CVEN 3454/5404 Water Chemistry

Laboratory Rules

• General Rules and Guidelines
• Safety Rules

General Rules and Guidelines

Attendance: Attendance at lab is required.  If you are forced to miss lab for an unavoidable reason, you may participate in the lab report at the discretion of your lab team.  You must attend the lab period for which you are registered.

Hours: The labs are scheduled for three hours each. Most labs will require less than three hours; a couple may require more than three hours if you are not well-prepared. If you are well-prepared, you will typically finish in less than three hours.

Backpacks and Coats:  There are hooks on the walls around the lab to hang backpacks and coats.

Lab Notebook: You are not required to purchase a fancy lab notebook, but you are required to keep a lab notebook for your team.  I recommend a wire-wound notebook filled with "graph paper" (quadrille-ruled). The wire-wound notebook can be opened and laid flat on the lab bench. You may not use loose paper, paper towels, etc., to record your lab. Only a single notebook needs to be kept during the lab -- but be sure you understand what has been recorded in the notebook.  You will include copies of your notebook pages in your lab reports.  Some guidelines on writing a laboratory notebook:
     Writing the Laboratory Notebook
     Guidelines for Keeping a Laboratory Record
     Proper Maintenance of a Laboratory Notebook      

Lab Partners: Form your own lab teams. When you choose your team, keep in mind that your lab report grades will depend on them. If the instructor and TA observe that certain teams are experiencing unavoidable problems, we will mediate problems and may request that new teams be formed. Some of the problems for which we will be watching: lab partners that don't help, lab partners that try to do all of the work, lab partners that only observe and take notes.

Starting a Lab: Before starting work on an experiment, lay out your plan of action. Organize the chemicals and glassware that you will need. Make sure that the instruments are calibrated and operating properly. It's better to prepare at the beginning of the lab instead of finding out that you can't complete a lab after you've already done some of it.

Glassware: All glassware necessary for the lab should be available from the TA. If there is anything that you need that isn't present, ask the TA. Owing to the limited time in the lab, the TA will scrupulously wash the glassware before the labs. When you are finished with the lab, rinse the glassware in tap water and return it to drying area designated by the TA.

Instruments: The instruments used in the labs are expensive and often delicate. If you don't know how to use an instrument, don't experiment -- ask the instructor or the TA.

Modifications: Some lab procedures may be modified before or during the lab. Any changes will be posted on the lab blackboard or sent to you via e-mail.

Safety Rules

• PLASTIC SAFETY GOGGLES: You must wear plastic safety goggles with side shields at all times in the lab. If you wear prescription lenses, get goggles that fit over them. Glass lenses are dangerous because they don't provide explosion protection. Plastic lenses are OK only if you get side shields attach to your frames. Goggles can be purchased at the University book store or McGuckins.  Buy some that won't make you sweat or feel like a nerd!
   
• NO CONTACT LENSES: You must not wear contact lenses in the lab. If you accidentally spill chemicals in your eyes despite wearing safety goggles, your contact lenses will inhibit adequate rinsing; also, some contact lenses will dissolve in your eyes in the presence of some chemical vapors.
   
• NO OPEN-TOED SHOES: You must not wear open-toed shoes to lab. Frequently, we will supply latex or neoprene gloves to handle certain chemicals, like concentrated acids or bases. We don't have any latex or neoprene socks. Feet are especially vulnerable to spilled liquids.
   
• NO FOOD or DRINK: You must not bring food or drink into the lab. The lab is filled with toxic substances, carcinogens, and other poisons that shouldn't be mixed with food.  If you must eat or drink during lab, do it outside the lab.
   
• Confine long hair and loose clothing (scarves, ties) in the lab. Get yourself a lab coat to use in the lab if you like your clothes. A lab coat also provides an extra layer of protection.
   
• For handling hazardous chemicals, wear the correct protective equipment (lab coat, apron, neoprene gloves, face shield).
   
• Do not perform unauthorized experiments.  Use only the quantities and types of chemicals listed in the lab.
   
• Do not touch chemicals. Many hazardous chemicals are absorbed through the skin. Wash off all chemicals that contact your skin inadvertently with a large amount of water.
   
• Do not ingest any chemicals.  No mouth-pipetting -- always use a pipette bulb.
   
• Do not dispose of chemicals (any chemicals*) through the sink drain.  Chemicals are collected in Aqueous or Organic collection bottles.  Ask you TA about the disposal procedures. 
     *That said, for some innocuous reagents, we may dispose by flushing small quantities
      down the sink with running water (DILUTE).  Always ask the TA.
  
• Learn the hazards of the chemicals we will be using by consulting the Materials Safety Data Sheets.
   
• Never work alone in the laboratory. There must be at least one other person in the room. Also, the instructor or TA should be quickly available.

Emergencies

• Read the emergency directions posted near the door on the red paper. In the event of a serious emergency: (1) Notify Occupants, (2) Evacuate, and (3) Call 911.
   
• In case of fire or accident, call the instructor or TA immediately. No accident is too small or too "embarrassing" to handle it on your own.
   
• If you or your clothing catch on fire, DO NOT RUN. Do not run.  Do not run.  Get somebody to get the fire blanket and wrap you. Once wrapped, drop to the floor and roll to extinguish the flames. If you were alone or near the emergency shower, use the emergency shower to douse the flames.
   
• Know the locations of the fire extinguishers: (1) near the fume hood and (2) near the door.
   
• If you get a chemical in your eyes, wash with flowing water from the eyewash sink for at least 15 minutes. Get somebody to help you keep your eyes open. Get medical attention immediately.
   
• If you spill chemicals on your body or clothing, wash the affected area with a large amount of water.  Use the emergency shower. Get somebody to help you. Remove clothing affected by the spill to prevent further reaction.
   
• Know the location of the emergency shower and eyewash sink.
   
• Report all injuries, even superficial ones, to the instructor or TA immediately. You may not be aware of the dangers of open wounds in the presence of chemicals used in the lab.  Use the first aid kit in the lab if necessary.  If the injury requires medial attention, the instructor or TA will take you to Wardenburg Health Center.

Safety Advice

• Be responsible for your safety and the safety of those around you. The dangers of spilled acids and broken glassware are real.
   
• Avoid breathing fumes of any kind.  To test the smell of a vapor, use your hands to waft it toward your nose.  Work in a fume hood if noxious or poisonous vapors may be present.
   
• Keep your work area neat at all times. Clutter slows your work and leads to accidents. At the end of lab, clean up your area.
   
• Be careful when heating liquids. Never use an open flame (e.g., Bunsen burner) in this lab.
   
• Always pour acids into water when mixing. If you pour water into acid, the water dissociates violently (H₂O = H⁺ + OH^-) and the acid will splatter. Remember, "acid into water is the way that you oughter".
   
• Do not force glass stoppers out of ground-glass bottles. Do not force rubber stoppers onto thermometers or glass tubing. For ground-glass joints, (1) tap the joint, (2) allow water to wet the joint, and (3) Dissolve the solid that precipitates in the joint (try Coca Cola^®). For thermometers, lubricate and protect your hands.
   
• Be prepared for the lab. If you haven't read the lab, you'll miss information about potentially hazardous chemicals. You'll be a hazard to everyone in the room. You'll probably take longer to finish the lab and won't learn as much as the properly prepared students.

Additional safety guidelines from other laboratories:
     Laboratory Safety Regulations

Last updated on August 29, 2007 at 02:46 AM by Joe Ryan