Guidance on Laboratory Practice
Guidance on Laboratory Practice when Dealing with Substances Hazardous to Health
Employees working with hazardous substances will receive suitable training and instruction from their supervisors and managers. They may also wish to take note of the following information related to laboratory practice when working with chemicals.
· All users of a laboratory should know the location of emergency equipment such as fire extinguishers, fire blankets, emergency showers and eyewashes, fire alarm points, first aid kits, spill kits and telephones. They should have access to a list of First Aiders and their telephone numbers.
· Personal protective equipment/clothes should be worn when working with chemicals. This includes eye protection (the wearing of Safety Glasses is mandatory at all times in certain laboratories), a lab-coat and, where appropriate, gloves known to give protection against the chemical in use.
· Any accidental contact with chemicals, irrespective of toxicity or corrosiveness, should be treated by washing with cold running water. In the case of chemicals in the eye, the eyewash shower or other source of cold running water must be used to irrigate thoroughly. In all cases a First Aider must be called.
· To prevent exposure by inhalation, all users must be familiar with the correct use of fume-hoods. The rating of the fume-hood must be adequate to contain the chemicals in use.
· To prevent exposure by ingestion, users must not:
o Eat, drink etc in a laboratory,
o Store food in laboratory refrigerators or ovens
o Drink water from laboratory water supplies
o Use laboratory glassware to prepare or consume food
o Smell or taste chemicals
o Touch door handles, light switches or telephones with (assumed contaminated) gloves.
· A First Aider must be called in the event of any accidental inhalation or ingestion of a chemical.
· The laboratory floors, benches and fume-hoods should be kept tidy and free from unused chemicals or chemical waste.
· All chemicals must be properly labelled. Materials supplied by manufacturers should preferably be stored in original containers carrying any hazard warning information. Other containers should be labelled to readily identify the contents and must not be labelled simply with a code number or formula.
· When not in use chemicals must be stored in the appropriate ventilated cupboards, fridges or freezers and should be stored to avoid accidental mixing of incompatible, reactive materials. The amount of chemicals stored in any laboratory must be kept to a minimum.
· Waste chemicals should be moved out the laboratory regularly and disposed of properly. Waste solvents must be kept in a closed container and disposed of regularly.
· Following completion of a Research Project, all users must perform a laboratory clearance of chemicals and other materials.
Failure of Electricity: Fume-hood sashes should be closed before leaving the laboratory.