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Chemical Hazard Assessment and Risk Minimization EMBED ()
Author: Dan Olsen, CHMM Added: 04/26/2017
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Well, hello, everyone. (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:03.067] Environmental Health and Safety (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:04.491] and the Office of Research and
Economic Development (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:07.291] would like to welcome you all (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:09.011] to today's Laboratory Safety Colloquium: (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:11.908] Hazard Assessment and Risk Minimization. (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:14.691] This series of colloquia is offered in recognition (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:17.731] of the commitment by faculty and staff (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:19.861] at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:22.060]
to assure a safe and healthy environment (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:24.520] for teaching and carrying out meaningful research. (javascript:void(0);)
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Couple housekeeping things first. (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:30.099] I think you all got a handout. (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:31.640] There are three handouts.
Environmental Health & Safety (https://mediahub.unl.edu/channels/330)
(javascript:void(0);) [00:00:32.731] One is a copy of the safe operating procedure (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:36.731] of the same title as the presentation, (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:39.541]
one is a copy of our poster, globally harmonized system, (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:44.051] and one is a survey. (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:45.741] If you could please
complete this survey at the end (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:48.451] and leave that on the table, it would be appreciated. (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:51.749] Dan has cards of his at the back table as well, (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:56.392] so if you decide you want to pick one of those up (javascript:void(0);) [00:00:59.958] feel free to do that at the end. (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:03.552] I will be passing around signup sheets, (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:06.541] please try and print, (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:08.091] and our speaker today is Dan Olsen, (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:11.720] which many of you know. (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:13.861] Dan is a certified hazardous materials (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:17.981] management specialist, CHMM, (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:21.040] currently working at UNL's Environmental Health (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:23.530]
and Safety Department. (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:25.048] So, Dan, take it away. (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:27.399] Okay. (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:28.448]
(applause) Oh great, great. (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:33.390] Today we're gonna talk about Hazard Assessments (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:34.957] and Risk Minimazations, (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:35.878] a topic that is near and dear to my heart, (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:37.728] and I'm sure by the time we get done today (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:39.350]
it will be just as near and dear to yours. (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:42.830] Yeah, bit of a laugh on that one. (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:44.508] Okay, well what about
me? (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:46.926] Who in here ever raised pigs? (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:48.576] You raised pigs? (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:49.409] You raised pigs? (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:50.760] Do you still raise pigs? (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:52.171] Yeah, our family does. (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:53.033] Oh, your family does? (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:54.673] You glad for the experience that you got to have (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:55.733] when you had to raise pigs? (javascript:void(0);) [00:01:57.260]
Scooping manure and flies, and sortin' hogs, (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:01.060] and when they get out you gotta get 'em back in, right? (javascript:void(0);)
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Yeah. (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:04.271] That's what I did growing up. (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:05.751] Y'know I'm really glad I had the experience,
(javascript:void(0);) [00:02:07.159] but I'm really glad I don't have to do it anymore, either. (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:10.338] So I grew up as a pig farmer, (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:11.549]
I graduated from Iowa State University (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:13.096] with a degree in biochemistry. (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:15.418] My first real job
(javascript:void(0);) [00:02:16.728] was with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:19.058] just as the new underground storage tank rules came out (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:21.336] back in the late '80s. (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:23.088] I also did emergency response there. (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:24.738] Well, I didn't have degrees in either of those areas, (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:27.389] so of course they sent me off to training, (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:29.117] and what I learned, (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:31.357] getting my emergency response training, (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:33.098] is that they were trying to scare us to death. (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:35.229]
So we saw fires and explosions and spills of acids (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:39.408] and things like that, (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:40.804] and one of the things they
kept trying to drill into (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:43.218] emergency responders is that (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:45.125] before you go into a situation (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:47.446]
you gotta know what it is you're dealing with. (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:49.518] You gotta know what it's hazards are, (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:50.698] and you
gotta know how to protect yourself. (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:53.058] So of course when I came to university, (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:54.989] every chemical I encountered picking up waste (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:57.688] was a new chemical, so guess what? (javascript:void(0);) [00:02:59.138] I spent a lot of time reading safety data sheets. (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:01.069] Just last week, I advised a researcher on colchicine. (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:05.259] What's colchicine? (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:06.342] I don't know, I've never heard of it before, (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:08.349] so I went to the safety data sheet. (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:09.360] Dan, you have to enunciate or talk louder. (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:13.170] What's that? (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:14.410] Talk louder. (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:15.481] Talk louder, okay, sorry. (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:18.145] Thanks, Julie! (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:19.817] Okay, so, I still read safety data sheets, (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:22.676] so I'm practicing what I preach. (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:24.646] So I started here in the university in 1990, (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:26.657] my first job was basically hazardous waste. (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:29.806] I've also done lab safety. (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:32.086] I've done water quality, (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:33.036] we're talking water discharges, not drinking water. (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:35.537] I've done air quality, (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:37.025] and of course I've done emergency response. (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:41.545] Today what we're gonna cover (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:43.356] is why this is important to you. (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:45.876] We're gonna talk about the concept of hazard, (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:47.425] We're gonna go through a couple of examples. (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:49.585] We're gonna talk about how to minimize risk, (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:53.345] again we're gonna go through examples of it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:55.265] We're gonna do a case study, (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:56.465] and then after all that (javascript:void(0);) [00:03:58.054] we're gonna draw some conclusions from the whole thing. (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:01.014]
So this is what most people think of (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:03.054] when they think of hazard assessments and risk minimization. (javascript:void(0);)
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They think someplace in there a miracle occurs, (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:08.414] and I try to tell people, it's a lot simpler than you think. (javascript:void(0);)
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Don't overthink it, it's very straightforward. (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:15.650] Let's talk about the legal: why it's important to you. (javascript:void(0);)
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This is all based on occupational health (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:22.143] and safety administration regulations, (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:24.394] so it's a federal and
it's a state law, (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:27.014] so based on those laws (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:29.276] you have a responsibility in part to, (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:31.364]
whoops, oh, two of 'em, (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:33.075] comply with the employer's safety and health rules, (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:36.604] report and hazards
immediately to your supervisor. (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:39.244] Now it doesn't necessarily be just a hazard to you. (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:42.156] If your coworker Bob is doing something that's dangerous (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:44.681] and you tell Bob "hey, that's dangerous," (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:46.004] and Bob says "hey, leave me alone," (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:47.276] then you gotta talk to Bob's boss and say (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:48.913] "Bob is doing something dangerous." (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:52.425]
You've gotta report any job-related illnesses (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:54.905] or injuries to your supervisor. (javascript:void(0);) [00:04:58.454] If you supervise
others, you'll be responsible, (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:01.893] and this includes PIs who have graduate students, (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:04.574] they have this responsibility, (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:07.516] to provide training, (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:09.054] correct improper work practices, (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:10.923] so as a PI if you walk into a lab (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:13.494] and you've got somebody working in the lab, (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:15.123] working with something that's dangerous, (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:16.422] and they're not wearing their proper PPE, (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:18.642] you have a responsibility to say (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:20.084]
"Sean, you gotta go put on the right PPE (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:22.134] "before you come into the lab." (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:23.996] Discipline employees as
needed, (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:26.054] that's another thing you got. (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:27.284] Now let's talk about the practical side, (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:28.614]
I just told you the legal side. (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:29.836] Let's talk about the practical side. (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:32.134] You wanna protect yourself,
(javascript:void(0);) [00:05:33.025] you'd like to go home at night (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:34.364] in the same condition you came to the job in the morning. (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:38.094]
I've had professors actually tell me (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:40.316] that "we're just careful with everything," (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:42.697] and I thought,
"really?" (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:44.804] So let's talk about two things (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:45.876] that we're careful with everything for. (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:47.737]
Engine oil versus nitroglycerine. (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:49.365] Both are oily liquids, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:51.766] Do they have the same hazards?
