Submit a Chemistry Incident Report Online: Chemistry Incident Report
Required Safety Training
Anyone who wishes to participate in research in the UW-Madison Department of Chemistry must first complete appropriate safety training. This training may include:
- Chemistry Department in-person or online safety training
- In-person training offered by UW-Madison Environment, Health & Safety (EH&S)
- Lab-specific safety training conducted by your research group’s Chemical Hygiene Officer (CHO), your principal investigator (PI), and/or a designated graduate student or postdoc
Talk to your PI and CHO to find out what safety training is required in your research group.
Safety Training
- Safety Training Requirements for Researchers
- Chemistry Building Evacuation Plan
- Chemistry Policies & Procedures
- Laboratory Waste Disposal in Chemistry
Safety Forms
- Laboratory Emergency Information Form
- Property Loss Report Form
- Undergraduate Research Authorization Form
Special Safety Topics
- Hazards Associated with Laboratory Scale Hydrogenations
- Hot Plate Use and Safety
- Vacuum System and Schlenk Line Safety
- Aqua Regia Safety
- Safe Handling of Cannulas and Needles in Chemistry Laboratories
Lessons Learned at UW-Madison
Resources from Other Universities
- The UC Center for Laboratory Safety
- UC Berkeley Laboratory Safety Manual
- Yale Environmental Health & Safety Lessons Learned
Environmental Health & Safety Training Links
LIFE-THREATENING
Call 911 from any phone
NON LIFE-THREATENING
Call campus police:
(608) 264-2677
A Department of Chemistry incident report MUST be filled out when any safety incident, a near miss, or an unsafe situation occurs.
BUILDING REPAIRS
Call Physical Plant:
(608) 263-3333
After hours, press zero to talk to a live operator.
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Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
When entering any lab in the UW-Madison Chemistry Building, individuals must wear the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) designated for that lab. Individuals entering any research or teaching lab in the Chemistry Building must wear protective eyewear such as lab goggles or lab glasses; closed-toe shoes; and appropriate clothing. The individual in charge of the lab (e.g., principal investigator or lab director) determines the PPE required for each lab.
Download: SOP: Personal Protective Equipment
Safety Training
Anyone who wishes to participate in research in the UW-Madison Department of Chemistry and/or the Chemistry Building (including faculty, staff, and students) must first complete appropriate safety training. This training may include:
- Chemistry Department in-person or online safety training;
- In-person training offered by UW-Madison Environment, Health & Safety (EH&S);
- Lab-specific safety training conducted by the research group’s Chemical Hygiene Officer (CHO), the principal investigator (PI), and/or a graduate student or postdoc designated by the PI.
New researchers must talk to their PI and CHO to find out what safety training is required in the research group they are joining.
Download: SOP: Safety Training
Transporting Chemicals
Secondary containers
When transporting chemicals within the UW-Madison Chemistry Building or from the Chemistry Building to another location, a secondary container must be used to hold the original container at all times. Acceptable secondary containers will be able to contain all of the materials in the event of a spill or breakage of the original container. When purchasing chemicals from the Department of Chemistry Research Storeroom, individuals will not be permitted to leave the Storeroom without a secondary container.
Transporting chemicals in public spaces
Hazardous chemicals must never be left unattended in public spaces during transport. Individuals transporting chemicals through public spaces must be familiar with the material’s hazards and know what to do in case of a spill.
Use of elevators
When transporting chemicals between floors in the Chemistry Building, individuals must use the freight elevator whenever possible. If the freight elevator is unavailable or impractical to use, individuals may use regular elevators when they are not crowded. Stairs should only be used if elevators are unavailable.
Personal protective equipment (PPE)
Wear appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) when transporting chemicals. Protective eyewear and lab coats should be worn if transporting hazardous chemicals. Keep gloves ready in a lab coat pocket during transport but do not wear gloves while transporting chemicals through public spaces and opening doors.
Download: SOP: Transporting Chemicals
Pyrophoric Chemical Manipulation
Prior to beginning your experiment, read the pdf document above and complete the checklist for working with pyrophoric chemicals detailed in the document.
Download: SOP: Pyrophoric Chemical Manipulation
Base Bath
Read this standard operating procedure on preparation, use and disposal of base baths.
Chemical Safety,
Information and Resources
Prescription Safety Glasses
Prescription safety glasses are provided by the department to those who need them. To obtain prescription safety glasses, follow these steps:
- Obtain a current valid eyeglasses prescription from your eye doctor. The department does not pay for eye exams.
- To order prescription safety glasses, complete the application and process steps listed on Occupational Medicine’s PPE page. On the Eyewear Application, leave the Billing information blank, and list Char Horsfall (chorsfall@wisc.edu) as the financial contact.
Pistoia Alliance Chemical Safety Library
The Pistoia Alliance Chemical Safety Library (CSL) provides crowd-sourced data on hazardous reactions, used to alert scientists to potentially dangerous experiments.
Bretherick’s Handbook of Reactive Chemical Hazards
Bretherick’s Handbook of Reactive Chemical Hazards, Eighth Edition presents the latest updates on the unexpected, but predictable, loss of containment and explosion hazards from chemicals and their admixtures and actual accidents. The extensively cross-referenced book enables readers to avoid explosion and loss of containment of chemicals.
Photography/Video Policy
- For any photo or video in a research or teaching laboratory in the Chemistry Building, as well as any time one is working with chemicals, all people in the photos/videos must wear safety goggles or safety glasses and appropriate personal protective equipment.
- All photographers and videographers must wear safety goggles or safety glasses and appropriate personal protective equipment while shooting/filming in a Chemistry Building research or teaching laboratory.
- The photographer/videographer must have permission from the corresponding faculty principal investigator to shoot/film in their laboratories. When filming in a teaching laboratory, the photographer/videographer must have permission from the corresponding laboratory director.
- Photographers and videographers must ask principal investigators, instructors, or Chemical Hygeine Officers to assess the area so that private, embargoed, or proprietary information is not captured in the image or video.
Building Info
Under the direction of the Building Manager, Building Services oversees all of the physical spaces in the Chemistry Building.
UW-Madison Police
The UW-Madison Police Department is a full-service law enforcement agency on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus in Madison, WI.
UW-Madison Environment, Health & Safety
Environment, Health & Safety works to ensure the health and safety of people, buildings, and the natural environment at UW-Madison and associated facilities.
Safety Committee Contacts
John F. Berry
Position title: Lester R. McNall Professor of Chemistry
Email:
berry
Phone: 608.262.7534
Heike Hofstetter
Position title: Director NMR Lab - CIC
Email:
hofstetter
Phone: 608.262.7536
Tilak Chandra
Position title: Chemical Safety Specialist
Email:
tilak.chandra
Phone: 608.622.9761
Submit an Incident Report
Incident Report
An incident report must be filled out whenever a safety incident, a near miss, or an unsafe situation occurs. Please complete all fields. Use "N/A" if a field does not apply to your circumstance.