I would be happy to contribute as well.

Sent from my iPhone

> On Jun 23, 2022, at 6:33 AM, Richard Palluzi <000006c59248530b-dmarc-request**At_Symbol_Here**lists.princeton.edu> wrote:
>
> You may want to review some of the ones mentioned in my article:
>
> Scared Safe: The Importance of Human Error when Evaluating Research Operations for Safety, https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/scared-safe-importance-human-error-when-evaluating-research-palluzi
>
>
> Richard Palluzi
> BE(ChE), ME(ChE), PE, CSP,FAIChE
>
> Pilot plant and laboratory consulting, safety, design, reviews, and training
> www.linkedin.com/in/richardppalluzillc/
> www.pilotplants.us
>
> Richard P Palluzi LLC
> 72 Summit Drive
> Basking Ridge, NJ 07920
> rpalluzi**At_Symbol_Here**verizon.net
> 908-285-3782
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**Princeton.EDU> On Behalf Of davivid
> Sent: Wednesday, June 22, 2022 2:50 PM
> To: DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**Princeton.EDU
> Subject: Re: [DCHAS-L] Opinion: What I learned from my lab accident
>
> I think anyone who has spent a few years in a lab has heard their share of "horror stories", and probably experienced some first hand. These are wonderful teaching aids as they underline the details that you need to look out for and highlight the consequences when they are overlooked.
> They are best combined with lessons learned.
>
> I think these are a great way to start a safety meeting.
>
> Here are a couple
>
> (not me) A researcher was trying to grind a material in a ball mill, but the material was too soft. So they cooled it down by adding liquid nitrogen to the container, clamped the lid on and proceeded to grind.
> Their supervisor happened to notice frost on the ceramic mill and asked about it. On hearing what had been done they grabbed the researched and hit the deck. The mill exploded soon after sending heavy ceramic fragments flying. Lesson learned: Don't add cryogens to closed systems.
>
> (not me) A researcher was evaporating a volatile solvent using a rotary vacuum pump protected by a liquid nitrogen trap. They lowered the dewar to check the solvent level in the trap but the vacuum tubing was twisted and flipped the trap upside-down sending the condensed solvent into the still running pump. The solvent flashed to vapor on contacting the hot pump oil and split the pump casing at the casting seam. Lesson learned:
> vacuum tubing can be difficult to work with but it is important to connect it without kinks or other stresses.
>
> (A fellow I worked with) A researcher added a small amount of acetone to a new, empty glass waste container labeled for acid waste. A short time later someone added nitric acid. BOOM! Fortunately the cap blew off rather than the bottle shatter. Lesson learned: Pay attention to labels.
>
> (a fellow I worked with) A researcher withdrew a sample of a heated reaction mixture from a flask using a 1 mL syringe. They tried to transfer the sample to a vial but the mixture had cooled and solidified in the 30 gauge needle. Applying force to the plunger resulted in the luer needle popping off the syringe and spraying hot phenol in their face. Fortunately they had no lasting injury after hitting the eyewash.
> Lessons learned: It is remarkably easy to produce surprisingly high pressures by pressing the plunger of a small diameter syringe. Luer connections are friction fit, Luer lock are more secure. Protect your face/eyes. Hot stuff cools quickly in high surface to volume containers.
>
> (Me) I was asked to scale-up a reaction to produce a kilo of so of an intermediate. The reaction was simple, heat triethyl phosphite with an aromatic halide in the presence of a catalyst (Arbuzov reaction). The usual catalyst was palladium but we didn't have enough for this prep so I used nickel. Since nickel was known to be substantially less reactive in this reaction than palladium I increased the amount. The reaction proceeded well at first but then started flooding the condenser. The solution would have been to cool the reaction in ice/water but the equipment filled the entire height of the hood. All we could do was turn off the heat, close the sash and wait. The reaction was completed by erupting out through the condenser. After cleanup I managed to achieve an 80% yield. Lesson learned: Reactions in general and catalysts in particular do not scale linearly. Also, leave room to lower the heating bath/mantle and bring in an ice bath.
>
> That's all for now.
>
> Cheers!
> Dave lane
> Principal
> Clavis Technology Development
>
>> On 6/21/22 8:12 PM, Schroeder, Imke wrote:
>> I would be interested in contributing also. I have my own personal story and many others to share.
>> My best,
>> Imke
>>
>> From: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety
>> <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**Princeton.EDU> on behalf of Ralph Stuart
>> <ralph**At_Symbol_Here**RSTUARTCIH.ORG>
>> Date: Tuesday, June 21, 2022 at 6:30 AM
>> To: DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**Princeton.EDU <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**Princeton.EDU>
>> Subject: Re: [DCHAS-L] Opinion: What I learned from my lab accident
>>> Would anyone be willing to contribute their lessons learned to such a symposium at a national conference if I organized it?
>>
>> I have a new personal one ready to go when the symposium comes up. I
>> wrote it up for the ACS Chemical Health & Safety special issue on
>> Shifting Culture from Blame to Gain: A Call for Papers to Openly
>> Discuss Chemical Incidents described at
>> https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.chas.2c00031
>>
>> That issue is likely to be a good source of similar presentations.
>>
>> - Ralph
>>
>> Ralph Stuart, CIH, CCHO
>> ralph**At_Symbol_Here**rstuartcih.org
>>
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