Chemical Education Today
Chemical Laboratory Information Profile
Introducing Chemical Laboratory Information Profiles: CLIPs by Jay A. Young
We all know that, in general, chemicals are hazardous—that if they are mishandled or misused harm can result. Everyone also knows that statements of the hazards associated with a given chemical are scattered throughout the pages of the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) and also appear on the label of the container for that chemical. We acknowledge that our professional responsibility as teachers of chemistry requires that all concerned be cognizant of the hazards of the chemicals we and our students use and handle. But there are problems in acquiring this hazard information from
MSDSs and labels. Many MSDSs and labels do not directly apply to the use of chemicals in the instructional laboratory. They are written for industrial use where the procedures involve large quantities of chemicals in multi-gallon sized vessels connected one to another by piping equipped with valves requiring electric-powered motors to open and close. Although it is certainly possible to “translate” such MSDSs into information suited to laboratory quantities and use, the effort to do so is singularly unrewarding to many teachers who typically face more immediate demands on their time.
Further, different MSDSs disclose hazard information in different ways. The information about, say, flammability that is displayed in Section 3, page 2, of the MSDS for one chemical is found in Section V, page 4, in the MSDS for another chemical in its discussion of combustibility. Although it is less common today than it was a few years ago, some MSDSs do not disclose all of the information required by the pertinent OSHA regulation, 29 CFR 1910.1200, and therefore cannot be relied upon. Even experienced chemists are sometimes unable to determine whether an MSDS is defective without
List of CLIPs, Chemical Laboratory Information Profiles Acetaldehyde Acetamide* Acetic Acid Acetic Anhydride Acetone* Acrylonitrile* Aluminum Aluminum Chloride Aluminum Oxide Ammonia Ammonium Acetate Ammonium Chloride Ammonium Chromate* Ammonium Dichromate* Ammonium Molybdate Ammonium Oxalate Ammonium Thiocyanate Amyl Alcohol (mixed isomers) Aniline* Anthracene* Antimony(III) Chloride Antimony(V) Chloride Antimony Oxide Arsenic(III) Chloride* Arsenic(VI) Oxide* Asbestos* Ascorbic Acid Barium Acetate* Barium Chloride* Barium Hydroxide* Barium Nitrate* Benzaldehyde Benzene*
Benzidine* Benzoic Acid Benzoyl Peroxide* Beryllium Carbonate* Biphenyl* Bismuth(III) Chloride Boric Acid Bromine* Bromphenol Blue 1-Butanol Cadmium* Cadmium Chloride* Cadmium Sulfate* Calcium Calcium Carbide Calcium Carbonate Calcium Chloride Calcium Fluoride Calcium Hydride Calcium Nitrate Calcium Oxide Carbon Disulfide* Carbon Tetrachloride* Catechol Cerium(IV) Ammonium Nitrate Charcoal Chlorine* Chlorobenzene Chloroform* Chloroplatinic Acid Chromium* Chromium Nitrate Chromium Sulfate
Chromium(VI) Oxide* Citric Acid Cobalt* Cobalt(II) Chloride* Copper Copper(I) Chloride Copper(I) Cyanide Copper(I) Oxide Copper(II) Acetate Copper(II) Bromide Copper(II) Chloride Copper(II) Nitrate Copper(II) Oxide Copper(II) Sulfate m-Cresol p-Cresol Cumene Cyclohexane Dextrin Dextrose Dibutyl Phthalate Dichloroacetic Acid o-Dichlorobenzene m-Dichlorobenzene p-Dichlorobenzene 1,2-Dichloroethane* Diethyl Phthalate Diisopropyl Ether* Dimethylformamide Dimethylglyoxime Dimethylsulfoxide 1,4-Dioxane* Disodium Hexafluorosilicate
*Reagents marked with an asterisk can be more hazardous than those not so identified; see individual CLIPs for details.
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Chemical Education Today edited by
Jay A. Young 12916 Allerton Lane Silver Spring, MD 20904
spending several hours searching the literature for the accurate information. Labels on chemical containers are usually better in that most list the hazards, precautions, and first aid procedures in the same places, although not always in the same order. Even so, suppliers seem to have their own idiosyncrasies in the way they present information on their labels. The labels on smaller containers are problematic in yet another way: either the printed font is too small to read and comprehend easily or the information is abbreviated or condensed. Accordingly, there seems to be a need for a document that describes the hazards of a chemical in a manner more useful for teachers and their students. To
this end, I have devised CLIPs, Chemical Laboratory Information Profiles. Example CLIPs for sodium hydroxide and phenolphthalein appear in this issue. I propose to prepare CLIPs for other chemicals that are commonly used in laboratory work. These are listed in the box. This list is not carved in stone; if readers wish to suggest changes to me, chemicals can be added or deleted. Also, since the chemicals now on the list vary widely in their frequency of use by readers and their students, it is desirable to publish CLIPs for the more “popular” chemicals first and save the rest for a later publication date. Therefore I am soliciting readers’ suggestions for which CLIPs to publish first.
CLIPS can be used to assist your determinations of the precautions your students should take in their laboratory work, or they can be used to guide students in discussions wherein they participate in selecting the precautionary measures for their own laboratory work. Also, using a few published CLIPs as examples, students could be assigned the task of preparing their own CLIPs for one or more of the reagents to be used in next week’s laboratory work. Other pedagogic applications are possible. As can be seen in the accompanying CLIPs for sodium hydroxide and phenolphthalein, the CLIP itself and its format are intended to be self-explanatory. Suggestions for clarification and improvement are always welcome.
