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Desert Vista High School Science
Lab
Lab Safety || Accidents
|| Safety Equipment || Lab Preparation
|| MSDS
|| Safety Links
 Lab Safety: Everyone is
Responsible!
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"I didn't mean to" and "It
wasn't my fault" are two statements that have no place in the lab.
If someone is hurt or equipment is broken, these statements cannot undo
the harm.
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Horseplay will not be tolerated. If it occurs,
those involved will be disqualified from the lab and given a zero for the
assignment.
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Lack of pre-lab preparation is the main threat
to safety in our lab. If you and your group are unprepared, you will be
unsure of yourself, waste time, and have a good chance of making a
mistake that leads to a problem.
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At the beginning of each lab period, you will
be given a chance to ask questions. If you are unsure of some procedure,
now is the time to ask. Always pay close attention to any verbal
instructions given at this time.
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- Safety Glasses Must Be Worn in the lab area.
 Safety glasses are stored in the green goggle cabinet in the
rear of the class. - Other protective clothing, such as gloves
and aprons are at your option, unless otherwise noted.
- Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
Training
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Contact lenses should NOT be worn in the lab.
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It is almost impossible to remove contacts after chemicals
have been splashed into the eyes.
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Chemicals trapped under contacts will damage the
eye even more than normal.
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The plastic used for some types of contact lenses
is permeable to vapors found in the laboratory. If these vapors are trapped
behind the lens, extensive irritation may occur.
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Long hair and bulky clothing are dangerous in the lab.
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There is a danger of catching fire, as well as
being drawn through chemicals.
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Wear appropriate clothing.
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Tie back long hair.
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Rings, watches, and jewelry are dangerous in the lab.
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Corrosive or irritating liquids may get underneath
a ring or watch and produce irritation.
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Dangling jewelry may catch on a piece of labware
and cause an accident.
What's wrong with this picture?
Accidents Can Happen:
Broken Glass | Cuts and Scrapes | Chemical Spills | Fires
Remain calm! A
minor problem quickly becomes a major one if you don't.
- Report all
accidents immediately, no matter how small.
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Types of
accidents and how to handle them:
Broken Glass: 
The most
common accident in the lab, even with the best of care.
- If you are
using the equipment properly, you will not get into trouble for
breaking a piece of glassware.
- If you are
not using the equipment properly, or if horseplay is involved, you
will be required to pay for the broken glassware.
- If
glassware is broken, stop where you are. Report the breakage to
your facilitator.
- Do not move
until your facilitator says it is safe to do so. There will most
likely be many small slivers of glass that you do not immediately
notice.
- If anyone
is cut, report it immediately.
- Your
facilitator will collect the broken glass, not you. More minor cuts
occur after this type of accident than during it.
- Chemical
spills are often involved with glass breakage. When that occurs,
follow those safety precautions too.
Cuts and Scrapes:
Do not
come into contact with another person's blood.
- Report
the situation to your facilitator and let him help the injured
person.
- There is
always a possibility of infection, even with the most minor
injury. For this reason you should report any cut or scrape,
even if there is no visible blood.
- If there is
blood at any lab station, everyone is to turn off all
burners and move to your seat in the classroom area until told it is
safe to return to the lab.
- Bloodborne
Pathogen Training
Chemical Spills:
You are
to treat all chemical spills as DANGEROUS.
- Stop
where you are and let your facilitator advise you about what to do.
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Consult the proper Material Safety Data Sheet before doing anything.
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Chemical Safety Warning Signs - NFPA, ANSI, OSHA
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Did any of the spill get on your skin or clothing?
Sometimes adding water is the worst thing you can do.
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Depending on the chemical spilled, we might just
have a mess to clean up or we might have a very dangerous situation.
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The most potentially dangerous chemicals used in
our lab are corrosive acids and bases. Even though you will normally be
using chemicals that have been diluted, you should always treat acids and
bases with care.
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Elbow-length, chemical-resistant gloves to use
during clean up are stored in the chemical cart, if needed.
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Glass breakage often occurs along with chemical
spills. If that happens, follow those safety precautions too.
Fire:
When you
are not heating something - turn the burner off.
- Lab
burners are the source of most problems:
- Bunsen
burners have very few malfunctions. If a malfunction occurs, turn
off the gas and notify your facilitator- end of problem.
- The flame
from alcohol burners is hard to see. Pay close attention when using
them.
- Be aware
when a burner is in use at your lab station. Be extremely careful
during that time.
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Paper is the most common type of fire in the
lab.
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This type of fire is cause by carelessness and
easily prevented. Take only one lab sheet to your station to follow your
written procedures and record data. Leave all reference materials at your
desk. If you need to refer to reference material, leave the lab area to do
so.
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If a paper fire occurs, push the paper into the
lab sink and turn on the water - end of problem.
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Clothing or Hair is the most dangerous type
of fire in the lab.
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Don't panic!
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If you are the one involved in a fire - stay
where you are - help is coming. "Stop, drop, and roll" is
still the best course of action.
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If your partner is involved in a fire - get the
fire blanket. Your facilitator will be racing you to the
blanket and both of you will help your partner smother the fire.
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If the fire is not at your lab station - stay
away !
Lab Safety Equipment:
- Eye Wash
Station:
The eye wash station is located on the west wall of the science
lab.
- The
station should only be used if chemicals come in contact with the
eyes.
- Eyelids
have to be forcibly kept open to ensure effective washing.
- Be sure to
wash from the nose out to the ear. This will avoid washing chemicals
back into the eye or into an unaffected eye.
