$5000 Lab Safety Award - help your lab win!
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One lab will win the Lab Safety Awards grand prize of $5,000 this October, based on data collected from lab reviews, audits and inspections, which kicked off in July 2018. The grand-prize winner will be chosen from a winning lab in Veterinary Medicine, Medicine, Letters and Science, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Biology, and Engineering. You can increase your lab’s chances of winning by:
- Preparing for your annual lab safety review - complete a self-inspection using our checklist that mirrors the review conducted by your lab safety professional
- Earn extra credit - send an email describing a safety innovation in your lab (e.g., safety meeting, incident-reporting procedure, lab clean out ritual, hands-on training) in 500 words or less. Send your innovation by June 1 to Becky Grunewald at bgrunewald@ucdavis.edu
We may invite exceptional safety innovators to present their idea at the Lab Safety Awards luncheon, with the Chancellor in attendance.
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Chemical Spill Control
What should you keep in a spill kit? When do you use what? How do you dispose of waste you generate?
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Spill Kits Should Contain:
- All-purpose absorbent (e.g., kitty litter or DRIZORB),
- Small broom and dustpan
- Large plastic bag (preferably sealable) or a large container with lid.
Strongly Recommended
Absorbent pads, chemical neutralizers for acid and base spills, and a copy of SafetyNet #13, Guidelines for Chemical Spill Control should also be included in a spill kit. All-purpose absorbent can cover a larger area than an absorbent pad, which is limited by its size.
Disposing of Waste
Spent absorbent material and pads can be placed in in plastic bags (double-bagged) or in a container with a tight lid If there is concern that the spilled material may degrade the plastic bags. Once the spill has been cleaned up and placed in the appropriate container, fill out a hazardous waste tag in WASTe and submit the container/bag for pick up.
Please Note: Labs that work with biohazardous material may also require a biological spill kit. The contents of this spill kit are outlined in SafetyNet #127.
Thank You
Judy Edman, Safety and Facilities Officer in the School of Medicine, won $25 for suggesting the spill kit information above. Thank you to everyone else who submitted articles they would like to see in Beyond the Bench!
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Helpful Forms - New and Updated
These training documents were created/amended based on feedback we received from the campus community, so keep those suggestions coming.
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Annual Refresher Training Form (New)
Includes four topics requiring annual training, as well as extra space for other training delivered in your lab:
- Illness and Injury Prevention Plan (IIPP)
- Emergency Action Plan (EAP)
- Chemical Hygiene Plan (CHP)
- Chemical Spill Response (Safety Net #13)
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Site-Specific Safety Orientation & Training Checklist for New Laboratory Personnel
Includes language to ensure new lab members:
- Complete UC Laboratory Safety Fundamentals course online
- Review lab hazard assessment (LHAT)
- Complete PPE training associated with the LHAT
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 In the Chemicals application, isopropanol is identified as a peroxide former on concentration. This means that as the parent liquid evaporates, the peroxides in the solvent are effectively concentrated, increasing the shock sensitivity of the parent container. Similar, common peroxide formers include diethyl ether, tetrahydrofuran, and dioxane.
Isopropanol differs from common peroxide formers because it's hydroscopic, and as a result, the isopropanol/water mixture does not form high concentrations of peroxides.
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Isopropanol and Container Warnings in Chemicals App
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The Chemicals application does not differentiate between dry isopropanol and wet isopropanol - all isopropanol gets tagged as a peroxide former. This may generate a container warning on the Inventory Summary page of the Chemicals application. Resolve this warning by:
- Select “Container Warnings” on the “Inventory Summary” page
- Select the chemical you want to address.
- Select the three dots next to the chemical entry (see image above), which will indicate the container is missing an opened date.
- Enter the container's opened date to remove the container warning.
Isopropanol can potentially form explosive peroxides when labs:
- Keep isopropanol moisture-free
- Distill or concentrate isopropanol
- Don't follow the manufacturer recommended storage conditions
In these cases, the guidance in SafetyNet #23 must be adhered to, and the material must be disposed of after 12 months or tested for peroxide formation. We recommend only purchasing the amount of isopropanol that is routinely used by the lab and disposing of containers through the WASTe system as soon as they are no longer useful for your research or test for peroxide formation.
Please reach out to your Lab Safety Professional for guidance on how to document that a material is being tested for peroxide formation.
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With isopropanol, or any peroxide-forming material, researchers should be trained to identify peroxide formation (e.g., visible discoloration, crystallization, multiple layers or liquid stratification), understand that peroxide formation should be treated as potentially explosive and respond by calling EH&S for immediate assistance.
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Preparing for Your Lab Safety Review
April 17, from 2 - 4 p.m. | June 4, from 1:30 - 4 p.m.
Intended for lab managers, safety delegates, grad students and PIs, and will be taught by the Lab Safety Professional team. Enroll online!
Online Lab Safety Tools Seminar
April 23, from 1 - 3 p.m. | June 17, from 1:30 - 4 p.m.
Intended for lab managers, safety delegates, grad students and PIs. Lab Safety Professional Tony Schrick will teach this hands-on class to help you navigate online safety tools like the LHAT, SIT and others. Enroll online!
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Beyond the Bench is always looking for your input! Do you have a topic that you would like to see covered? Would you like to see your research highlighted in the Beyond the Bench banner? Send any feedback to chem-safety@ucdavis.edu. We look forward to hearing from you!
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