Laboratory Tips for Organic Students

Organic Lab is the one lab where water can be the death of a reaction. Many students make the mistake of beginning each lab by washing their glassware. Soon, they find out, too much time has been wasted, their glassware is wet and they have no way to dry it. Clean your glassware at the end of a lab period so that it has time to dry for the next lab period.

Always label reagents and flask contents. Many organic liquids are clear and colorless just like water, so are many aqueous solutions such as acids and bases.

Many organics don't mix or dissolve in water and thus require special waste containers. Do not pour organics down the sink!!!!!!

If you think accidents can’t happen to you, here is the result of an accident in an undergraduate organic laboratory at the University of Kentucky. No injuries...but it could have been really bad. More....

Disposal of Laboratory Glassware

Glassware must not be disposed of with normal trash. Building Services Personnel and others have been injured when carrying trash bags with broken glassware in them.

Sharps, including hypodermic needles, syringes, (with or without the attached needle), pasteur pipettes, scalpel blades, blood vials, needles with attached tubing, culture dishes, suture needles, slides, cover slips and other broken or unbroken glass or plasticware that have been in contact with infectious agents or that have been used in animal or human patient care or treatment, at medical, research or industrial laboratories.

Training DVD/VHS:

Laboratory Glassware Safety Training Program