List of CLIPs, Chemical Laboratory Information Profiles, continued Disodium Hydrogen Phosphate Ethyl Alcohol Ethyl Bromide Ethyl Ether* Ethyl Methacrylate Ethylene Oxide* Ethylenediamine Ethylenediaminetetraacetic Acid Fluorescein Formaldehyde* Formic Acid Glass Wool Glycerine Gold Graphite Hexachlorophene n-Hexane Hydrazine Hydrate Hydriodic Acid* Hydrochloric Acid* Hydrofluoric Acid* Hydrogen Peroxide Hydrogen Sulfide* Hydroquinone* Hydroxylamine Hydrochloride Indole Iodine Iron Iron(II) Ammonium Sulfate Iron(II) Sulfate Iron(II) Sulfide Iron(III) Ammonium Citrate Iron(III) Ammonium Sulfate
Iron(III) Chloride Isopropyl Alcohol Kerosine Lactic Acid Lead Lead(II) Acetate* Lead(II) Oxide (litharge) Lead(IV) Oxide Lead Arsenate* Lead Carbonate* Lead Chromate Lead Nitrate Lithium Lithium Chloride Lithium Nitrate Lithium Perchlorate Litmus Paper Magnesium Magnesium Acetate Magnesium Chloride Magnesium Oxide Magnesium Sulfate Manganese(II) Carbonate Manganese(II) Chloride Manganese(II) Nitrate Manganese(II) Sulfate Manganese(IV) Oxide Mercury* Mercury(I) Chloride Mercury(I) Nitrate Mercury(II) Acetate* Mercury(II) Bromide* Mercury(II) Chloride*
Mercury(II) Iodide* Mercury(II) Nitrate* Mercury(II) Oxide* Mercury(II) Sulfate* Mercury(II) Thiocyanate* Methanol Methyl Acetate Methyl Ethyl Ketone Methyl Iodide Methyl Methacrylate Methyl Orange Methyl Red Methyl Salicylate Methylene Blue Molybdenum(VI) Oxide Monochloroacetic Acid Naphthalene 1-Naphthol Nickel Nickel(II) Acetate* Nickel(II) Carbonate* Nickel(II) Chloride* Nickel(II) Nitrate* Nickel(II) Oxide* Nickel(II) Sulfate* Nickel(III) Oxide* Ninhydrin Nitric Acid* Nitrobenzene* Oleic Acid Osmium Tetraoxide* Oxalic Acid Paraffin
*Reagents marked with an asterisk can be more hazardous than those not so identified; see individual CLIPs for details.
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List of CLIPs, Chemical Laboratory Information Profiles, continued Paraformaldehyde* Pentane Perchloric Acid* Petroleum Ether Phenol* Phenol Red Phenolphthalein* Phenylhydrazine Phosphoric Acid* Phosphorus (red) Phosphorus (white)* Phosphorus Pentoxide* Phosphorus Trichloride Phthalic Acid Phthalic Anhydride Picric Acid* Platinum Potassium* Potassium Bromide Potassium Carbonate Potassium Chlorate Potassium Chloride Potassium Chromate* Potassium Cyanide* Potassium Dichromate* Potassium Ferricyanide Potassium Ferrocyanide Potassium Fluoride Potassium Hydrogen Carbonate Potassium Hydrogen Sulfate Potassium Hydroxide* Potassium Iodate Potassium Iodide Potassium Nitrate* Potassium Nitrite* Potassium Perchlorate* Potassium Periodate* Potassium Permanganate* Potassium Persulfate Potassium Sulfate Potassium Thiocyanate Pyridine Pyrogallic Acid*
Resorcinol Salicylic Acid Selenium(IV) Oxide* Selenium* Silver Silver Acetate Silver Cyanide* Silver Nitrate* Silver Oxide Sodium* Sodium Acetate Sodium Arsenate* Sodium Arsenite* Sodium Azide* Sodium Bromide Sodium Carbonate Sodium Chlorate Sodium Chloride Sodium Chromate* Sodium Cyanide* Sodium Dichromate* Sodium Dihydrogen Phosphate Sodium Ferricyanide Sodium Ferrocyanide Sodium Fluoride Sodium Hydrogen Carbonate Sodium Hydrogen Sulfate Sodium Hydroxide* Sodium Hypochlorite Sodium Iodate Sodium Iodide Sodium Molybdate Sodium Nitrate* Sodium Nitrite* Sodium Oxalate Sodium Perborate Sodium Silicate Sodium Stannate Sodium Sulfate Sodium Sulfide Sodium Sulfite Sodium Tetraborate Sodium Thiocyanate
Sodium Thiosulfate Starch Stearic Acid Strontium Bromide Strontium Carbonate Strontium Chloride Strontium Nitrate Succinic Acid Sucrose Sulfanilic Acid Sulfur Sulfuric Acid* Sulfuric Acid, fuming* Tetrahydrofuran Thioacetamide* Thiourea* Tin Tin(II) Chloride Tin(II) Oxide Tin(IV) Chloride Tin(IV) Oxide Titanium(IV) Oxide Titanium Tetrachloride Toluene o-Toluidine Tributylamine Trichloroacetic Acid Trichlorotrifluoroethane Triethanolamine Triethylamine Triethylene Glycol Trilead Tetraoxide Trisodium Phosphate Turpentine Urea Zinc Zinc Acetate Zinc Bromide Zinc Chloride Zinc Nitrate Zinc Stearate Zirconium(IV) Oxide
*Reagents marked with an asterisk can be more hazardous than those not so identified; see individual CLIPs for details.
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