The laboratory, a place dedicated to experimental use, is also an indispensable part of the scientific road. But at the same time as we are in scientific research and experimentation, there are also many hidden “killers” around us, such as foreign body impact, solvent burns, poisoning, etc. Shenwan Xiaobian introduced to you today, in the laboratory, how do we do a good job of personal protection?

(Illustration: Schematic diagram of wearing personal protective equipment in the laboratory)

Respiratory protection

During the experiment, some chemical reactions will occur to produce toxic and harmful vapors or gases, resulting in respiratory damage to the staff, so it is necessary to wear personal respiratory protection, the more common is 3M gas masks or gas masks. Specific needs to be selected according to the degree of harm of toxic gases on site, if the toxicity is larger, it is recommended to choose a gas mask.

Eye and face protection

1. Protective eye masks or anti-chemical glasses: The eyes and face are the most vulnerable parts of the laboratory to be injured by accidents, so their protection is particularly important. In the laboratory working environment, experimenters involved in solution reagents must wear safety protective glasses.

2. Eyewash: When chemical solvents splash into the eyes, they should be rinsed thoroughly with an eyewash immediately. When rinsing, the eyelids should be stretched out, carefully rinsed with tap water for a few minutes, then rinsed with distilled water, and then go to the infirmary for treatment. Eyewashes can generally be used as wall-mounted eyewashes or portable eyewashes.

3. Face screen: Face protective equipment is used to protect the face and throat. To prevent impact damage caused by possible explosions and splashes of experimental objects, protective face shields or face screens made of plexiglass or polycarbonate can be worn.

Body protection

Personnel entering the laboratory must wear chemical suits, the purpose of which is to prevent the skin and clothing of the body from being contaminated by chemicals.

The most basic performance of the chemical protection suit is to be able to resist corrosion of general chemicals, if it is a reusable chemical protection suit, it is also necessary to rinse and save with the corresponding solvent after use to prevent secondary damage to the chemicals attached to the surface of the chemical suit.

Hand protection

In order to prevent hand injury in the laboratory, different types of protective gloves can be worn as needed. Gloves should be worn when exposed to corrosive substances, objects with sharp edges (e.g. broken glass, wood, metal fragments), overheated or too cold substances.

The most commonly used gloves in the laboratory are chemical resistant gloves, but there are many kinds of chemical resistant gloves, such as polyethylene, nitrile rubber, PVC, latex, etc., because different materials of chemical gloves, the protection level of chemical solvents that can be protected is different, so it needs to be defined according to the specific use. (Glove selection, can be referred to)

In addition, after the end of the experiment, the personnel should use a neutral detergent to repeatedly wash their hands, and the anti-chemical gloves after use are treated in a unified and centralized manner, and cannot be mixed with other garbage. Collar and safety protection remind everyone that scientific experiment verification is very important, but while working, the first principle is to ensure personal safety, wear the corresponding personal protective equipment, and prevent it from happening.