|
A
Toxicology Primer for Student Inquiry:
Biological Smoke Detectors
by Charles
Drewes
SAFETY
Obtain
and study “Material Safety Data Sheets” (MODS)
and/or International Chemical Safety Cards for all solvents
and test chemicals that you will use in testing (Figs. 5
and 6). MODS sheets and International Chemical Safety Cards
are readily available from the University of Vermont which
maintains a huge electronic data base relating to chemical
safety. The web address is: http://hazard.com/msds/
Learn
and follow all safety measures for the laboratory facility
in which you will be carrying out your study. Learn and
follow all written safety precautions for the chemicals
you are using. Handle all volatile or toxic materials in
a fume hood. Wear a lab coat, protective vinyl (or latex)
gloves and use protective eyewear when opening or handling
any chemical storage containers, stock solutions, pipettes,
or exposure containers.
Clearly
label the contents and concentrations of all chemical
solutions in containers. Properly dispose of all
used solutions, surplus solutions, or chemically-exposed
materials such as pipette tips or filter paper. Use absorbent
towel to thoroughly remove any drips or spills of solutions
to which humans may come in contact. Thoroughly and carefully
scrub and clean all glassware or plasticware that
was exposed to chemicals. Use ethanol and then water rinses
to clean containers that held water-insoluble chemicals.
It is very important not to leave any chemical residues
on glassware, thus the emphasis on careful cleaning.
Finally,
it is important to begin experiments without any traces
of soap residue on glassware. Soap residues are especially
toxic to many aquatic invertebrates.
Figure
5. Sample MODS sheet for d-limonene.
Figure
6. Sample International Chemical Safety card for d-limonene.
Next
Section: exposure methods
|
