped or cracked glassware should not be used.

2. When pouring liquids into glassware, make sure the container you are
pouring into is resting on a table, away from the edge.
 Chemical Safety
1. Wear protective goggles whenever
heating or pouring hazardous
chemicals.
2. Never mix chemicals together unless
you are told to do so (and then only
in the manner specified).
➢Keep hands away from eyes, mouth and body
while using chemicals.

➢Wash your hands with soap and water

after performing lab activities.

➢NEVER touch, taste or smell

any chemicals.

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 Electrical Safety
1. Lay electrical cords where no one can trip on them or get
caught in them.
2. Be sure your hands and your lab area are dry before
using electrical equipment.
3. Never poke anything into electrical outlets.
 Electrical Safety
4. Unplug cords by pulling the plug and not the cord.
5. Unplug all electrical equipment at the end of the lab period.

6. NEVER use defective equipment

 Heating Safety
1. Let burners and hotplates cool down before touching
them.

2. Use protective gloves to handle hot objects.

3. Never reach across an open flame or burner.

 Heating Safety
4. Always point the top ends of test tubes that are
being heated away from people.

5. When heating a test tube, move it around slowly

over the flame to distribute the heat evenly.

6. Never leave a burner or hotplate unattended.

What are the general hazards in a
laboratory?
• Fire
• Breakage of glassware
• Sharps
• Spillages
• Pressure equipment & gas
cylinders
• Extremes of heat & cold
• Chemical hazards
• Biological hazards
• Radiation

And many more!

Avoiding Fires

• Flammable substances
• Use minimum quantity
• Store in special storage cabinet
• Use temperature-controlled
heating sources
(eg water-bath rather than hot-plate
or Bunsen burner)
Fire Safety

• Make sure that you know

what to do:
• If you have a fire
• If you hear a fire alarm

• If you are a member of staff

you must attend fire training
annually. Post graduates
should also seriously consider
doing so.
Spillages

• Clear up spillage promptly

• You will already have
determined how to do this as
part of your risk assessment
• Dispose of any hazardous
material as toxic waste
Messy workers are usually poor
workers!!
Gas cylinders

• Never use without formal training

• Minimise the number in a
laboratory
• Store externally whenever
possible
• Consider the consequences if
your cylinder leaks
Cryogenics

• Cryogenics is the science that

addresses the production and
effects of very low temperatures.
• Liquid gasses are extremely cold and
can cause burns
• Liquid gases evaporate and many
can cause asphyxiation
• If you need to take cryogens in a lift,
there are special procedures to
follow – speak to your supervisor or
a senior member of technical staff
• You must have special training to use
them
General Tidiness

• Keep your workplace tidy

• Clear up waste, deal with
washing up, and put things
away as you finish with them
• Make sure everything is safe
before you leave things
unattended
• A tidy laboratory avoids
X
accidents for everyone
Laboratory Equipment

• Never use any laboratory

equipment unless you
are trained & have been
authorized to do so
• Ensure proper labeling of
materials and containers.
First Aid

• All laboratory workers should

undergo simple first aid training
• For ALL chemical splashes, wash
with plenty of water for 10 minutes

• Report all accidents to your

supervisor or departmental
safety officer
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Rules of good housekeeping
Never rinse anything down the sink
without the permission of your teacher.
In fairness to others, clean all glassware,
labware and equipment at the end of the
lab.
Return all equipment and supplies to the
proper storage area.

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 Rules of good housekeeping
cont….
➢Lab counters should be clear of all
unnecessary materials (books, etc.) prior to
beginning of work.
➢Don’t touch any equipment with
contaminated gloves.
➢All tubes, tips and anything with biomaterial
on it must be disposed off in the labeled
biohazard" containers.

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 Rules of good housekeeping
cont….
➢All aisles and walkways in the lab must
be kept clear to provide a safe walking
path and an unobstructed exit. Keep lab
floor dry at all times.
➢Do not block access to emergency
equipment & utility controls.
➢Experiments must not be left
unattended.

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• What Does GHS Stand For?
GHS stands for Globally Harmonized System of
Classification and Labeling of Chemicals. It is an
internationally-recognized standard for labeling containers
that hold hazardous materials.
What Does the GHS Do?
• The main goal is to make it easy for workers to immediately
understand what kind of chemical is in a container and what the
risks are for handling it. This system covers:
• Classifying
• Labeling
• Identifying

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 MSafety Data Sheets, (MSDS)

• required for each chemical

• requires employee and
student review
• must be accessable for
employees/student
MSDS FILE

purpose

The main purpose of an MSDS is to give workers instructions for dealing with potential
worst-case scenarios like direct exposure to the chemical or a major accident
MSDS Information Includes:
• Nomenclature including chemical family and formula
• Hazardous ingredients
• Fire and explosion hazard
• Health hazard
• Spill and leak procedures
• Special protection information
• Storage and handling precautions
 TYPES OF HAZARDS
• HEALTH
• Illnesses, diseases due to exposure to chemicals.