- Flood eyes
and eyelids with water for a minimum of 15 minutes.
- Contacts
should not be worn during labs. If you are wearing them when involved
with an accident, remove them as soon as possible to rinse eyes of
any harmful chemicals.
- After the
science facilitator determines the eyes are completely flushed, both
of the victim's eyes should be covered with a clean or sterile gauze.
B.
Safety Shower:
The safety shower is located on the west wall of the science
lab.
- The shower
provides an effective means of treatment in the event that large
amounts of chemicals are spilled or splashed onto the skin or
clothing.
- As long as
the hanging handle is pulled down, the safety shower will supply a
continuous stream of water to cover the entire body.
- Individuals
should remove clothing, including shoes and jewelry, while under an
operating shower.
C. Fire
Safety Blanket:
The fire
safety blanket is located on the north lab table.
- Fire
blankets are not the best means to extinguish a fire. They may be
used to extinguish clothing that is burning, but should never be used
on any other type of fire.
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Never wrap a standing
student in the blanket. This creates a "chimney effect", bringing
the fire directly to the student's face.
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Only a Haylon fire extinguisher should be used on a
fire involving personal clothing. The materials from other extinguishers
can cut off oxygen to a person surrounded by the cloud of chemicals.
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Fire blankets are a good means to keep shock
victims warm.
D. Fire
Extinguisher:
The fire
extinguisher is located on the west wall.
- Only the science facilitator is authorized to
use the fire extinguisher.
- Fire
extinguishers are classified according to a particular fire type and
are given the same letter and symbol classification as that of the
fire.
 Types
of Fire Extinguishers:
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Combustibles:
wood, cloth, paper, rubber and plastics.
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Flammable liquids:
oil, grease and paint thinners.
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Energized electrical equipment.
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Our lab fire
extinguisher is Type ABC, effective against Types A, B, and C.
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The average fire extinguisher only operates
about 10 seconds. Don't waste it!
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You must get close to the fire - as close as 5 or 6
feet!
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To effectively operate an extinguisher, think P-A-S-S.
P --
pull the pin
A -- aim the hose at the base of the fire
S -- squeeze the handle
S -- sweep the hose back and forth
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Fire Extinguisher Training
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Fire Safety and Fire Extinguishers
E. Sprinkler
System:
Sprinklers
located throughout the lab area are automatically activated.
- Students should not attempt to alter the
system in any way.
- Items in the lab should be stored at least
18 inches away from the sprinkler heads.
- Items should not hang from the sprinkler
heads.
- Intense heat should not be used near the
sprinkler heads.
Desert Vista High School Science Labs:
- The
scientific method can't be learned
following cookbook-like directions.
- The purpose of a lab experiment is to test
a hypothesis. In most of our labs,
you will be given a question or a hypothesis to design your own
procedures to test.
- To be successful in your laboratory
experience, know how to:
successfully
conduct a lab
properly
use lab equipment
correctly
perform lab techniques
write
a lab report using this report guide
evaluate
your report using this evaluation rubric
- Rice University has more detailed lab
objectives.
Prelab Preparation:
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You are not
prepared for a lab until your plan
is neatly written on a Lab Report Form.
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- You must have a clearly stated question
before a hypothesis can be formed. Some of your lab experiences
will begin by giving you a hypothesis. In those cases, it is important
that you decide what question was asked?
- Once you understand the question, you must
find out all you can about the topic. This is called research. Your
success and safety in the lab depends on how well you research each
topic before trying to answer the lab question.
- Based on your research, you should be able
to formulate a possible answer to the question - this becomes your
hypothesis.
- Some of your lab questions might have
answers that have been repeatedly obtained and generally accepted as
correct. An example is the question, "What percentage of the air
in the atmosphere is made up of oxygen?" You should be able to
find reference material that gives the answer. For your lab purposes,
this number would be called the theoretical value. When you
perform an experiment and get a number, that number would be called
the experimental value.
- When a theoretical value is known, you can
determine just how good your experiment is and how well your
procedures were done by using the following equation to calculate the
experimental error.
Planning An Experiment:
- Visualize yourself doing the experiment
in our room!
- What will you need to test your hypothesis?
While you must think about the equipment you will use, an
"equipment list" is not part of your Lab Report
Form.
- Make notes about everything you will do as
you see yourself performing the experiment. Do not make these notes
on a Lab Report Form. These are your "working" notes. You
will probably make changes as you continue thinking about the lab.
- Will you be making any measurements during
the lab?
- What other data will you need to collect?
- What calculations will be needed?
- How will you know if your hypothesis is
right or wrong?
- Look over your notes again. Are there any
places where mistakes might be easily made? Can you do something
different that will lower the chance for mistakes?
- When you are satisfied that you have
covered everything, write your procedures on a Lab Report Form.
- Make your procedures clear enough that
someone else could follow them.
Lab Station Clean-Up:
- Clean-up is important for the safety of
others and for the preservation of equipment.
- Your lab station and equipment should be
cleaned before you worry about the lab report.
- What clean-up should be done after each
lab?
- Dispose of chemicals as directed by your
facilitator.
- NEVER put unused chemicals back into their
original container.
- Return chemical containers to the chemical
table.
- Wash and dry all glassware, then store
properly.
- Clean hardware, but DO NOT wash. If any
hardware is wet, dry completely before storing. This is to prevent
rusting.
- Clean and dry your lab table.
- Return safety
glasses to the goggle cabinet.
Research Links:
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