Safe Handling of Solvents

Information, instruction and training. An important element in the safe handling of solvents is the information, instruction and training given to personnel involved in their use. These three components may be summarised as ... 

This comprehensive reference book on organic solvents examines the physical and chemical properties, toxicities, and uses of solvents used in the chemical and related process industries. Environmental concerns and safe handling of solvents are also examined. The term solvent may be defined ... 

The isolated solid is a very shock- and friction-sensitive explosive [1], but the preparation and safe handling of dilute solutions in solvents other than ether have been described [2], The need to use appropriate techniques and precautions when using iodine azide as a reagent is stressed [3], The purer the more explosive explosive properties are characterised (lead-block test, etc.) in a footnote to [4],... 

HCN is the most preferred cyanide source in cyanohydrin synthesis. Besides HCN, several different cyanide sources, like potassium cyanide, are being used in biotransformation. Alternative methods for the safe handling of cyanides on a laboratory scale are, for instance, to use cyanide salts in solution. These solutions can be acidified and used as the aqueous layer in two-phase systems or the HCN can be extracted into the organic layer with the desired solvent for reactions in an organic phase. After the reaction, excess cyanide can readily be destroyed with iron(II) sulfate, or iron(III) chloride or bleach. Cyanide can also be presented in the form of organic cyano, such as acetone cyanohydrin [46] or cyanoformates. However, as claimed by Effenberger, some results could not be reproduced [47]. 

Safety. Solvents with low potential for fire and reactive chemistry hazards are preferred as inherently safe solvents. In all cases, solvents must be used with a full awareness of potential hazards and in a manner consistent with measures needed to avoid hazards. For information on the safe use of solvents and their potential hazards, see Sec. 23, Safety and Handling of Hazardous Materials. Also see Growl and Louvar, Chemical Process Safety Fundamentals with Applications (Prentice-Hall, 2001) Yaws, Handbook of Chemical Compound Data for Process Safety (Elsevier, 1997) Lees, Lo.ss Prevention in the Process Industries (Butterworth, 1996) and Bretherick s Handbook of Reactive Chemical Hazards, 6th ed., Urben and Pitt, eds. (Butter-worth-Heinemann, 1999). 

The fact that fluoride is a poor leaving group in aliphatic nucleophilic substitutions and the high volatility of fluoroaliphatic compounds are the keys to the Finkelstein synthesis of alkyl fluorides. An alkyl iodide, bromide, or tosylate is heated in a polar solvent vith an alkali fluoride and the volatile alkyl fluoride is removed by distillation during the reaction [30] (Scheme 2.11). For safe handling of primary alkyl fluorides it must be kept in mind that the even-membered compounds of this series are toxic, because they can be oxidatively metabolized to the poisonous fluoroacetate [31]. 

Safe handling procedures are covered in detail in the section on Safe Handling of Vapor Degreasing Solvents (p. 23)."... 

Safety. Distillation of solvents involves the safe handling of large amounts of vapour that may be toxic, explosive, flammable or strong-smeUing. Some plants may not be able to cope with such material satisfactorily and may have difficulty in getting a site licence. 

A prerequisite for the safe handling of a chemical is a detailed knowledge of its properties. The transfer of adequate information between supphers and users of a chemical is essential, and in this transfer solvent recoverers will be involved as providers and recipients. 

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