(javascript:void(0);) [00:05:53.875] Anybody? (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:54.916] How dangerous is engine oil? (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:58.865] 'Scuse me? (javascript:void(0);) [00:05:59.944] It gets combustible if you heat it up enough, (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:01.766] but is it really toxic? (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:02.846] No. (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:03.755] If it's on the floor you could slip and fall down. (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:05.974] What's that? (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:07.244] It's toxic if you eat it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:08.574] Well it can be, yes. (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:10.166] What about nitroglycerine? (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:11.284] Anybody know any hazrds of nitroglycerine? (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:14.806] Is it extremely shock sensitive? (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:17.356] Yeah, fantastically shock sensitive. (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:19.166] Matter of fact it's so shock sensitive (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:20.665] that in order for them to actually be able to use it (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:22.755]
they have to mix it with clay, (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:23.972] that's where dynamite comes from. (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:25.836] Otherwise it's too shock
sensitive to handle. (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:29.156] So they don't have the same hazard. (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:31.236] Do you want to work with engine oil in milliliter amounts? (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:35.116] No. (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:35.985] I won't work for you. (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:37.126] How about a liter of nitroglycerine? (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:39.364] Would that scare you? (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:40.705] Yeah. (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:42.442] So whether you're aware of it or not, (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:44.254] you actually are assessing hazards, (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:45.894] but you're assessing hazards for the chemicals you know. (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:49.094] So what I'm saying, (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:49.927] and you're also minimizing risks, (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:51.494] so what I'm saying is let's apply this (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:53.934] to things you don't know about. (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:55.323] How do you get it done? (javascript:void(0);) [00:06:58.545]
So this is what we're gonna talk about today. (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:00.625] So, we have to differentiate a couple terms here. (javascript:void(0);)
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Hazard versus risk. (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:07.662] Hazards are innate to a chemical, (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:10.812] it doesn't matter whether it's toxicity,
(javascript:void(0);) [00:07:12.060] flammability, corrosivity. (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:13.681] Benzyne is a known human carcinogen. (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:15.412] It doesn't matter whether I have a milliter of benzyne, (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:18.172] or I have a liter of benzyne, (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:19.622] they are both the same carcinogens, (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:21.932] so they have the same hazard. (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:25.041] Come on, gotta do something. (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:27.290]
Okay, there are two kind of hazards. (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:29.830] There are health hazards and physical hazards, (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:31.990] and we'll talk
about both. (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:34.102] Risk depends on how likely the hazard is to cause harm. (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:39.691] So we talk about gasoline. (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:41.022] 500 gallons of gasoline has much greater potential (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:43.580] to cause much greater risk than a gallon, (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:45.980] it can cause much greater harm. (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:49.321] So, again, let's talk about health hazards. (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:52.430]
Now in order for something to be a health hazard, (javascript:void(0);) [00:07:56.350] somehow you have to be able to get exposed to it, (javascript:void(0);)
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so, and I've got people in here who know the answer to this, (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:02.148] what are the routes of exposure? (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:05.380]
(audience member talking) (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:06.881] 'Scuse me? (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:07.714] [Audience Members] Skin. (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:08.547] You've got skin, that's one, so you got skin absorption. (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:11.206] Inhaled. (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:12.039] You can inhale it, that's right. (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:13.705]
Directly into the bloodstream. (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:15.076] Well, how would you do that, (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:16.497] how would you get it directly into
your bloodstream? (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:18.259] Injection. (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:19.092] It could be injected. (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:20.304] Okay and there's, let's see, there's one more. (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:23.563] Ingestion. (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:24.396] You could eat it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:25.355] Now, I know people don't go around eating chemicals, (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:27.414] but if you don't wash your hands (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:28.494] after working with chemicals you can transfer the chemical (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:31.624] to your hand and eat it that way. (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:33.374] If it's a dust, you could breathe it in (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:35.915]
and it could hit your mucus membranes and get caught up (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:38.374] and you might accidentally swallow it. (javascript:void(0);)
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So we've gone through, (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:44.926] we've gone through all of those. (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:46.433] Of those four routes of exposure,
(javascript:void(0);) [00:08:48.772] which one typically has the greatest hazard to it? (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:52.622] (audience members talking) (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:57.485]
Anybody? (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:58.454] Wanna say it loud enough? (javascript:void(0);) [00:08:59.686] Inhalation. (javascript:void(0);)
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Inhalation. (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:01.824] That's because your lungs are built (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:03.984] to exchange gases and vapors,
(javascript:void(0);) [00:09:07.102] so anything you inhale can be taken by your body. (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:11.014] Your lungs are designed to do that, (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:12.155]
also your lungs are very sensitive tissues. (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:14.486] You breathe in something that's corrosive, (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:15.884] a corrosive
gas, and it's really gonna hurt your lungs. (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:19.035] So, lungs tend to be the greatest hazard. (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:21.494] What tends to be second? (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:24.644] Ingestion. (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:25.820] And this is kinda debatable, (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:26.979] but I tend to think of ingestion (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:29.024] because your digestive track is designed to absorb things. (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:32.292] Some folks might say skin, and for me skin can be, (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:36.473] but your skin's designed to keep what's (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:38.481] on the outside of you outside of you, (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:40.481]
and what's on the inside of you inside of you, (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:41.875] so it's intended to do that. (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:43.435] There are chemicals that
will go right through your skin, (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:45.784] and if you run into 'em then you need to be really cautious. (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:50.494] And then of course you've got the ingestion, (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:51.562] we talked about that, (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:52.631] and then injection, again, that tends to be needle sticks, (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:55.391] it could be chemicals. (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:56.721] I knew of an incident where somebody was handling (javascript:void(0);) [00:09:59.332]
a high-pressure hydraulic hose, (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:02.431] and he kinked it in his hand, (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:04.810] and the hose broke and he squirted
hydraulic fluid (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:07.263] into his palm, that was an injection. (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:11.721] Okay. (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:14.380] Come on, do something. (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:16.530] Okay. (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:17.431] Now, what are the three states of matter? (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:19.361] It's an easy one. (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:20.772] (audience talking) (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:23.201] I usually have somebody say plasma. (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:24.831] (audience laughing) (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:26.620] Anyway, we're not gonna talk about plasma. (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:28.511] Of those three states, which one, (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:31.079]
say they're all equally hazardous, (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:33.372] which state would tend to pose the greatest hazard. (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:36.766] [Audience
Members] Gas. (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:37.751] Yeah, it's gas. (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:39.102] If it's a cylinder that's leaking, (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:41.623] it's actually pushing gas into the air. (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:44.102] You've got convection currents in a room, (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:45.672] you got air handling systems that can move that gas places, (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:48.131] right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:49.059] So typically, gases are the greatest hazard. (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:51.300] The next hazard would typically be a volatile liquid. (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:53.923] Now try to think of a toxic volatile liquid, (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:55.942] and I really couldn't come up with any. (javascript:void(0);) [00:10:57.851] But again, it'd be something like ether volatility, (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:01.530] so you open the container (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:02.771]
and it's rapidly evaporating into the room. (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:04.563] And again, you can inhale it, (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:06.233] it can be transmitted
throughout a building. (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:09.382] Solids, they can be hazards if they're finally ground (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:12.322] and they become airborne, (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:13.531] but for most of the area where we're working, (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:15.673] we're working in labs, (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:16.682] there isn't a lot of wind, (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:17.531] there's not a lot to get the thing airborne. (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:20.201] So that tends to be the least hazard (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:21.843] of the three states of matter. (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:25.210] Oh we already did that. (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:26.531] So here's a summary. (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:27.982] Exposure hazards, greatest to least are, (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:29.883] we got those, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:31.913] Chemical states, (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:33.131] gas, volatile liquid, non-volatile liquid, and a solid. (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:36.633] Okay, so again, I'm going through this (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:38.462] because for something to be a health hazard, (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:40.883] you gotta be able to get exposed to it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:43.433]
So here are, these classes of health hazards, (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:47.490] this is all based on the globally harmonized system (javascript:void(0);)
[00:11:50.665]
passed by the United Nations, (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:52.283] adopted by the United States, (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:54.873] these are the classifications based on
that system. (javascript:void(0);) [00:11:58.665] If you've had your chemical safety training, (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:00.913] you've read about all of these classes, (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:03.334] you gotta have a working idea (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:05.094] of what each of these things means, okay? (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:07.593]
Because when you read it on a safety data sheet, (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:09.763] if you don't know what a sensitizer does, (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:11.971] then it