• PHYSICAL
• Sudden events such as fire and explosions etc.
• Environmental hazard

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 CHEMICAL HAZARDS MAY HAVE :
• Acute effect
➢Generally characterized by a single, rather high
exposure with rapid onset of symptoms. (Carbon
Monoxide).
• Chronic long term
➢Typically result from repeated, low-level exposures
over a long period of time with slow onset of
symptoms--Asbestos.

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 ROUTES OF EXPOSURES

•ABSORPTION
•INHALATION
•DIGESTION

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HEALTH HAZARDS
•Acute Toxicity
(Oral/Dermal/Inhalation)
•Aspiration Toxicity
•Carcinogenicity
•Germ Cell Mutagenicity
•Reproductive Toxicology
•Respiratory or Skin Sensitization
•Serious Eye Damage/Eye Irritation
•Skin Corrosion/Irritation
•Single Exposure

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 PHYSICAL HAZARDS

• Explosives
• Flammable Gases
• Aerosols
• Oxidizing Gases
• Gases Under Pressure
• Flammable Liquids
• Flammable Solids
• Self-Reactive Substances
• Substances which emit flammable gases after they come in
contact with water
• Oxidizing Liquids
• Oxidizing Solids
• Corrosive to Metals
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 Environmental hazard

• Hazardous to Aquatic Environment (Acute/Chronic)

• Hazardous to the Ozone Layer
• Air contaminants.
• Toxic waste.
• Radiation.
• Disease-causing microorganisms and plants.
• Pesticides.
• Heavy metal
• Extreme temperatures and weather events.

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COMMON EXPOSURE POINTS
• Eating
• Restroom
• Shoes
• Laundry
• Phone
• Computer

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 WHERE TO FIND INFORMATION ON
CHEMICAL HAZARDS
• Aldrich catalog
• Merck Index
• American Chemical Society
• American Biological Association
• National Institute of Occupational Safety and
Health (NIOSH)

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A very specialized research laboratory that deals with infectious agents is the biosafety lab
The protections required by these types of activities are defined as biosafety levels
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 Bio safety Level 1
➢ Minimal potential threat to laboratory
workers and the environment
➢ Non –Pathogenic Microbes
➢ Minimum risk
➢ Do not consistently cause disease in
healthy adults.
➢ Research with these agents is generally
performed on standard open laboratory
benches
➢ Do not need special containment
equipment
➢ BSL 1 labs are not usually isolated from
the general building.
Example; Non pathogenic strain of E.coli
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 Bio safety Level 1

➢ Normal laboratory personal protective equipment

is generally worn
➢ Hand washing
➢ Wearing lab coat, glove and eye protection
➢ Limited access to people
➢ No mouth pipetting
➢ Cleaning and decontamination of area

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 Bio safety Level 2
➢ Associated with human disease, in other
words, pathogenic or infectious organisms
posing a moderate hazard.
➢ Great care is used to prevent
percutaneous injury (needlesticks, cuts
and other breaches of the skin), ingestion
and mucous membrane exposures
➢ Direct handling of broken glassware is
prohibited, and decontamination of all
sharps prior to disposal is standard
practice

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 Bio safety Level 2
➢ Causes diseases in
Human Beings
➢ Examples HIV when
performing routine
diagnostic procedures
or work with clinical
specimens.

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➢ Specialty safety equipment and facilities.
➢ Equivalent containment device for work with agents
➢ An autoclave or other suitable method for
decontamination within the lab
➢ Using Biosafety cabinet
➢ Trained personnel
➢ Availability of eye wash satiation
➢ Wearing lab coat, glove and eye protection
➢ No mouth pipetting
➢ Cleaning and decontamination of area
➢ Limited access to people
➢ Self closing lockable doors and biohazard warning
signs are also required at all access points.

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 Bio safety Level 3
• Work with these agents is strictly
controlled and must be registered with all
appropriate government agencies.
• These are indigenous or exotic agents
that may cause serious or lethal disease
• Solid-front wrap around gowns,
• Respirators as necessary.
• Self-closing double-door access separated
from general building corridors.
• The ventilation must provide ducted,
directional airflow by drawing air into the
lab from clean areas and with no
recirculation.
• Yellow fever, and West Nile virus are
examples
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 Bio safety Level 4

➢ Facilities and practices are extremely Rare in the world

dangerous and pose a high risk of

➢ life-threatening disease
➢ Decontamination of materials before
exiting
➢ Full body garment
➢ Complete clothing change before
entry
➢ Taking shower after leaving the facility
➢ Example: Ebola and Marburg viruses 50
 Bio safety Level 4

➢ laboratories are in separate

buildings or a totally isolated zone
with dedicated supply and exhaust
No vaccines
ventilation.

Fatal infection

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 Last, not least………..
Before you leave your work area each day,
check to ensure :

• Heat sources are turned off

• Hood sashes are closed
• Chemicals and biological agents are stored and
labelled properly.

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Thank you

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