Identification of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
Maintain
laboratory safety
Identification
of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
According to the UK regulations, personal protective
equipment refers to any equipment that is meant to be worn and utilized by the
person at work protecting him/her from any health risk thus acting as a
protective barrier.
Protective equipment needs to meet the following
requirements:
Ø Provide
maximum comfort and minimum weight compatible with the protective efficiency to
reduce any probability of accidents and cause injury.
Ø Provide
adequate protection from the hazards to which the workers will be exposed
Ø Durable
Ø Well
fitted so as to reduce incidences of making mistakes or loss of concentration.
Ø Should
not interfere with any movement.
Ø Offer
attractiveness or appeal in appearance.
Ø Should
be suited with the environmental/working conditions.
Ø Clean
and functional
Ø Being
suitable for disinfection.
a)
Face
and eye protection
PPEs meant for face and eye protect against hazards
such as:
Ø Physical
hazards: flying chips, shards from grinders, mills, power saws, drill presses,
lathes; explosives
Ø Chemical
hazards: chemical splashes, sprays/aerosols, cryogenic material
Ø Biological
hazards: injurious, non-ionizing radiations or glaring. Also, it can protect
against biological hazards such as infectious material, blood droplets.
Ø Ionizing
radiations/radiant energy : laser
i.
Non-vented
safety glasses
Safety glasses protect the eyes from objects in
motion and not useful against splashes or vapor. It may be used alongside a
side shield to protect the other areas.
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ii.
Indirect
vented safety goggles.
These are chemical splashes goggles that protect against
flying objects / projectiles, sprays and impact. The present vents allow only
air entry and not liquids.
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iii.
Directed
vented safety goggles
They are designed with side perforations around it
allowing entry of air; useful for protection against projectiles and not
splash/vapor.
iv.
Face
shield
Its purpose is to protect the face and can be used
alongside safety goggles. It is used when there is a high likelihood of a
splash, removing hot liquids from an autoclave or working with highly corrosive
chemicals.
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v.
Shaded
/ tinted eye or face protection
Commonly used for protection against radiant energy
sources from arc and gas welding, soldering and brazing, laser, ultraviolet,
and infrared. The color of the shade depends on type of radiant energy, the
wavelength of the laser, etc. the kind and color of safety protection will
vary. When choosing the correct eye protection, take into account the optical
density (OD) needed since the higher the OD, the lower the light transmittance.
N/B: Individuals using corrective spectacles and
required to wear eye protection have the option of: wearing safety spectacles
with protective lenses providing optical correction, goggles worn over
corrective spectacles without disturbing the adjustment of the spectacles; or
goggles that incorporate corrective lenses mounted behind the protective
lenses.
Care
and maintenance
Broken, severely scratched or pitted lenses of the goggles/glasses
and worn-out elastic headbands that hold the eye protectors should be replaced.
Cleaning and disinfection of the eye and face
protectors should be done regularly.
Proper storage when not in use: in a clean, dust
free place.
b)
Hand
protection
Gloves are used in hand protection. Often, the glove
type used ought to match with the type of chemical used by the personnel.
Glove
types:
Selection of a glove type and material depends on
the:
Type
of exposure: incidental contact where there is
little or no direct contact with the hazardous material or extended contact.
Nature
of hazard: chemical type, temperature extreme properties,
physical hazards, pH, toxicity and infectious properties.
i.
Latex gloves
These are the most commonly used gloves with the
following applications:
ü Handling accidental spills, splashes,
overspray
ü Handling infectious agents that require
barrier protection in medical/veterinary setups
ü To prevent contamination of materials during
handling e.g. biological matter
ü Cleaning the working area
However they are not suitable for handling corrosive
chemicals. Due to allergenicity of latex, hypoallergenic non-powdered gloves
can be used instead. It is used at incidental contact instances and cannot be
reused (disposable). Also, it is hard to detect any puncture holes.
ii.
Nitrile gloves
The nitrile gloves can be used in the following
applications (extended contact):
ü Handling
highly contaminated materials, chemicals or other hazardous substance
ü Need
for physical protection from temperature extremes or sharp/piercing objects
The light weight type can be a useful substitute for
individuals that are allergenic to latex in latex gloves. It is used for
general purposes, chemically resistant as it works well with solvents, oils,
greases and some acids/alkali. It can be disposed or reused/ extended contact
and clearly shows any presence of tears/breaks.
