Laboratory safety

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Many laboratories carry significant risks, and prevention of laboratory accidents requires constant attention and vigilance. Examples of risk factors include high stress, high temperature and low pressure, corrosive and toxic chemicals, and biohazards including infective organisms and toxins.

Measures to protect against laboratory accidents include safety training and enforcement of laboratory safety policies, experimental design safety review, use of personal protective equipment, and use of buddy systems for highly risky operations.

In many countries, laboratory work is subject to health and safety laws. In some cases, laboratory activities may also pose an environmental health risk, for example, accidental or accidental disposal of toxic or accidental substances from the laboratory to the environment.

Video Laboratory safety

Chemical hazard

Hazardous chemicals pose physical and/or health threats to workers in clinical, industrial, and academic laboratories. Laboratory chemicals include cancer-causing agents (carcinogens), toxins (eg, which affect the liver, kidneys, and nervous system), irritants, corrosives, sensitisers, and agents working on the blood system or damaging the lungs, skin, eyes, or mucous membrane.

Maps Laboratory safety

Biological hazards

Biological agents and biological toxins

Many laboratory workers find daily exposure to biological hazards. These hazards are present in various sources throughout the laboratory such as blood and body fluids, cultural specimens, body tissues and corpses, and laboratory animals, as well as other workers.

These are federal-regulated biological agents (eg, viruses, bacteria, fungi, and prions) and toxins that potentially pose a serious threat to public health and safety, animal or plant health, or animal or plant products. Anthrax is an acute infection caused by a spore-forming bacterium called Bacillus anthracis.

Avian Influenza - Avian influenza is caused by Influenza A virus.

Botulism - Botulism cases are usually associated with consumption of preserved foods.

Foodborne disease - Foodborne diseases are caused by viruses, bacteria, parasites, toxins, metals, and prions (microscopic protein particles). Symptoms range from mild gastroenteritis to life-threatening neurologic, liver, and kidney syndromes.

Hantavirus - Hantavirus is transmitted to humans from dried manure, urine, or saliva of rats and mice.

Legionnaires Disease - Legionnaires disease is a disease commonly associated with water-based aerosols.

Mushrooms and Mushrooms - Mushrooms and fungi produce and release millions of spores small enough to be air, water, or insects that may have negative effects on human health including allergic reactions, asthma, and problems other breathing.

Outbreaks - The World Health Organization reports 1,000 to 3,000 cases of outbreaks each year. The release of a bioterrorist outbreak can lead to rapid spread of the form of disease pneumonia, which can have devastating consequences.

Ricin - Ricin is one of the most toxic and easily produced plant poison. It has been used in the past as a bioterror weapon and remains a serious threat.

Smallpox - Smallpox is a highly contagious disease that only humans have. It is estimated that no more than 20 percent of the population has immunity from previous vaccinations.

Tularemia - Tularemia is also known as "rabbit fever" or "deer fawn" and is highly contagious. Relatively few bacteria are needed to cause disease, which is why it is an attractive weapon for use in bioterrorism.

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Physical and other hazards

In addition to exposure to chemicals and biological agents, laboratory workers may also be exposed to a number of physical hazards. Some of the common physical hazards they may encounter include the following: ergonomics, ionizing radiation, non-ionizing radiation and sound hazards.

Ergonomic Dangers

Laboratory workers are at risk of repetitive motion injuries during routine laboratory procedures such as pipettes, working in microscopes, operating microtoms, using cell counters and keyboards on computer workstations. Repetitive motion injuries develop over time and occur when the muscles and joints are emphasized, the tendon is inflamed, the nerve is pinched and the blood flow is restricted. Standing and working in an awkward position in front of laboratory hood/biological safety cabinets can also present ergonomic problems.

Ionization Radiation

Ionizing radiation sources are found in a variety of work settings, including laboratories. These radiation sources can pose a major health risk to affected workers if not well controlled. Any laboratory possessing or using radioactive isotopes should be licensed by the NRC and/or by state institutions approved by the NRC,

The fundamental objectives of radiation protection measures are: to limit the entry of radionuclides into the human body (through consumption, inhalation, absorption, or through open wounds) to the lowest possible quantity (ALARA) and always within specified limits;

1. to limit the exposure of external radiation to levels within the prescribed dose limits and well below these possible limits.

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Security hazard

Autoclave and sterilization

Workers should be trained to recognize potential exposure to burns or injuries that may occur from handling or sorting of hot sterilized items or sharp instruments when removing them from the autoclave of the sterilizer or from the steam line serving autoclave.

Centrifugal

Centrifugal , due to the high speed at which they operate, has great potential to injure the user if not operated properly. An unbalanced centrifugal rotor can cause injury, even death. Damage to sample containers may produce aerosols which can be harmful if inhaled. The majority of all centrifuge accidents are the result of user error.

