Chemical Protective Equipment

To ensure the safety of everyone working in your laboratory, it is essential to have appropriate chemical safety laboratory equipment. Like all equipment in the laboratory, chemical protection equipment must be kept in good condition and in perfect working order.

Chemical safety equipment serves two main purposes in the laboratory: preventing incidents and dealing with the effects of incidents. Your lab will ideally have both types of equipment. Let’s take a closer look at what is really needed.

Chemical safety equipment to prevent incidents

First, we’ll look at the chemical safety equipment you have in your work area to prevent dangerous chemical incidents.

1. the label

The simplest and most basic of all chemical safety equipment, are essential for good housekeeping in the lab. They guide the proper storage, use and disposal of chemicals and ensure that users and others in the laboratory are aware of the chemical, its properties, components and hazards, associated hazards and the requirements involved in handling it. It follows that any chemical used in a laboratory or stored in storage facilities must be labeled. If the label is peeling or fading it should be replaced immediately.

2. safety data Sheets

All laboratory workers are required to use Safety Data Sheets (SDS) for all chemicals used or stored in laboratory areas. The SDS provides important information, including the potential risks associated with the safe use and storage of each chemical and the associated hazards. The mandatory 16-section format is intended to help chemical users mitigate any potential issues that may arise. An SDS management system makes it easy to keep track of your SDS. Talk to the friendly team at ChemWatch for help in obtaining and managing the appropriate SDS for your laboratory.

3. storage facilities

Another important piece of preventive chemical safety equipment is a suitable storage cupboard or facility. Some chemicals have very specific requirements for safe storage and the right type of storage facility is essential, whether they are stored for short or long periods. 

While specialist storage facilities will vary from laboratory to laboratory, certain items are found in all laboratories. Chemical storage cupboards, for example, are common to all laboratories. Make sure they have the necessary convection, fireproof, locks or other requirements that meet the storage requirements of chemicals stored inside. Chemicals stored in these cupboards should be labeled as described above, with the user’s name, date of storage and expected date of removal (where applicable).

Proper organization of your wardrobe is paramount to chemical safety. When storing chemicals, you should consider:

• Whether any chemical is carcinogenic, mutagenic or toxic, as these must be kept under lock and key and isolated from other chemicals.
• Compatibility of chemicals stored together. For example, do not store flammable chemicals with oxidizing agents.
• Long-term and bulk chemical storage should be placed in a separate building in processed areas, occupied areas and other storage areas.
• Temperature, humidity and ventilation in the storage area. Ideally, these should be controlled externally.
• Clear access paths from storage areas to the laboratory.
• Appropriate methods of disposal for each chemical.

4. fume hood and biosafety cupboard

Biosafety cupboards (BSCs) and fume hoods are important in the extraction of harmful vapors and prevention of airborne chemical poisoning. While these two pieces of chemical protection equipment perform similar functions, they have slightly different applications. 

There are three classes of BSC, each of which increases in safety and sterility. All three classes have one aspect in common: a HEPA filtration system, which has the ability to trap large amounts of small particles. This filter makes the biosafety cupboard ideal for use when dealing with infectious micro-organisms.

Fume hoods do not have such filters and are therefore not suitable for handling any infectious hazards. However, they are well suited for handling hazardous chemicals. While they do not have a filtration system, they do remove potentially toxic vapors from the workspace. These vapors are extracted by powerful extractor fans through ducts and released into the external environment. Fume hoods can be used for many applications, including toxic gases, aerosols, chemicals that may spread, volatile and flammable substances, and odorous gases. For some applications, it may be necessary to use extraction systems fitted with scrubbers to neutralize or absorb environmental pollutants, to prevent their release into the atmosphere. 

Chemical safety equipment to deal with the effects of incidents

If an incident were to occur, manage and contain any incidents to ensure that you have some of the equipment you need in your laboratory or work area. This equipment will not only deal with the effects of the incident, but will also reduce damage and prevent secondary incidents.

1. Eye wash station and protection rain

A first aid kit is an essential item in any workplace, and especially in the laboratory. It is always fully stocked with adhesive ointments, bandages, antiseptic cream, disposable gloves, and any specific first aid essentials that your lab may require. Check the first aid kit every week. Re-examine any items you have used as soon as possible and regularly check anything that is out of date. 

These kits are used in most laboratories to help clean up large spills. Materials will vary according to the type of chemical spills they are designed to deal with. However, most kits contain absorbent materials in a range of sizes and shapes, which help spread quickly. Kits are color-coded according to their applications, and some include a wheelchair bin for quick disposal of large spills. Either the whole section or parts of the kit can be replaced.

2. First Aid Kit

Although both of these devices perform the same function (ie extinguishing a fire), they do it in slightly different ways. A fire extinguisher is more useful in the case of a large fire, especially when a fire is blocking an emergency exit exit and you need to get out. However, using a fire extinguisher can cause irreparable damage to chemicals, equipment, and furniture. Therefore, for small fires, a fire blanket may be a better choice. You will still be able to put out the fire, but without collateral damage. 

3. chemical spill control kit

These are used to remove any chemical contamination from the eyes and/or the body. Eye wash stations and showers should be tested regularly to ensure they will be ready to use if an emergency occurs. 

4. fire extinguishers and fire blankets

A first aid kit is an essential item in any workplace, and especially in the laboratory. It is always fully stocked with adhesive ointments, bandages, antiseptic cream, disposable gloves, and any specific first aid essentials that your lab may require. Check the first aid kit every week. Re-examine any items you have used as soon as possible and regularly check anything that is out of date.

While these essentials are common in laboratories around the world, each laboratory or workspace will have slight variations in their chemical safety equipment. With standard operating procedures (SOPs) for the area you are working in to ensure you are familiar with essential chemical handling procedures, aware of potential hazards, and prepared for emergency situations Familiarize yourself with

To learn more about how you can keep yourself and your workers safe when working with chemicals, talk to the Chemwatch team today . We specialize in chemical safety and have years of experience in helping customers stay safe and comply with government regulations. 

source: https://www.d-chemi.com/