Glove Box Safety Glove Box Safety Presented by: Panos Argyropoulos Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Disclaimer • This training is intended as a first point of entry regarding the potential dangers of working in a glovebox and general procedures on how to conduction yourself in a safe manner • This training is intended as an introduction to a glove box, further in-lab training is required • The best resources for questions will be your professor, your lab mates and finally the Health, Safety and Risk team Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Overview • What is a glove box? • Proper practices in a glove box • How to ship in: – Non-hazardous equipment – Volatiles – Chemicals from a manufacturer – Synthesized chemicals • Working with solvents • Emergency situations • Glove box maintenance Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Roles and Responsibilities • Supervisors/Professor – responsible for ensuring compliance with all directives, procedures, standards and guidelines established by the University, their faculty or by government agencies. – responsible for training their students on equipment • Workers/Students – responsible for complying with all directives, procedures and standards established by the University, their faculty or by government agencies. – responsible for conducting themselves in a proper manner to ensure their own safety as well as that of others and must adhere to University procedures and directives on health and safety. Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Why Use a Glove Box? • Handling hazardous material – Air-sensitive – Water-sensitive – Toxic – Biohazard – Radioactive • Handling material that decomposes • Glove boxes mitigate the risk of the hazardous material but it is PRUDENT PRACTICES that assure safety Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca What is a glove box? • A glove box is a sealed container that is designed to allow one to manipulate objects where a separate atmosphere is desired. • Two types of gloveboxes exist: one allows a person to work with hazardous substances; the other allows manipulation of substances that must be contained within a very high purity inert atmosphere Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca How does it work? • The gas in a glovebox is pumped through a series of treatment devices which remove solvents, water and oxygen from the gas to ensure it is an inert environment • The glove box is at a slight positive pressure to ensure no contaminants enter the environment • Gloves are used to manipulate the material inside the glove box – Note that just like disposable gloves, the material must be compatible with the material that is being handled Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Safety Features of a Glove Box • Positive pressure to the atmosphere – Highly reactive materials will not be subjected to the atmosphere but if there is a leak, it’ll be in the lab • Glove boxes will automatically close their valves when there isn’t a proper pressure of compressed gas • If there is an equipment failure and the glove box cannot be refilled with inert gas, the glove box can remain for a few hours to a few days • Moisture and Oxygen sensors • Nitrogen and moisture scrubbers Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Emergency Kits for your Glove Box • Every glove box user should be aware of the location of the following equipment in case the glove box goes down: – Spare fuses – Extra gloves – Nitrogen Cylinder – Regulator – Wrench Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) • Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) – Closed shoes – Buttoned lab coat – Safety goggles Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Emergency Equipment Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Emergency Equipment (cont.) Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Glove Box Introduction Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca General Glove Box Practices • Before beginning in the glove box, ensure hands are dry • Put on disposable gloves or talcum powder (choice as requested by the manager of the glove box) • Inspect the condition of the glove box – Gloves: Are there tears? Are they firm? – Compressed Gas: Are the lines secure? Are there any leaks? When was the regulator/fitting last checked? – Ante-chamber: Are there any products/equipment? – Vacuum Pump: How is the pump oil level? Does it sound like it’s working properly? Are there any leaks? Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca General Glove Box Practices (cont.) • Enter the glove box slowly; if you enter to suddenly, you may rip off the gloves • Use a log book (including Name, Date/Time, Materials etc.) • Turn off the circulation when using harmful solvents and ensure that you purge when the work is done • Maintenance, diligence and proper inspection when working in a glove box will prevent many incidents • Be mindful of the side-products; if the reaction generates a harmful gas, maybe it isn’t the right reaction to be done in the glove box • O2 levels should not be higher than 50 ppm. A quick purge is necessary if the level gets that high. Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Our friend the regulator Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Using the Ante-Chamber • Baring any emergency, the process of bringing material into the glove box is likely the only time you’ll have contaminations • A minimum of three pump down/backfill cycles before bringing anything into the glovebox, and the pressure must go down to <50 mTorr before each backfill. • If there is no manometer, 15 min for general items in the large chamber and 5 minutes for the small. • The screws to the ante chambers need only be made finger tight to a quarter turn more than finger tight. Over tightening when under atmospheric pressure leads to deformation of the port covers and a loss in seal. Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Ante-Chamber Guidelines • Glassware - Glassware should be dried in an oven for at least a few hours before bringing it into the box. If you cannot do this, you can remove much water from the glass by doing a rinse with EtOH or MeOH then hexanes. Flame drying is also an option. • Chemicals – non-volatile solids should be opened and covered with a Kim wipe/rubber band unless packaged under inert atmosphere. Volatile solids and liquids should be transferred to a Shlenk flask, degassed, then brought in under inert atmosphere • Something to avoid bringing into the glove box: cork rings, Styrofoam and other porous materials Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Ante-Chamber Guidelines (cont.) • Porous things should be kept to a minimum and require overnight pump down (i.e. gloves, boxes of Kim wipes, etc.) Label your waste with what is in it and ‘used.’ • There is limited space in the glove box so large equipment (ring stands, lamps, hotplates, etc.) should be kept to a minimum. • Ensure equipment can withstand vacuum conditions • Do not bring rolls of labeling tape or markers into the box – instead use a wax pencil – For markers, drop them through the purge valve or bring it into the ante-chamber by just flushing with N2 and not using the vacuum Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Shipping Into the Glove Box • Shipping into the glove box is the process of bringing supplies from the outside and transporting it into the inert atmosphere of the glove box • Shipping into the glove box is one of the most important skills to learn to do properly – Improper pressurization of supplies may cause an explosion in the ante-chamber – Improper preparation of supplies or rushing the shipping process may cause an introduction of unwanted particulates into the glove box Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Shipping in Non-Hazardous Supplies • Non-Hazardous Supplies includes – Kim wipes/Paper Towel – Pipettes – Glassware (including vials) – Equipment such as hot plates – Markers • For all non-hazardous supplies, put the supplies in the ante-chamber and allow it to pump down overnight to ensure their dryness. Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Working with Solvents • Working in a glove box is very different from working in a fume hood; the choice of experiments and choice of chemicals is important to consider • Consider the solvents that are being used in the glove box and are being brought into the glove box – What are their boiling points? – Are they halogenated? – Could they contain water? • Liquids (either synthesized or commercial), should undergo a "freeze-pump-thaw" procedure to remove any dissolved oxygen. Faculté des sciences | Faculty of Science uOttawa.cascience.uOttawa.ca Shipping in Volatile Chemicals • Not all glove boxes are suitable for having solvents brought in through the ante chamber; it’s best to ask a laboratory manager or a fellow lab mate before bringing in a volatile chemical • Whenever shipping any chemical into the glove box, it is important to look at the characteristics of the chemical – Depending on the boiling point of the chemical, it could evaporate due to the