Compressed gas

Laboratory standard for compressed gas

1. Is a gas or gas mixture in a container having an absolute pressure exceeding 40 pounds per square inch (psi) at 70 Ã, Â ° F (21.1 Ã, Â ° C); or
2. Is a gas or gas mixture having an absolute pressure exceeding 104 psi at 130 Ã, Â ° F (54.4 Ã, Â ° C) regardless of pressure at 70 Ã, Â ° F (21.1 Ã, Â ° C); or
3. Is a liquid having a vapor pressure exceeding 40 psi at 100 Ã, Â ° F (37.8 Ã, Â ° C) as determined by ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials)

In the laboratory, compressed gases are usually provided either through fixed gas pipelines or individual gas cylinders. Compressed gases can be toxic, flammable, oxidizing, corrosive, or inert. Leakage of these gases can be dangerous.

Save, handle, and use compressed gas

• All cylinders whether empty or full should be kept upright.
• Cylinders are safe from compressed gas. Cylinders should not be dropped or allowed to attack each other by force.
• Carry a compressed gas cylinder with a protective cover in place and do not roll or pull the cylinder.

Cryogens and dry ice

Cryogens , a substance used to produce very low temperatures [below -153Ã, Â ° C (-243Ã, Â ° F)], such as liquid nitrogen (LN ₂ ) which has a boiling point -196 ° C (-321 ° F), commonly used in the laboratory.

Although not cryogen, solid carbon dioxide or dry ice that converts directly to carbon dioxide gas at -78 ° C (-109 ° F) is also frequently used in the laboratory. Delivery is packed with dry ice, the sample is preserved with liquid nitrogen, and in some cases, techniques that use cryogenic liquids, such as cryogenic sampling, present potential hazards in the laboratory.

Hand protection is required to protect against the danger of touching the cold surface. It is recommended that Cryogenic Safety Gloves be used by the worker.

Eye protection is required at all times when working with cryogenic liquids. When pouring cryogen, work with a wide-mouth Dewar gourd or around a boiling gas exhaust, use a full face shield.

Personal protective equipment

Personal protective equipment or PPE is the equipment used to prevent exposure to harmful substances. Although, PPE does not eliminate the risk of harm but helps protect users from exposure. To make the workplace safer, it should provide instruction and training on how to use and select the right PPE under different circumstances.

PPE includes:

• Long-sleeved shirt, lab coat, apron.
• glasses
• Safety gloves;
  • There are 2 types of public safety gloves that are widely used in high school or university laboratories, Latex and Nitrile gloves. Latex gloves have high sensitivity when dealing with fine controls that are perfect for surgery. On the other hand, Nitrile gloves are gloves that do not have latex proteins that cost twice as much. It is known as the most durable, resistant to tears and many chemicals. In addition to all its benefits, Nitrile gloves also have the disadvantage of being able to oxidize silver and high reactive metals because these metals can react with sulfur. Therefore, the wearer must have extra care while wearing this type of protective glove.
• Facial or security shield

Electricity

In the laboratory, there is potential for workers to be exposed to electrical hazards including electric shock, electricity, fire and explosion. Damaged electrical wiring may cause possible shock or electric shock. Flexible electrical cables can be damaged by doors or windows, with staples and fastenings, by rolling equipment on it, or just by aging.

Potential likelihood of electric shock or electric shock or contact with electrical hazards may result from a number of factors, including the following:

• Wrong electrical/instrumentation or wiring equipment;
• The container and connectors are broken; and
• Unsafe work practices.

Fire

Fire is the most common serious danger a person faces in a regular laboratory. Although proper procedures and training can minimize the possibility of accidental fires, laboratory workers should remain prepared to cope with fire emergency should it occur. In treating laboratory fire, all containers of infectious material should be placed into autoclaves, incubators, refrigerators, or freezers for containment.

Fires of small benches in the laboratory are not uncommon. Large laboratory fires are rare. However, the risk of severe injury or death is significant because the fuel load and hazard levels in the laboratory are usually very high. Laboratories, especially those using any solvent, have the potential for flash fires, explosions, rapid spread of fire, and high toxicity of combustion products (heat, smoke, and flame)

Glassware

• Glass breaks are a danger for related sharps injuries.
• Correct eye protection should be used in most experiments involving glassware.
• Inserting a glass rod through the plug can introduce the possibility of a puncture wound or a sharp object if the stick is broken. Hands must be protected.
• The tube must be cut from the spiked joint so as not to disconnect. Rapid disconnection is better than the installation of thorns.
• The ground glass joints can be a danger if they freeze.

• Damaged and other glass scraps must be discarded in separate containers marked specifically to show their contents.
• Glass items should always be labeled as contents.
• Rapid heating (or cooling) can cause uneven thermal expansion causing too much mechanical pressure on the surface and causing it to crack. Fractures are a concern when new people in the lab become impatient and hot glasses, especially larger pieces, are too fast. Glass heating should be slowed by insulating materials, such as metal or wool paper, or special equipment such as hot baths, heating mantles or laboratory grade heat plates to avoid breakage.
• Hot glass looks like a cold glass, so one has to be careful not to take a hot glass.
• Tableware may explode if the exhaust is in any way limited, so any equipment should be discarded.
• Glassware can explode under negative pressure
• When connecting a connection, it is the responsibility of the person watching the experiment to select the correct seal. For example, PTFE bands, bands, and greases or fluoroeter based oils may emit toxic perfluoroisobutylene fumes if the rated temperature limit is exceeded.

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See also

• Laboratory Security in the Laboratory article

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References

Source of the article : Wikipedia