Updated April 16, 2024
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are toxic, persistent manmade chemicals that were widely used as an oil additive in electrical equipment and as a plasticizer in building materials. Congress banned the manufacture and use of PCBs in 1978.
Use a Safety Data Sheet Template (Word) if synthesizing a hazardous chemical. The PI or manager must generate a Globally Harmonized System (GHS) compliant label and safety data sheet (SDS) before shipping or transporting the chemical away from the campus.
Chemicals are used in laboratories, maker spaces, shops and other areas across campus. EH&S provides information and guidance on safe practices for handling, storing, transporting and disposing of hazardous chemicals.
Many laboratories use hazardous chemicals that are purchased in large quantities and then transferred into smaller secondary containers (e.g., vials, flasks or bottles), or prepared as diluted solutions or mixtures for use.
If your laboratory uses secondary containers filled with chemicals, the secondary containers must comply with OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard for Labels and Pictograms.
A Tacoma woman died from asphyxiation and her daughter-in-law is in critical condition after riding in a car with containers of dry ice. Even at normal room temperatures, dry ice will warm and release carbon dioxide gas, which can displace the oxygen inside a small, enclosed space.
Dry ice is commonly used in UW research. Its properties allow for rapid cooling of materials, but also pose unique worker safety hazards.
Lead is a neurotoxin that accumulates in the body and damages the nervous system and causes blood disorders. Faculty, staff and students using metallic lead in a lab, shop or other workspace could be at risk for toxic lead exposure.
All quantities of metallic lead (e.g., metallic lead like bricks, buoy weights, window weights, lead sheeting, or solder) must be recorded in MyChem. MyChem is the UW’s chemical inventory management system and helps maintain our compliance with environmental and occupational health requirements.
This report is intended to provide guidance on identifying and evaluating potential risks related to storage of liquid nitrogen in laboratory space, and how to best mitigate those risks at the University of Washington. This paper provides an analysis of the available literature on the subject, example calculations of risk, and suggestions of best practices to detect an unsafe environment from liquid nitrogen and other cryogenic material spills and releases in rooms and spaces.
Secondary chemical container labels allow the user to identify chemical composition and mixtures while indicating hazards.
Secondary chemical container labels allow the user to identify chemical composition and mixtures while indicating hazards.
Secondary chemical container labels allow the user to identify chemical composition and mixtures while indicating hazards.