doesn't mean anything to you. (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:14.324] Of those classes, (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:15.675] which do you think poses the greatest hazard? (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:22.964] Ah, you're afraid. (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:24.446] I would vote for acute toxicity, (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:27.217] primarily because if something's really, truly, toxic, (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:30.286] you get exposed to it, you're dead now. (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:32.964] Carcinogen, you get exposed to a carcinogen, (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:35.154] maybe you don't get cancer for 30 years. (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:37.257] But if you're dead today, you're dead today. (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:39.315] Second one I would typically list to be skin corrosion. (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:42.097] You get very strong corrosive material on your skin, (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:45.006] and you don't do something about it almost immediately, (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:47.465] you're gonna have a permanent scar, (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:49.275] or it could be worse (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:51.465] And I don't want you to discount the other toxicities, (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:55.144]
the other hazards here, but for me it's like (javascript:void(0);) [00:12:57.446] getting a kind of a hierarchy in my head, (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:00.446] as to what
things should really get my attention. (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:02.662] Skin irritation, if I see it I'm gonna pay attention to it, (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:06.206] but it's not gonna get my attention like it is (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:08.526] if I find out it's a highly toxic compound. (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:12.225] Any questions on this? (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:15.645]
Okay. (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:17.415] Here are the physical hazards, (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:18.657] again this is the globally harmonized system
(javascript:void(0);) [00:13:21.297] of physical hazards, (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:22.286] so I'm not going to go into detail on them, (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:25.057] but again you should have a working definition (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:27.914] in your head as to what a flammable liquid is. (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:31.465] Of these physical hazard, (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:33.137] which one do you think is the greatest hazard? (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:38.865] What are you saying, Julie? (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:40.425]
I said the one you listed first. (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:42.334] Oh, okay, I gave it away? (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:45.365] Explosives! (javascript:void(0);)
[00:13:46.275]
And for me it's explosives because (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:47.977] that's something that can hurt you at a distance, (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:50.086] and you're
hurt now. (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:51.377] They're not gonna hurt you in five years, (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:52.782] they hurt you right now. (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:55.875]
Other ones that are not listed as explosives, (javascript:void(0);) [00:13:59.126] but the nice thing about explosives (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:01.044] is we don't have
that many of them on campus, (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:02.835] other things that can react basically like explosives (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:06.166] are some of your organic peroxides, (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:08.937] some of the self-reactive substances, (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:10.414] they can basically detonate as well. (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:13.255]
Something else that tends to be pretty hazardous (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:14.903] are your pyrophorics, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:16.124] Open the container,
you got a fire. (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:18.642] The substances in contact with water (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:21.415] emit flammable gases, (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:22.573]
I don't like that. (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:23.924] It used to be water-reactive, now it's got that title. (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:28.564] There are certain chemicals,
sodium hydride, (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:31.503] spills out of a container, if the air is moist, (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:33.654] there's enough moisture there (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:34.722]
for the sodium hydride to ignite. (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:36.764] You would typically think about sodium metal, (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:39.672] throw it some
water, it buzzes around, (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:41.455] and then you get hydrogen gas and it ignites. (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:45.501] Okay. (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:48.343]
As you probably already know, (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:49.346] the hazards are more complicated than that. (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:51.825] For example, some
chemicals are highly toxic, (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:55.196] and they're gonna be called acute toxins, (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:56.727] and other toxins are going to be just considered harmful (javascript:void(0);) [00:14:59.239] even though they're gonna be listed as acute toxins, (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:01.344] they're not nearly as dangerous as others. (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:04.074] So how do you know how dangerous something is in its class? (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:08.494] They divide them into categories, and let's see here, (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:12.554] you go to... (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:16.324] You go to the second page of the handout, (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:22.242] it begins right at the bottom of that page. (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:27.295] It begins at the bottom of the page with these categories. (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:30.414] So the very first one, explosives, (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:32.756] you go across there it says "unstable," (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:35.207] and it goes divisions 1.1 through 1.6. (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:37.386] So which of those, do you think, is the most dangerous (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:40.666] of those categories? (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:41.655]
Do you think it's unstable? (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:42.916] Right. (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:43.749] That's the most dangerous explosives category.
(javascript:void(0);) [00:15:46.735] You can't ship those. (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:49.534] If you go to the next page, (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:51.815] then you go to the top section of classes of health hazards, (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:55.575] you've got acute, toxicity, oral, dermal, and inhalation. (javascript:void(0);) [00:15:58.954] And this shows categories one through four, (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:01.855] there's actually five so we're gonna have to update this. (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:04.224] But category one is basically fatal, (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:07.725] exposure can be fatal. (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:09.134] So if you're going through a safety data sheet (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:11.313]
and you're running into category ones, (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:14.194] or you're running into, y'know, type A, or division 1.1, (javascript:void(0);)
[00:16:18.594]
you're dealing with the most dangerous chemical (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:21.225] in that class. (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:22.133] So an organic peroxide type A is
really dangerous, (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:26.573] and organic peroxide type F, (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:28.405] there's very little danger there. (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:30.693]
So again, when you're looking at a safety data sheet, (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:32.863] you can automatically begin to rank, (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:34.743] ranking
hazards on the chemicals you're looking at. (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:39.863] In our office we decided let's help the campus (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:44.343] kind of see how we see things, (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:46.772] so we created something that we call exceptional hazards, (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:50.279] and they're actually listed there (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:51.230] on the bottom of page three. (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:52.770] So it's explosives, unstable to divisions 1.1 through 1.3, (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:56.850]
basically they can just detonate. (javascript:void(0);) [00:16:59.020] Organic Peroxides, A through C, not very many on campus. (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:02.530] Any
Pyrophoric, again, exposed to air it's gonna catch fire. (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:06.039] Substances in contact with water emit flammable gases, (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:09.359]
self-reactives, and acute toxicity, category one. (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:13.031] As you'll notice, every category, or every class up there, (javascript:void(0);)
[00:17:17.490]
is a physical hazard, with the exception of acute toxicity. (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:20.838] That's because all of those things can hurt you (javascript:void(0);)
[00:17:23.820]
without you doing anything else to it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:26.319] Just getting exposed to it it can hurt you. (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:30.951] So we've talked
about hazard assessment, (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:32.610] let's talk about risk minimization, (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:34.431] so I pulled this one down. (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:41.031]
And hopefully when we get done, (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:42.180] risk minimization is a lot simpler than that. (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:45.918] So in general, this
is the order of preference (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:48.410] for risk minimization. (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:51.031] So you got, don't use the chemical. (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:52.660]
So instead of using the solvent stripper to clean the part, (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:55.111] use sandpaper, or bead blaster. (javascript:void(0);) [00:17:58.488] You
substitute it with something less hazardous. (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:00.359] Instead of the chlorinated salt for cleaning, (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:02.039] you go with the highflash aliphatic solvent, (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:04.149] much less toxic. (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:05.711] You isolate the chemical from people. (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:07.351]
It's in another room, or it's inside of a machine (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:10.437] where you can't be exposed to it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:13.010] You add
engineering controls such as safety barriers (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:15.679] or exhaust ventilation. (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:17.359] Fume hoods, one of the most valuable tools (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:19.871] you have in a laboratory. (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:22.070] Use 'em. (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:24.120] You adopt safe work practices, training, supervision, (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:27.340] to minimize risks, (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:29.170] and, last but not least, but last, is PPE. (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:34.130] PPE is the last thing you use, (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:36.082] now when you're working in a lab (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:38.351] you're probably using multiple levels of this. (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:40.928] You're using a fume hood, and you're wearing PPE, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:44.418] So these things don't work to the exclusion, (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:46.621] but you're always looking at how can I make it safe? (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:49.284] I'm always looking for can I do number one? (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:50.914] If I can't do number one, can I go to number two? (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:52.863] If I can't do that, can I go to number three? (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:56.884] So where do you find this information? (javascript:void(0);) [00:18:59.332] Safety data sheet. (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:01.194] That's from the globally harmonized system, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:03.292] it used to be a material safety data sheet, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:05.044] now it's a safety data sheet. (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:07.314] I just said that. (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:08.914] It's been in effect for the last couple of years, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:10.711] so you're going to see safety data sheets (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:12.474] changing the format, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:14.183] and if you buy new bottles, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:16.492]
you'll see that the format of the labeling on the bottles (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:18.234] is new and updated as well. (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:20.372] Now pesticides
that are subject to the (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:22.404] Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:26.823] they're not subject to OSHA labeling, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:30.003] but if you look up a pesticide, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:32.353] you can probably find a safety data sheet for it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:36.754]
So here's an example safety data sheet, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:39.023] that I start off with, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:39.856] and it's water, right?
