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Chemical Safety

This document discusses chemical safety in research laboratories. It defines key terms like chemical, hazard, and routes of chemical entry. There are three main types of hazards: physical, health, and environmental. Physical hazards include corrosives, oxidizers, flammables, explosives, and compressed gases. Health hazards include toxins, irritants, and carcinogens. Chemicals should be properly stored and segregated based on hazard class. A hierarchy of controls from elimination to administrative controls and PPE should be followed to effectively manage chemical safety risks.

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146 views4 pages

Chemical Safety

This document discusses chemical safety in research laboratories. It defines key terms like chemical, hazard, and routes of chemical entry. There are three main types of hazards: physical, health, and environmental. Physical hazards include corrosives, oxidizers, flammables, explosives, and compressed gases. Health hazards include toxins, irritants, and carcinogens. Chemicals should be properly stored and segregated based on hazard class. A hierarchy of controls from elimination to administrative controls and PPE should be followed to effectively manage chemical safety risks.

Uploaded by

arfredbileg08
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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CHEMICAL SAFETY

INTRODUCTION
✓ Wide range of chemicals are used in research laboratories, each with its own inherent hazards.
✓ An understanding of the potential hazards and precautions required in handling of chemicals is of
outmost importance in preventing exposure to chemicals and mishaps.
DEFINITION OF TERMS
✓ CHEMICAL – any element, chemical compound, or mixture of elements and/or compounds.
✓ SAFETY – state or condition of being secure from any undergoing or that may cause hurt, injury, or loss.
✓ HAZARD – an item or condition which poses potential risk to safety, health or environment.
✓ CHEMICAL SAFETY – being secure from any undergoing that may cause hurt, injury, or loss when
working with elements, chemical compounds, or mixtures of elements and/or compounds.
✓ CHEMICAL HAZARDS – elements, chemical compounds, or mixtures of elements and/or compounds
which poses potential risk to safety or health.
ROUTES OF ENTRY
The main routes of entry of chemicals in the human body are:
✓ INHALATION – entry through the lungs
✓ INGESTION – entry through the mouth into the gastrointestinal system
✓ ABSORPTION – entry through the pores of the skin
✓ INJECTION – direct entry through the skin
TYPES OF HAZARDS
1. PHYSICAL HAZARD – a factor within the environment/surroundings that can harm the body without
necessarily touching it.
✓ CORROSIVE

➢ Corrosive substances cause destructive burns on the tissue by


chemical action at the site of contact.
➢ Corrosive effect can also occur in the respiratory tract in case of
inhalation and in the gastrointestinal tract in case of ingestion.
➢ Typical examples are H2SO4, HNO3, KOH and NaOH.

✓ OXIDIZERS

➢ Oxidizers are chemicals which decompose readily under certain


conditions to yield oxygen.
➢ They can cause fire to burn violently.
➢ Typical examples include H2O2, HNO3, HClO4 and H2SO4.

ENGR. JONAYKA T. AZARIAS Page 1


CHEMICAL SAFETY
✓ FLAMMABLE

➢ Flammable substances are those that readily catch fire and burn in
the air. The burn quickly.
➢ The degree of hazard associated with a flammable liquid depends
on its flash point, flammability limit and ignition temperature.
➢ Typical examples are CH3CHO, C3H5Cl, (CH3)2S.

✓ EXPLOSIVES

➢ Chemicals when subjected to heat, impact or friction, undergoes


rapid chemical change, evolving large volumes of gases which cause sudden
increase in pressure.
➢ Three fundamental types of explosives are mechanical, nuclear and
chemical.
➢ Typical example is TNT.

✓ COMPRESSED GAS

➢ Compressed gases are gases that are stored under pressure in


cylinders.
➢ The three major types of compressed gases are liquefied gases,
non-liquefied gases and dissolved gases.
➢ Typical examples are O2, N2, He and Ar.

2. HEALTH HAZARD – a condition that has or likely to have an adverse effect on the health of a person or
animal.
✓ CORROSIVE
✓ TOXIC

➢ Toxic chemicals produce injurious or lethal effects upon contact


with body cells due to their chemical properties
➢ The toxic effect depends upon the extent of exposure and the
inherent toxicity of a chemical.
➢ Typical examples are NaCN, NaN3, (CH3)2Hg.

✓ TYPES OF TOXINS
a. NEUROTOXIN – substance that alters the structure or function of the nervous system.
b. HEMATOTOXIN – substance that is poisonous to the blood and to the organs and tissues involved
in the production of blood.
c. HEPATOTOXIN – substance that causes damage or injury to the liver.
d. NEPHROTOXIN – substance that inhibits damages or destroys the cells and/or tissues of the
kidneys.

ENGR. JONAYKA T. AZARIAS Page 2


CHEMICAL SAFETY
e. DERMATOTOXIN – substance or chemical that damages the skin, mucous membrane or both.
✓ IRRITANT

➢ Toxic chemicals produce injurious or lethal effects upon contact


with body cells due to their chemical properties
➢ The toxic effect depends upon the extent of exposure and the
inherent toxicity of a chemical.
➢ Typical examples are NaCN, NaN3, (CH3)2Hg.

✓ CARCINOGEN

➢ Substances that may cause cancer by altering cellular metabolism


or damaging DNA directly in cells, which interferes with normal biological
processes.
➢ Typical examples are tobacco, UV, asbestos

3. ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARD – a substance, state or event which has the potential to threaten the natural
environment.

STORAGE OF CHEMICALS
Some chemical classes may be stored together and some should be segregated. At a minimum, the
following Hazard Classes should be separated from one another:

✘ Corrosives

✘ Strong acids separated from strong bases

✘ Inorganic acids separated from organic acids, same for bases

✘ Oxidizers

✘ Flammable liquids

✘ Highly Toxic

✘ Highly Reactive

ENGR. JONAYKA T. AZARIAS Page 3


CHEMICAL SAFETY
HIERARCHY OF CONTROLS
Controlling exposures to occupational hazards is the fundamental method of protecting workers.
Traditionally, a hierarchy of controls has been used as a means of determining how to implement feasible and
effective control solutions.
The idea behind this hierarchy is that the control methods at the top of graphic are potentially more
effective and protective than those at the bottom. Following this hierarchy normally leads to the
implementation of inherently safer systems, where the risk of illness or injury has been substantially reduced.

ELIMINATION AND SUBSTITUTION

✘ Elimination and substitution, while most effective at reducing hazards, also tend to be the most difficult
to implement in an existing process.

✘ If the process is still at the design or development stage, elimination and substitution of hazards may be
inexpensive and simple to implement.

✘ For an existing process, major changes in equipment and procedures may be required to eliminate or
substitute for a hazard.
ENGINEERING CONTROLS

✘ Well-designed engineering controls can be highly effective in protecting workers and will typically be
independent of worker interactions to provide this high level of protection.

✘ The initial cost of engineering controls can be higher than the cost of administrative controls or PPE, but
over the longer term, operating costs are frequently lower, and in some instances, can provide a cost
savings in other areas of the process.
ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROLS AND PPE

✘ Administrative controls and PPE are frequently used with existing processes where hazards are not
particularly well controlled.

✘ Administrative controls and PPE programs may be relatively inexpensive to establish but, over the long
term, can be very costly to sustain.

✘ These methods for protecting workers have also proven to be less effective than other measures,
requiring significant effort by the affected workers.

ENGR. JONAYKA T. AZARIAS Page 4

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