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Previous by Date: Subject: [DCHAS-L] Are chemical engineering and biochemistry their own disciplines? Date: Thursday, March 21, 2019 at 7:57:12 AM Author: DCHAS Membership Chair <membership**At_Symbol_Here**DCHAS.ORG> |
Next by Date: Subject: [DCHAS-L] Chemical Safety headlines (14 articles) Date: Fri, 22 Mar 2019 07:46:35 -0400 Author: DCHAS Membership Chair |
Excerpt below; complete column at
http://nstacommunities.org/blog/2019/03/19/addressing-electrical-hazards-in-the-lab/
Addressing Electrical Hazards in the Lab
Accidents in the lab involving electricity can produce fire, smoke, electrocutions, and explosions. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), ‰??electrical equipment shall be free from recognized hazards that are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to employees.‰?? This blog post describes the steps teachers must take to prevent such hazards from arising in their science classrooms and laboratories.
Preventing electric shock and electrocution
Unfortunately, many people believe circuit breakers protect lab occupants. In fact, circuit breakers only protect the science labs and building, not the teachers or students. Breakers are designed to prevent electrical fires by shutting off the electrical flow if too much electricity tries to move through the circuit‰??s wires. An excessive amount of electricity coupled with resistance may lead to a fire.
The human body is a poor conductor of electricity. Even so, if a person were to come in contact with a wet surface and an electric current of as little as one-fifth of an amp, then that person could receive a harmful shock. Installing a ground-fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) in the lab can protect students and teachers from electric shock and electrocution. This device constantly compares current flowing from the hot wire to the neutral wire. If the GFCI senses an imbalance of approximately 5 milliamps in the current flow, the current will stop flowing in less than a second.
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