(javascript:void(0);) [00:19:40.867] So you come down through there, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:43.821] and it talks about it here, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:45.311] and gets you that information there, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:46.621] and it comes down, they've got the address, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:49.050] and you've got the emergency phone numbers, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:50.610] and then it starts in (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:51.443] with this hazard identification, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:53.522] And then you read something like, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:55.069] "this stuff will kill you." (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:57.861] Then you think, well these safety data sheets, (javascript:void(0);) [00:19:59.322] they're just so over-the-top, (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:01.821] they're not useful to me at all. (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:03.962] The situation is, (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:05.409] the person who put together that safety data sheet (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:07.460] doesn't know the context (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:09.082]
of how you're going to use the chemical. (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:10.423] Are you going to use water in milliliter amounts, (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:12.760] or in a
gallon amount? (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:14.333] Are you in a boat on the ocean? (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:16.423] Now if you're in a boat on the ocean (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:17.453]
and your boat sinks, can water kill you? (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:19.423] Yes, it's the context. (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:20.863] So when I read safety data sheets
and I see things like, (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:23.493] "you've gotta wear fully encapsulating suits," (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:25.592] "use only intrinsically safe tools and equipment," (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:28.473] what they're telling me is, "there's a hazard here." (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:30.893] Depending on how I'm going to use it, (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:32.823] I need to pay attention to these hazards, (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:34.322] I need to minimize it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:38.342] So, let's look at a particular safety data sheet, (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:41.253] this for hydrogen. (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:44.642] Without going, what's it's greatest hazard? (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:46.290] What do you think? (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:49.447] Explosive. (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:50.719] It's flammable. It's a category one flammable gas. (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:55.039] So then the question is, is it always flammable, (javascript:void(0);) [00:20:57.930] or is it just sometimes flammable? (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:00.399] Where do you get it? (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:01.733] Again, safety data sheet. (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:04.162] So you get in there, and from the safety data sheet (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:06.391] it says the lower explosive limit is 4% (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:09.533] and the upper is 75. (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:12.482]
Sometimes they'll use lower and upper flammable range, (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:16.246] or flammable range is used. (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:19.139] Now, really
important, this is 4 to 75% in air. (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:23.629] When I mean air, I'm not really meaning (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:25.568] the 78% nitrogen in the air, am I? (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:29.309] I'm really talking about the 21% oxygen in the air, (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:31.829] so keep that in mind. (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:34.488] So what does it mean? (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:35.539] It means that any place in that range, (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:38.027] between 4 and 75, hydrogen will burn. (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:41.426] So in theory, pure hydrogen won't burn. (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:44.770] You can't make it burn, (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:46.069] because it needs oxygen. (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:48.359] Now what I do, is when I'm encountering a new chemical, (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:50.618] and I'm trying to figure out how dangerous is this, (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:53.818] what I'll do is I'll go back to (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:54.657] something I'm pretty comfortable with. (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:56.130]
So in this case I thought gasoline. (javascript:void(0);) [00:21:58.418] How does this compare to gasoline? (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:00.865] Well, gasoline has a
flammable range of 1.4 to 7.6. (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:05.018] The range is much narrower than it is for hydrogen, (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:07.925] but 1.4% gasoline's pretty low, (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:12.055] so that's, but it just gives you an idea (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:15.072] so you can see how you can compare it to stuff. (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:16.765] That's how I do it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:19.685] Okay so what other hazards does it have? (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:23.854] Oh, come on, do something. (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:27.904] Okay. (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:28.737] From the safety data sheet, (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:29.986] it says it's a gas under pressure and a simple asphyxiant. (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:33.394] Now again, that's one of those definitions, (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:34.924] you should know what that means. (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:36.354] What is it? (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:37.386] It just basically means that hydrogen can displace air, (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:40.365] and then you don't have enough oxygen to breathe, (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:41.965] and that can kill you. (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:44.367] Something else from the safety data sheet (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:46.167] is it's incompatibilities, (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:47.757] and I'm kinda cherry picking (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:48.706] 'cuz I'm trying to show you how I'm, (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:50.266] it depends on the situation what information's important. (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:54.026] As we go along you'll see why it is I picked (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:55.797] this particular piece of information. (javascript:void(0);) [00:22:58.335] So it's incompatibilities, oxidizers. (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:04.426]
Come on. (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:07.013] Turn it toward the computer, Dan, it'll go. (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:10.517] Okay. (javascript:void(0);)
[00:23:11.350]
So, how do we minimize the risks? (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:15.778] This is really gonna be dead simple. (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:18.197] For the gas under
pressure, (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:19.317] we're gonna secure the cylinder. (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:20.818] What kind of thing is that? (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:22.567] Is that an engineering control? (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:24.018] Yeah, I'm strapping it to something. (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:25.595] So I've got a tool there to help me. (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:28.066] I'm gonna keep the valve cover on it when not in use. (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:30.538] Now that's an engineering control, (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:31.715]
'cuz it's made to have the threads on it, (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:33.474] you have the cap put on it, (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:34.477] it's also a procedural thing,
(javascript:void(0);) [00:23:36.098] I've gotta remember to put the cap on the cylinder. (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:39.487] Asphyxiation. (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:40.527] I'm going to keep the cylinder closed when I'm not using it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:42.887] I'm going to make sure I use it in a well-ventilated area. (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:47.258] What about flammability? (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:48.887] I'm going to keep it away from sources of ignition. (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:51.607] It says that all over the place in the safety data sheet. (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:54.435] What can they be? (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:55.437] Flames, hot surfaces, equipment, sparks. (javascript:void(0);) [00:23:58.138]
Let's talk about sparks a little more. (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:00.458] Where do you get sparks from? (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:01.497] You get, have you ever
flipped on an electrical switch (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:03.265] in a dark room and sometimes (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:04.186] you'll see a little arc through there? (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:06.607] That's a spark. (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:08.076] Electrical motors, when they're spinning, (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:09.866] they've got bushings on 'em, (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:11.038] and typically when that's spinning around, (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:12.618] you're getting little arcs off those bushings in the motor. (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:16.007] You can have tools that spark. (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:18.348] Of course, you can have, also, (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:19.727] you can have sparks from static electricity. (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:24.047] So what is this? (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:25.727] (audience laughing and talking) (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:27.919]
Anybody know? (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:28.989] It's a bad day. (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:29.956] It's a bad day? (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:31.018] Yeah, it's a
bad day. (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:33.058] That is the Hindenburg, the airship Hindenburg, (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:36.628] this was May, I think 1937. (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:40.988]
Anybody know what they thought (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:42.876] was the likely source of why this happened? (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:48.846] Some people
said there was a bomb on the airship (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:51.036] and it was detonated. (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:52.706] What they really think was the mostly likely cause (javascript:void(0);) [00:24:55.446] of this, of what's going on here, was a spark. (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:00.596] In doing my research, I thought, well okay, it's a spark. (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:05.346] People can detect about a one millijoule spark, (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:09.565] so you got static on you and you sense something, (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:11.656] about the weakest thing you can feel is one millijoule. (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:15.556] Thirty millijoules and it'll make you jump. (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:18.165] It's a hard static discharge. (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:22.058] Hydrogen will ignite at 0.02 millijoules for a spark, (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:27.788]
so it needs almost nothing for it to begin to burn. (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:31.268] Now, is the Hindenburg, is it exploding, or is it burning? (javascript:void(0);)
[00:25:35.676]
[Audience Members] It's burning. (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:36.936] It's burning. (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:38.503] Go up here. (javascript:void(0);)
[00:25:39.336]
There's a whole bunch of hydrogen up here (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:40.472] that isn't on fire yet, is it? (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:42.764] The flames have gotta
move forward, (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:44.383] they gotta burn through the, (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:45.594] the bags, the gas bags holding the hydrogen, (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:47.874]
it's gotta release the hydrogen, (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:49.141] then the hydrogen's gotta come in contact with air, (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:52.714] and it's gonna
burn. (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:53.692] It took about 30 seconds from the beginning of this fire, (javascript:void(0);) [00:25:57.234] until it actually consumed the Hindenburg. (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:00.135] So 30 seconds, that's not an explosion, that's a fire, (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:03.412] it's burning. (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:06.212] So now let's talk about a different chemical, oxygen. (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:09.863] Greatest hazard? (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:11.092] It's a category one oxidizing gas. (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:12.890] There's only two categories. (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:14.754] I think. (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:15.587] Anyway, it's a category one oxidizing gas. (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:18.238] What does an oxidizer do? (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:19.387] Well this is what is important for us, (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:21.617] is that an oxidizer can initiate or enhance (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:24.645] the combustion of other materials. (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:26.236] That sounds kinda nice and gentle, (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:27.918] it's like teddy bear, puppy stuff, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:32.398] It's also a gas in refresher. (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:34.886]
Incompatibilities. (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:36.358] Combustible materials. (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:40.566] Here's an example of oxygen-enhanced combustion.