Good gloving practices:
Double gloving: wearing two pairs of gloves to offer
extra protection. When the outer glove starts to degrade, one can tear it and
continue with the inner glove. Moreover, one can ensure the outer glove is
heavier and thicker than the inner glove. Another measure is to use gloves of
different materials especially when handling hazardous material.
Care
and maintenance
For reusable gloves/extended contact, check for the
following:
Check the gloves for:
ü Rips
or punctures before and after each use
ü Prior
contamination
ü Signs
of color or texture degradation)
ü Replace
gloves as soon as signs of degradation appear.
ü Wash
after removal and air dry in the laboratory.
ü Consider
wearing inner surgical gloves for extra protection.
For disposable gloves, check for the following:
ü Check for rips or punctures before use.
ü Remove and replace gloves immediately with new
ones when a chemical spills or splashes on them.
ü Never wash or reuse disposable gloves.
ü Always remove glove
before touching common objects such as doorknobs, phones, or elevator buttons.
c)
Protective
clothing
General considerations for material of protective
clothing:
ü
Specially
treated fabric that is fire resistant, protects against cuts and bruises
ü
Leather
material protects against dry heat while rubber is active against acids and
chemicals
ü
Paper
like material protects against dusty setups
Lab
coats
. The aim of using laboratory coats:
• Protection
of skin and personal clothing from incidental contact and small splashes.
• Prevent
the spread of contamination outside the lab (provided they are not worn outside
the lab).
• Acts
as a removable barrier in the event of an incident involving a spill or splash
of hazardous substances.
Flame resistant test: the “flame resistant” refers
to the characteristic of a fabric that causes it not to burn in air. The
testing criteria involves applying an open flame to the bottom edge of a strip
of fabric in a test chamber for 12 seconds and then looking at char length,
after flame, and after glow, testing the self-extinguishing properties of the
fabric. The flame resistance test criteria were intended to simulate
circumstances of a flash fire, or electric arc flash, not a chemical fire.
Characteristics of a suitable lab coat: presence of
tight cuffs, snap closures on the front and proper fit.
d)
Ear
protection
Ear protection can be achieved by use of ear muffs
and earplugs. They work by reducing the noise energy and in turn prevent damage
to the inner ear.
Study questions
1. Identify
the photos, advantages and disadvantages of the following types of gloves:
Butyl rubber
Neoprene
Polyvinyl chloride
Polyvinyl alcohol
Stainless steel
Cryogenic resistant
material leather
2. State
any four types of materials used in making lab coats.
APPENDIX
Lab coat types and characteristics
Material |
Characteristics |
Polyester/Cotton
Blend |
Non-flame
resistant May
be chemical resistant Light
weight Breathable Used
in clinical environment and laboratory dealing biological materials |
80/20
or 65/35 or 40/60 ratio. |
Limited
chemical resistant property |
100%
Cotton |
Not
fluid resistant thus requires a laboratory apron Light
weight Breathable |
FR
treated materials (either 100 % Cotton or primarily cotton treated with flame
retardant) |
More
resistant to solvents Useful
in a lab setting against fire hazards |
Polypropylene
lab coat |
Non
chemical or flame resistant. Useful
for protection against dirt, grime, dry particulates in relatively non-
hazardous environment such as animal handling and clean rooms. |
Dupont
Nomex |
Expensive Flame
resistant Used
in petrochemical industry |
Glove types and characteristics
Type |
Characteristics |
Latex |
Used
for incidental contact Good for biological and water-based materials but poor
for organic solvents Little chemical protection. Can puncture holes Can cause or trigger latex allergies
|
Nitrile |
Used
for incidental/extended contact Good for solvents, oils, greases, and some acids and
bases. Clear indication of tears and breaks. Good alternative for those with latex allergies
|
Butyl |
Used
for extended contact Good
for ketones and esters but poor for gasoline and aliphatic, aromatic, and
halogenated hydrocarbons.
|
Neoprene |
Good
for acids, bases, alcohols, fuels, peroxides, hydrocarbons, and phenols but poor
for halogenated and aromatic hydrocarbons.
|
Poly
vinyl alcohol |
Good
for aromatic and chlorinated solvents but poor for water-based solutions |
Poly
vinyl chloride |
Good
for acids, bases, oils, fats, peroxides, and amines. Resistant to abrasions. Poor for most
organic solvents |
Viton |
Good
for chlorinated and aromatic solvents. Good resistance to cuts and abrasions.
Poor for ketones. |
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