flinnsci.com SAFETY REFERENCE CHEMICAL SPILL CONTROL
705
Chemical Spill Control
Prevent and Respond to Laboratory Chemical Spills
a 20-lb bag of unodorized kitty litter or oil absorbent.
Fill the last bucket with 30 lbs of sodium carbonate,
anhydrous, also known as soda ash. Soda ash is
available at industrial chemical, building supply
and swimming pool supply distributors. Label each
bucket with the contents, and cover the top with
plastic wrap to keep the contents fresh and so they
aren’t used as garbage cans. Place a plastic broom,
plastic dustpan and several large heavy-duty plastic
garbage bags near the spill control kit for cleanup
and disposal.
If mercury or mercury thermometers are used in
your classroom, mercury spill control materials should
be readily available. Mercon spill control spray, wipes
and sponges are available from Flinn and are ideal for
cleaning up mercury spills. Small droplets of mercury
also can be cleaned up by sprinkling zinc dust on the
spill area. Zinc dust reacts with mercury to form a very
stable and safe amalgam that is easy to handle and
safe to dispose of in the trash.
Spill Control Procedures
and Training
A written contingency plan on how to handle
chemical spills should be part of every school’s
Chemical Hygiene Plan. The following procedure is
an example of a contingency plan.
1. Quickly assess the spill, its hazards and the danger
to yourself and your students and take appropriate
action. If the spilled chemicals are unknown,
assume the worst and evacuate.
2. Notify other laboratory personnel of the accident
and, if necessary, evacuate the area. The safety of
you and your students is always the top priority.
3. Tend to any injured or contaminated person
and request help if necessary. If the chemical
is splashed into an eye or onto skin, immediately
irrigate using an eyewash or shower. If the
chemical is splashed on your clothes, you may
have time to first contain the spill with a fire blanket
or spill control materials and then treat yourself.
Remember, if you use a safety shower near a
chemical spill, the water may expand the spill area.
No matter what precautions you take, sooner or later
an accidental chemical spill will occur. A responsible
science teacher will take steps to prevent spills, make
sure proper safety equipment is available to contain
and control the spill and understand how to use the
safety equipment.
Spill Prevention
The first precaution to take for spill control is spill
prevention. Experiments and laboratories should
be designed to minimize the possibility of chemical
spills. Experi ments should use the minimal amount
of chemicals whenever possible. The less chemical
available, the smaller the spill.
Store and dispense chemicals in unbreakable
bottles, such as plastic or PVC-coated glass
bottles. Highly toxic materials should be stored in
a secondary containment device, such as a Chem-
Saf ™ bag (heavy-duty plastic bag) or a Saf-Stor™ can
(metal paint can). If a bottle is dropped, secondary
containment will contain the spill and may actually
prevent the spill from occurring.
Spill Control Equipment
Proper spill control equipment includes fire blankets,
spill control materials (e.g., sand, absorbent and
neutralizer) and a mercury spill control kit.
A 100% wool fire blanket is an excellent spill control
device because it will contain and control a spill and
its vapors. If a spill occurs and other spill control
materials are not available, simply throw the fire
blanket over the spill. The blanket will begin to absorb
the liquid, contain the vapor and enable a person
to walk over the spill without slipping. Remember,
acid spilled on a tile floor will make the floor very
slippery—the potential for slipping and falling into the
acid spill is a real danger.
Every lab should have spill control materials
that contain at least three components: sand, an
absorbing agent and a neutralizer. Spill control
materials should be capable of handling a spill from
the largest bottle used in your laboratory, which
is usually a 2.5-L acid bottle (remember, Murphy’s
Law states that the largest bottle is the one that
will break). Sand is used to contain a spill, provide
traction and prevent the spill from rapidly spreading
across the tile floor. The absorbent contains and
absorbs the liquid spill so it is easier to clean up,
transport and dispose. Neutralizer is usually a base,
such as sodium carbonate or calcium hydroxide,
and is used to neutralize inorganic acid spills. If
strong bases are used in your laboratory, it is also
a good idea to keep a supply of citric acid on hand
to neutralize base spills. A 2.5-kg bottle of citric acid
is large enough to neutralize the entire contents of
almost any bottle of base.
To save money, a homemade spill con trol kit is
easily prepared using three 5-gallon plastic buckets.
Fill the first 5-gallon bucket with 30 pounds of clean,
dry sand (available as play sand at a discount or
hardware store). Fill a second 5-gallon bucket with
4. Take steps to contain and limit the spill if this can
be done without risk of injury or contamination.
5. Clean up the spill using appropriate proce dure.
Dispose of contaminated materials properly.
6. Call in emergency personnel if at any time your
safety or your students’ safety is in jeopardy.
To contain and control a chemical spill, the following
procedure works well. Gently pour sand around the
spill and onto the spill. The sand will contain the spill,
prevent it from spreading and also provide traction if
you need to walk over it. Next pour absorbent (kitty
litter, oil absorbent) around the spill and onto the spill.
This will absorb the liquid and also begin to contain
any vapors. For both the absorbent and sand, it is best
to gently drop or sprinkle the spill control material
around the spill and then onto the spill to avoid
spreading the spill. Lastly, if the spill is an inorganic
acid or base, apply the appropriate neutralizer around
the spill and onto the spill. The neutralizer needs to be
mixed well with the sand and absorbent to come in
contact with all of the spilled chemical—use a plastic
broom to mix well.
After the spill is controlled, students are evacuated
and injuries are addressed, then the clean-up begins.
If the material is warm or still giving off vapors,
ventilate the room and wait before cleaning up. Use
a plastic dustpan and plastic broom to sweep up the
now solid mess and place it into large, heavy-duty
garbage or leaf bags for disposal. If at any time during
the chemical spill containment or clean-up step you
don’t feel comfortable, leave the area and get help.
Make spill control containment and clean-up part of
your annual safety training. Simulate a chemical spill
with water and use sand as the control material. Note
how quickly the “spill” spreads. Practice applying the
spill control material around and then onto the spill.
Determine the most convenient location for storing
your spill control materials. Training is one of the most
important components of an effective safety program.
Chemical spills will occur in you laboratory. With
proper equipment, procedures and training, most
spills can be prevented, and the spills that do occur
can be handled safely and effectively.
®
FLINN/SCIMATCO® WOODEN ACID CABINETS
are manufactured without using any metal
compo nents. Our all-wood construction
eliminates cabinet corrosion and guarantees
years of safe acid storage.
See pages 644–645 for details!
/flinnsci.com