(javascript:void(0);) [00:26:43.925] The only way you get these things off the ground (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:45.895] is you need a whole lot of oxygen present somehow. (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:48.026] Either liquid oxygen or in a solid fuel propellant. (javascript:void(0);) [00:26:57.137] How do we minimize the risks? (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:01.037]
It's a gas under pressure, secure it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:02.685] Valve cover on it when not in use. (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:04.758] Keep it away from
combustible, oxidizable materials. (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:07.566] Things like organics, grease, oil, flammable gases. (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:11.598] Remember, it says it's incompatible with these things, (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:14.667] which means if you put 'em together, (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:15.747] something bad happens. (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:18.817] So let's review. (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:20.086] We've talked about the hazards of hydrogen and oxygen. (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:22.806]
We've talked about how to minimize the risks. (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:25.627] All of this information came from the safety data sheet. (javascript:void(0);)
[00:27:28.907]
Everything I've just, (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:30.107] with the exception of the millijoules stuff, (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:32.816] all of the rest of this came from
the safety data sheet. (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:36.307] Were any of these things we talked about, (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:37.547] were they complicated? (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:39.015]
No they were really simple, weren't they? (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:40.726] So, assessing a hazard, (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:42.857] determining how you would
minimize the risk, (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:44.707] is really a straightforward process. (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:47.958] So now let's apply this to a research project, (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:50.475] an actual thing that was being done and that happened. (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:55.073] The case study we're gonna use (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:56.665]
is something that happened at the University of Hawaii. (javascript:void(0);) [00:27:59.955] If you've followed anything on the news about that, (javascript:void(0);)
[00:28:03.285]
you kinda know where this talk's going. (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:05.225] But I still think you're gonna be surprised (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:07.497] at some things
you'll learn. (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:09.754] So here's the research project. (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:11.675] Goal: to study the synthesis of polyhydroxyalkonates (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:16.166] called PHAs, by this bacteria, who could say, (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:20.118] how do you say that first word? (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:22.718]
Anybody? (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:24.427] (audience talking) (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:25.977] Excuse me? (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:26.969] [Audience
Members] Cupriavidus. (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:28.827] Cup- cupra? (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:29.889] [Audience Members] Cupriavidus. (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:31.219]
Okay, okay. (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:32.126] I had it as C. necator. (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:34.516] And then my cohort decided to put in the whole first name.
(javascript:void(0);) [00:28:39.806] For me it was just C. Necator, (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:40.907] because I knew it, I was safe there, (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:42.337] and then she had to add the first word. (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:44.318] It's like I can't say that. (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:45.798] But anyway, the process is for, (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:47.638]
it's for bioplastics research. (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:50.493] This has been being done for a while, (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:51.775] so I'm not talking about
something that's novel. (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:55.015] The bacteria in part needs an ice growth chamber, (javascript:void(0);) [00:28:58.135] it also needs a favorable environment (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:00.666] that includes somewhere in the neighborhood (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:02.066] of 70% hydrogen, 20% oxygen, and 10% CO2. (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:06.668] These are all together, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:10.108] Where we're at right now, does anything raise a red flag? (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:15.236]
That's the flammable range of hydrogen. (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:17.694] Yeah, and I'm mixing it with oxygen, aren't I? (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:20.636] So you
would think, they shouldn't, (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:23.352] it said incompatible. (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:25.063] So how can people do research with this stuff (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:27.377] when the safety data sheet says incompatible? (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:29.545] Well obviously they're able to do it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:31.886]
But does that mean that it doesn't have a hazard? (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:33.846] Does that mean it didn't create a new hazard? (javascript:void(0);)
[00:29:36.625]
See, we're gonna learn about that as we go forward. (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:41.185] Let's talk about research papers, just a little bit. (javascript:void(0);)
[00:29:44.985]
Research papers often do not include information (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:47.545] on chemical, physical, or biological hazards. (javascript:void(0);)
[00:29:51.675]
They'll just tell you how to do it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:53.806] Details on the sourcing or setup of equipment. (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:56.046] They just figure
you know. (javascript:void(0);) [00:29:57.897] Details on the process or reaction hazards. (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:00.345] For example, there are research papers that won't tell you (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:04.034] that this reaction will give off a toxic gas. (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:06.857] You're just supposed to figure that one out. (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:08.756]
(audience laughing) (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:09.977] Yeah! (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:10.845] And so it's up to the researcher to identify (javascript:void(0);)
[00:30:12.545]
these extra hazards and to minimize them. (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:15.726] So in this case, this bioplastics research, (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:18.904] this is the first
reactor they use, (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:20.575] it's a batch reactor, (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:21.636] they put the bacteria on petri dishes inside this, (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:25.355]
and then they see the pressure gauge right there, (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:28.916] then they take this over to cylinders of CO2 (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:31.737] and
they put some CO2 in it, (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:32.983] then they go over to their oxygen, (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:34.185] they put some oxygen in it, (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:35.497]
and they use this pressure gauge to determine (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:37.006] how much they put in, (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:38.028] and then they go over to the
cylinder of hydrogen, (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:39.796] and they put some hydrogen in it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:41.186] Then they take a sample of it, (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:43.566]
right up in here, (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:45.577] to see what kind of mixture they got. (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:48.046] So they can write it down.
(javascript:void(0);) [00:30:53.057] Everybody with me? (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:53.966] The problem with this batch process (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:55.524] is that once the gases are getting used up, (javascript:void(0);) [00:30:57.846] you're not putting anymore in, (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:00.796] so they've created a second process. (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:03.377] Oops. (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:04.508] Now I don't want you too caught up in the design, (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:07.116] it's just the thing, (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:08.297] here it is, you've got your valve for gas sampling, (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:12.547] here's your reactor, that's where the bacteria're gonna be, (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:14.545] probably in some kind of growth media, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:16.876] You've got nutrient solution, pressure gauge, (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:20.046] measure oxygen, you got your gas supply line, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:23.966] So they're gonna be able to feed the gas mixture (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:26.748] to this reactor as the bacteria are (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:28.697] in there doing their thing. (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:30.846] So where do you get the gases from? (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:36.384] This. (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:37.309] They created, they went out and bought, (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:39.389] a low pressure tank, (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:43.009] and then they took this tank, (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:44.811] and you can see the pressure gauge on it, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:47.699] There's the pressure gauge, (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:48.699] that's where they add the gases, (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:50.040] and then of course once they get it all mixed up, (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:51.779] then they can take a sample to see what the mixture is, (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:53.850] and then they can hook it onto that reactor, (javascript:void(0);) [00:31:56.579] and then feed the gases into the reactor as they're needed. (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:02.571] Does this concern anybody? (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:05.299] That I've got 70% hydrogen and 20% oxygen in this cylinder? (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:11.856] (audience talking) (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:16.189]
We know that we've got a combustible atmosphere, am I right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:20.600] We've got enough oxygen, we've got enough hydrogen.
(javascript:void(0);) [00:32:22.720] The question is, how could it get going? (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:25.760] How could something bad happen? (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:27.800]
There isn't a light bulb inside, (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:30.330] there's not a switch inside, it's just the pressure gauge. (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:34.949] There are no
obvious sources of ignition. (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:37.827] So how could something go wrong inside the cylinder? (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:44.509] Could that happen? (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:47.229] And if it does happen, (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:49.949] does the tank burn like the Hindenburg, (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:52.411] or does it do something else? (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:57.779] But how could you have it happen? (javascript:void(0);) [00:32:59.571] We've all done this, (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:00.419]
you walked across the floor in the wintertime, (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:01.840] you touched something and you got a static discharge, (javascript:void(0);)
[00:33:04.789]
didn't you? (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:05.622] Or somebody touches you (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:06.480] and then you got the static discharge.
(javascript:void(0);) [00:33:09.021] Somebody touching the tank could transfer it to the tank, (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:11.381] it could be on the tank (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:12.420]
and somebody or something touching the tank (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:14.088] could have a discharge that way. (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:18.657] Now, were there
any warnings about this? (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:21.950] Again, this is University of Hawaii. (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:25.230] The postdoc reported, of course this is after, (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:27.358] I think this might have been after the fact, (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:28.510] I don't think this was before, (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:31.038] but she might have been saying this before, (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:32.678] she reported getting shocked when she touched the tank. (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:38.676] A week before, when she was using the first setup, (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:41.036] that little batch system, remember? (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:42.659] That slide? (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:45.158]
She charged this little thing with gases, (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:46.798] or she was in the process of it, (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:49.145] she heard a crackling
sound. (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:51.947] The pressure gauge jumped, and then it began to drop. (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:55.587] What do you think happened? (javascript:void(0);) [00:33:59.927] We had a reaction in there. (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:00.888] The hydrogen and the oxygen reacted, turned into water. (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:04.118]
The investigation that occurred later (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:08.096] decided that the reason it didn't blow up (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:10.779] was that the gases
really weren't mixed at the time, (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:13.248] so it burned through that reaction chamber (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:15.827] like it burned through the Hindenburg. (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:20.436] So here it is, the postdoc opened the vessel, (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:22.558] and she found the plates were singed and cracked, (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:25.083] and that there was a burnt odor. (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:28.963] Here's a near miss. (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:31.754] And she doesn't pay attention to the warning. (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:35.732] Again, research like this has been done for years. (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:40.464] On the second operation, she had done it ten times already. (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:45.523] No problems. (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:47.715] So, she set up the second reactor, the 50 liter tank, (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:51.683] that was that green tank we were looking at, (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:53.624] so she set up to do her 11th reaction. (javascript:void(0);) [00:34:59.414]
And this is what happened. (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:02.433] You can see there's the tank, right there. (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:06.184] These drawers that you see
opened, (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:08.603] the blast wave bounced them open. (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:15.413] Here's a little different shot of the tank. (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:17.291]
You can see how it blew apart. (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:21.254] The investigation, and the red is blood, (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:25.643] just so you know.
(javascript:void(0);) [00:35:27.334] The researcher was kneeling next to the tank (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:29.934] when it went off, (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:31.024] and it is probably when she touched it that it went off. (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:35.334] Here's another picture of the lab. (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:36.584] They call this a biosafety cabinet, (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:39.024] but I think it's a fume hood. (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:40.723] But, again, you see all the drawers that are open? (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:42.823]
Shattered that, didn't it? (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:44.944] The tank I think was down in this area. (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:50.054] Whoops, go back up.
(javascript:void(0);) [00:35:52.795] Okay, that's a refrigerator, across the lab. (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:55.523] Part of the tank blew off of it (javascript:void(0);) [00:35:58.224] and went over and hit the refrigerator. (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:01.104] They estimated that it, (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:02.694] the force of the explosion was somewhere between (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:05.155] 70 and 700 grams of TNT. (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:09.363] She lost part of one of her arms, the lower part of her arm, (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:13.363]
and when I was reading the report, (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:15.235] they just said she lost it, (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:16.723] and I thought "well, didn't they try to
reattach it?" (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:20.144] Well, when I read the investigation report, (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:21.774] they said there weren't any pieces big enough (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:23.774] that they could reattach, so she lost part of her arm in it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:27.155] Of course she also suffered burns, (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:28.611] but from my standpoint, she's really lucky to be alive. (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:33.544] That's where the tank was sitting on the floor. (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:35.894] So you can see the gouges, I suppose that's concrete. (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:41.342] Okay, here's a schematic that the investigators put together (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:44.584] to try to understand what exactly all happened in the lab. (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:47.502] So let's go around here, there she is, (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:50.534] there's the tank, (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:51.854] some of these red lines are saying, (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:53.414] "we found pieces of her arm in these other locations." (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:57.254] So let's go around here. (javascript:void(0);) [00:36:58.659] There's the, they call it the biosafety cabinet, (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:00.122] I'm saying the fume hood, (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:01.301] so it blew the side of it off, (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:02.829] it pushed it back into the wall, (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:05.040] that's what it shows there, (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:06.202] and it pushed that part of the wall out six inches. (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:10.391]
It knocked over one of these tanks, (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:11.801] that was an oxygen tank, and it damaged the valve (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:13.970] and the
oxygen tank bled into the room. (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:16.071] Nothing happened, it just bled into the room. (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:19.802] There's the refrigerator where it got hit, (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:21.762] and you can read this, (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:23.162] hits the wall, because of the pressure, (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:25.090] and it blows part of the drywall out into the hallway. (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:30.277] We got some other things that are impacted. (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:33.109] Over-pressure on the drawers, when I mentioned that before, (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:35.409] how it knocked the drawers open (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:36.720] with the pressure that hit 'em. (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:39.200] So, pretty serious stuff right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:42.120] Okay, this is the part where, it bothered me because, (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:46.570]
I'm not omnipotent, so now we're saying in hindsight, (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:51.449] well that's like armchair quarterback, right? (javascript:void(0);)
[00:37:55.389]
Well if you're gonna learn something, (javascript:void(0);) [00:37:57.496] you have to say what could have been done different? (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:01.880] So
you're kinda forced to go forward with this, (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:04.770] even though you might not be comfortable with it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:08.110] Could they have done that, (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:08.981] ground the tank to prevent static? (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:11.162] Yeah, possibly. (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:12.660] Couldn't hurt, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:15.421] They found that the pressure gauge (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:16.952] was not intrinsically safe, but they found that that (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:19.202] was not the source of the explosion. (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:23.130] You could've filled and used the tank remotely. (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:26.650]
Now, 70 grams of TNT, how remote do you wanna be? (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:31.301] Right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:32.421] That's pretty remote.
(javascript:void(0);) [00:38:33.431] And that's a risk minimization practice, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:37.121] Remote? (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:38.450] So pretty difficult. (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:40.925] They could've designed a system that mixed the gases (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:43.752] as they were going into the reactor. (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:46.002]
Now, I haven't looked at the reactor, (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:47.730] could the reactor have had static and blown up? (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:49.899] Maybe.
(javascript:void(0);) [00:38:55.160] She could've heeded the warnings that she was getting, (javascript:void(0);) [00:38:57.509] she was getting a number of them. (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:00.791] Remember the near miss. (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:07.461] I've also thought about this. (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:09.592] Some of these considerations might not be obvious. (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:13.391] She's a microbiologist, she's not a compressed gas expert. (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:19.161] Right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:20.341] But that's the point, isn't it? (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:21.930] She was working outside of her area of expertise. (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:27.632]
She could've called the gas company, (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:28.938] saying, "hey, I need help putting this together." (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:31.418] She
could've called Environmental Health and Safety (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:33.188] and said, "it says these things are incompatible, (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:35.486] "but obviously people are putting them together, (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:37.629] "people are doing research with this, (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:39.200] "so am I missing something?" (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:42.168] There was an instance here not too long back, (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:44.589] few years back actually, (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:45.840]
where we found out researchers were gonna be mixing (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:48.938] potassium permanganate, which is a strong oxidizer, (javascript:void(0);)
[00:39:51.368]
with liquid paraffin, which is organic, (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:54.448] and we were saying, "you can't do that, (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:56.288] "they're
incompatible." (javascript:void(0);) [00:39:58.018] So we read their research papers that they had, (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:00.189] the researchers had recognized that, (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:02.096] and they had actually evaluated that material (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:04.879] for stability. (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:06.829] And then we took it beyond that to say (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:09.967] let's do what we can to this stuff. (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:11.425] We got with the state patrol, (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:12.556]
we actually tried to detonate a little piece of it, (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:14.767] and it wouldn't detonate. (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:16.255] It would burn, but it
wouldn't detonate. (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:19.013] And as a result they did their research. (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:23.364] Other ramifications, this is the University of Hawaii. (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:26.655] So, they were fined $115,500 by OSHA, (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:31.585] which doesn't sound like that much. (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:34.367]
The explosion caused $716,000 to the lab building. (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:39.105] I believe the lab where the explosion occurred (javascript:void(0);)
[00:40:40.807]
is still shut down. (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:42.436] And this is, what, a year or two ago, I believe? (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:46.345] The building was closed for
days. (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:48.033] I'm sure no researchers needed to do any research, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:50.556] I'm sure they didn't have anything that was time sensitive, (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:52.407] like bacteria cultures and stuff like that (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:54.674] that they needed to change out, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:40:58.903]
Of course the university is being sued by the postdoc. (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:06.287] There is an official report, 38 pages long, (javascript:void(0);)
[00:41:09.394]
that made recommendations (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:10.415] for how to make the research safer. (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:15.585] The investigation found failures
at all levels (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:19.135] from the research, to EHS, to administration. (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:27.607] Now, do you think that that 38 pages (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:29.276] are gonna affect the research that's done? (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:31.455] Hopefully it'll make it a lot safer, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:34.087]
But do you think it'll make it faster to do research (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:36.575] or slower? (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:38.655] Probably slower.
(javascript:void(0);) [00:41:41.807] So here are the conclusions, (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:43.264] here are the things to take home from this. (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:46.575]
When you're going to do something (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:47.895] that you haven't done before, (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:49.236] you've gotta go beyond the
research papers. (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:51.876] You've gotta go into the safety data sheets. (javascript:void(0);) [00:41:54.836] You've gotta read other support information. (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:00.767] You've gotta consider the chemical reactions. (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:02.695] Again, she's mixing two chemicals that were in theory, (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:04.945] well, not in theory but WERE, incompatible. (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:09.055] So she went from oxidizer, inflammable gas, to explosive. (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:15.065] She changed the hazards. (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:20.514] Gotta consider equipment setup and process hazards. (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:23.825]
Again, these two chemicals aren't a problem (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:25.476] until you put 'em together, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:28.156] And then of course
you've gotta, (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:29.436] when you're working outside your area of expertise (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:31.567] you gotta enlist the experts in that area. (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:35.767] And I know we're getting into a lot more (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:36.705] multi-disciplinary research, (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:38.255] so you've gotta recognize that (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:39.716] if you're gonna be putting things together (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:41.634] that are not your area of expertise (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:43.785] you gotta find somebody to advise you on it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:46.076] If you call us, it may not be me. (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:48.407]
It might be the fire marshal that I'm gonna get ahold of, (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:50.847] because he's the expert. (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:56.609] These near
misses, and things like that, (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:58.279] you need to report them. (javascript:void(0);) [00:42:59.399] You can't learn from it unless you report it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:01.788] So if you've got a departmental safety chair, let them know. (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:06.849] You got just a chair of the department, let them know, (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:09.897] so that we can get it out to the department. (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:11.719] Chemistry, if they have a near miss, (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:13.239]
there's an e-mail that goes out kind of (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:14.868] to the departmental folks to say "here was a near miss, (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:17.466] "this
is what we should've done differently." (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:19.999] Also, this right here in this green box. (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:23.097] This is our webwite, this is the EHS homepage, (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:25.731] and you can't see it very well, (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:26.937] but it's a near miss reporting system, (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:30.468]
so you can click on it, fill it out, and it'll come to us. (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:34.114] If we need to, and we almost always follow up on it. (javascript:void(0);)
[00:43:37.967]
Resources. (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:39.228] This is something I didn't have in 1990. (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:41.407] We've got the world wide web.
(javascript:void(0);) [00:43:43.436] You can jump out there, read a safety data sheet, (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:45.708] you can read a couple different safety data sheets. (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:47.417] You can go to Sigma-Aldrich, (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:48.455] and then you can go to Fisher, (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:49.847] if it's a fresh gas you can go to Matheson, (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:52.268] and read all these different safety data sheets. (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:54.428] You can read hydrogen oxygen mixture hazards, (javascript:void(0);) [00:43:59.586] and type it in, 'cuz you know it's something new. (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:04.405] There's a chemical safety library (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:05.527] that's been recently created. (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:07.359] I haven't had a chance to really look at it that much, (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:11.268]
but it's being supported by a lot of chemical industries, (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:14.948] and it's a place where they're all going to put out (javascript:void(0);)
[00:44:17.668]
reaction hazards that they've encountered, (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:20.319] that are not normally necessarily published, (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:23.377] because the
thing in Hawaii, (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:24.988] the reason we know about it's (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:26.028] because somebody got injured, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:27.287]
If they just had an explosion, man, (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:28.602] maybe we wouldn't have known. (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:31.608] But this way, they're trying
to get it out (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:33.620] that "here were our near misses, (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:35.386] "here was an accident, this is how it happened." (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:40.479] There's also something called (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:41.338] Bretherik's Handbook of Reactive Chemical Hazards. (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:48.439]
If you're determined enough, you can find this online. (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:54.489] 'Cuz I found it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:55.879] You can look up
chemicals, (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:57.329] you can search for chemicals in there, (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:58.638] for what kind of hazards they are. (javascript:void(0);) [00:44:59.809]
It generally won't say you add hydrogen to oxygen (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:02.789] you get explosion, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:04.878] It may not go to that
detail, (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:06.717] but it can still at least give you some information (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:09.191] on chemical hazards. (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:11.728]
Of course you can always call us, (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:13.369] and even if we're not the experts, (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:15.631] usually we can find
somebody who is to advise you. (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:19.452] And of course we'll meet with anyone on any subjects. (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:23.983] Are there any questions or comments? (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:28.961] It's kind of a somber end to this discussion, so (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:33.332] I gotta have this. (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:36.922]
Oh, gee whiz! (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:38.402] We got puppies and kittens. (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:39.504] (audience laughing) (javascript:void(0);)
[00:45:40.337]
So there's a happy ending. (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:42.780] Any questions? (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:46.361] If I could add a comment. (javascript:void(0);)
[00:45:47.990]
If you have a question we need to use this (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:50.081] so it's on the video. (javascript:void(0);) [00:45:59.327] My comment is,
(javascript:void(0);) [00:46:00.338] is if you're working off of published material, (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:06.041] there's always a contact for the authors. (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:09.428]
Yes, you're right. (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:10.503] Did everybody hear that? (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:11.460] You can always contact the authors
(javascript:void(0);) [00:46:12.719] on how they set things up, (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:13.753] is that what you're saying Julie? (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:15.279] And what hazards that they had identified. (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:19.861] I doubt that they did that in this situation, (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:24.411] because other researchers are doing it, (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:26.262] somehow they managed to do it safely. (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:27.971] On something like this, (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:29.142] I don't know if I'd be comfortable (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:30.170] with just grounding the tank, (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:31.745] because of what the stuff is. (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:34.662]
We're not talking a fire here, (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:36.512] we're talking a significant explosion. (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:39.702] We would've needed a whole
lot of help (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:43.801] to say "okay, this is a safe thing to do." (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:46.731] We probably would've brought in the fire marshal, (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:48.792] compressed gas company, things like that, (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:50.822] experts to help advise us. (javascript:void(0);) [00:46:53.931] So good point, Julie. (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:07.310] I have a question about personal protection equipment, (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:11.171] how are they reliable and how can I maintain? (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:17.062] So the question is PPE, personal protective equipment? (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:20.400] How about reliability, usability, reliability? (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:25.206] It's getting better. (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:28.115] For example on a Sigma-Aldrich safety data sheet (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:30.785] for a chemical, (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:32.265] you can go back to like the PPE recommendations, (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:34.806] and they'll actually give you on at least (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:36.726] almost all the safety data sheets I've looked at, (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:38.585] they'll give you a specific glove to wear (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:41.823]
that's supposed to be good against the chemical. (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:43.875] Now, guess what, almost all the time (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:45.414] it's a
Sigma-Aldrich glove, (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:47.503] but at least they're telling you (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:48.926] something that will be there to protect you. (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:52.265] The other PPE it just depends on what you're working with. (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:55.406] If you're working with something, (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:56.394] let's say you're working with a lot of flammable liquids. (javascript:void(0);) [00:47:58.424] Well you might not wanna wear just a regular lab coat, (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:00.886] they make lab coats that are fire resistant. (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:04.554] It's the same thing with your safety glasses. (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:07.465]
Safety glasses that are sold are required to meet (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:09.486] federal standards, and so that means if something, (javascript:void(0);)
[00:48:13.275]
so they know that if you get hit by something, (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:16.025] an object or whatever, that it's supposed (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:17.486] to be a
certain amount of resistance to it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:21.925] And then of course you've got your standard clothing (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:24.614] you're supposed to wear. (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:25.865] Collars that are relatively high, (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:28.555] pants that go to the floor, closed-toed shoes, (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:31.355]
not mesh-toed shoes closed-toed shoes, (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:34.126] but we're talking real closed-toed shoes, like leather, (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:38.806] and
I've always advised people (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:40.228] if they're working with things that are flammable (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:42.359] or could catch fire or something like that, (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:44.570] maybe they oughta consider just wearing cotton or wool. (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:48.421] Stay away from the polyesters. (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:50.399] There was an incident at UCLA a number of years ago, (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:54.458] and the gal was working with a pyrophoric liquid, (javascript:void(0);) [00:48:57.021] and she got some on her, (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:00.141] and of course pyrophoric liquid, what's that mean? (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:01.941]
It catches fire, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:03.449] Well, she eventually died from it. (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:05.419] She was wearing a plastic, a polyester,
(javascript:void(0);) [00:49:09.278] rayon type of sweater in the lab that day. (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:12.199] She didn't have a lab coat on, (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:13.610] she wasn't wearing safety glasses. (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:17.667] That fire that got on her then used her sweater to burn. (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:23.029] So she made things worse for her just by her clothing, (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:25.978] so PPE is really important. (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:27.429] In a lot of cases if you got the right PPE on (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:31.178] it'll help you a lot. (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:34.719] I've seen incidents where, there was a firefighter (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:37.679] and he wasn't wearing the right bunker gear. (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:39.709] He had a t-shirt on and he had the straps (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:42.849] for bunker gear pants, (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:44.948] so the straps are shoulder straps. (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:46.508] He got caught in a fire ball. (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:50.508] What was amazing to me was, (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:52.060] he had first and second degree burns (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:53.999] all over the place on his upper body, (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:55.959] but where the straps for the bunker gear went, (javascript:void(0);) [00:49:59.027] nice, white skin. (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:01.348] Because he had his PPE on. (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:03.569] So you get the right stuff and it's very effective. (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:07.518] Any other questions? (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:15.768]
(audience talking) (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:21.997] There was also a question, (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:24.487] part of the last question was about
(javascript:void(0);) [00:50:28.665] washing lab coats? (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:30.625] Excuse me, washing? (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:31.699] Washing lab coats, can she wash lab coats? (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:36.699] What's our policy on that, Brenda? (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:38.667] Washing lab coats? (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:41.197] We don't have a policy on that. (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:42.646] Oh, we don't, okay. (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:45.184] There are certain care instructions (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:47.165]
when you're dealing with flame-retardant, (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:52.102] there's other considerations there. (javascript:void(0);) [00:50:55.264] (audience talking)
(javascript:void(0);) [00:50:58.504] I said there is no policy, (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:01.072] formal policy, (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:02.063] but there are considerations if you're gonna launder, (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:05.121] particularly if you're gonna launder (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:06.801] flame-resistant protective gear, (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:10.100]
there's certain instructions that need to be followed. (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:14.341] We would discourage laundering lab coats (javascript:void(0);)
[00:51:16.982]
that are known to be highly contaminated (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:20.500] like you were part of a spill, (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:24.351] but ordinary lab coats,
(javascript:void(0);) [00:51:28.158] typically like in a bio lab, (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:31.547] that are just ordinary soiled, wouldn't have an issue. (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:35.370]
So basically Brenda's saying, (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:36.759] depends on the level of hazard in the coat. (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:39.660] If you're willing to put it
on, right? (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:43.866] Then aren't you willing to wash it? (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:45.820] Whereas if you don't wanna put it on, do you wanna wash it? (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:48.028] No, because it's too contaminated, (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:49.940] you don't wanna even put it on. (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:51.482] So that's kinda how I would carry that. (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:53.455] And it depends on department, (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:55.421] some units on campus they've got their own washer, dryers. (javascript:void(0);) [00:51:59.610] Some units on campus, if they want to, (javascript:void(0);) [00:52:01.969] they can go in with an exchange with a company, (javascript:void(0);) [00:52:04.900] and the company will take their lab coats (javascript:void(0);) [00:52:06.660] and bring them new lab coats. (javascript:void(0);) [00:52:08.090]
Those are out there, and if you have questions on that, (javascript:void(0);) [00:52:10.311] you know we can talk about that after this if you'd like. (javascript:void(0);)
[00:52:14.590]
Any other questions? (javascript:void(0);)
Description Those who conduct chemical reactions or work with varied and numerous hazardous chemicals will find this colloquium particularly informative.
TAGS:
CHEMICAL SAFETY (HTTPS://MEDIAHUB.UNL.EDU/TAGS/CHEMICAL+SAFETY)
RISK MANAGEMENT (HTTPS://MEDIAHUB.UNL.EDU/TAGS/RISK+MANAGEMENT)
HAZARD ASSESSMENT (HTTPS://MEDIAHUB.UNL.EDU/TAGS/HAZARD+ASSESSMENT)
DAN OLSEN (HTTPS://MEDIAHUB.UNL.EDU/TAGS/DAN+OLSEN)
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Laboratory Safety Colloquium (https://mediahub.unl.edu/channels/138)