MULUNGUSHI UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF NATURAL AND APPLIED SCIENCES

LABORATORY ORIENTATION OF SAFETY- RULES, GOOD LABORATORY PRACTICES AND THE

MICROSCOPE

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LABORATORY ORIENTATION OF SAFETY- RULES, GOOD LABORATORY PRACTICES AND THE
OBSERVATION OF HAZARD SAFETY SYMBOLS

1. Always wear acid proof laboratory coats, safety goggles, and leather closed safety shoes in
the laboratory anytime handling chemicals, boiling water and chemical liquids and when
heating substances. Note: Sharp instruments should be handled with protective gloves to
avoid cutting yourself in the laboratory.

2. Tie back long hair and loose clothing when performing laboratory experiments involving
open flames because if this is not done long hair and loose hair can catch fire and make you
and all the lab to go in flame.

3. Those who like putting on chains and jewelries before coming to do lab activities remove
them from you.

4. Don’t touch, taste, or smell, any questionable chemicals in the laboratory without the
instructor or laboratory technician’s permission. It can result in chemical contaminations on
you.

5. Do not do experiments that are not assigned to you by your instructor and the laboratory
technician. Make sure that you only do only procedures given to you by your instructor. And
do not work in the laboratory by yourself.

6. Before entering the laboratory, it is important to familiarize yourself with the experimental
procedure and safety precautions that are involved with the experiment to be done to avoid
accidents. Be aware of the potential hazards that are over the procedure and the material
required for the experiment in order to avoid accidents.

7. Before you start operating in the laboratory, make sure that you put on personal protective
equipment that have been instructed to you by the instructor in order to avoid accidents.

8. Always wear a lab coat (acid proof), safety goggles and closed safety shoes whenever you
are in the laboratory to avoid your clothing, skin and eyes from getting damaged by
laboratory chemicals.

9. Before any lab work begins, tie back long hair, roll up loose sleeves and button up your
laboratory coat to avoid accident and getting contaminated.

10. As the instructor and the students whenever you are working in the laboratory, you should
know location of all the safety and emergency equipment that are used in the laboratory. If
you don’t know ask your instructor where the location of the nearest eyewash, stations,
safety blanket, safety shower, fire extinguishers, first aid kit and chemical spill kit.

11. Report any accident, incident or hazard no matter how trivial they may be to your instructor
for first aid purposes.

12. In case of fire in the laboratory, immediately report or alert the instructor and leave the
laboratory after as soon as possible.

13. Do not play around in the laboratory. Be aware of your fellow students’ safety as well as
your own safety in the laboratory.

14. Never should you consume food or drink in the laboratory. Avoid storing food in the
laboratory for they can be contaminated with poisonous chemicals.

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 15. Treat all laboratory animals and other organisms with caution and respect so as for them not
to harm you.

16. Clean your working benches before and after conducting experiments. Have only books and
other materials that are needed to conduct the experiment in the laboratory. Broken glass,
chemicals and other laboratory waste products should be disposed of in separate special
containers. Make sure you dispose of wastes as directed by your instructors or laboratory
technician.

17. Before leaving the laboratory, wash your hands with soap and water to avoid getting
contaminated with chemicals.

List of Student Laboratory Code of Conduct

1. Students should behave in a mature and responsible manner at all times in the biology
laboratory or wherever chemicals are stored or handled. Inappropriate behavior in the
laboratory is prohibited.

2. Students should follow all verbal and written instructions carefully. If you are not sure of the
procedure of the experiment, ask your laboratory technician/instructor for help before
proceeding to the next level as this can help to prevent accidents.

3. As a student, you should not touch any equipment or chemicals in the biology lab unless
specifically instructed to do so by your instructor/technician.

4. Students are not allowed to eat, drink, apply cosmetics, or chew gum in the laboratory.
Wash hands thoroughly after participating in any laboratory activities.

5. You should only perform experiments that have been authorized to you by your instructor or
laboratory technician.

6. Students should receive training related to the locations and operating procedures of all
applicable safety laboratory equipment and personal protective equipment (PPE).

Handling Equipment & Chemicals

1. Dispose properly all chemical wastes, as directed by the laboratory technician/instructor.

2. Never enter or remain in a science laboratory storage rooms, preparation areas, and main
biology lab unless accompanied by a laboratory technician or a designated school employee.

3. While operating in the lab, students should wear approved eye protection whenever
handling hazardous chemicals such as acid.

4. Wear always-appropriate personal protective equipments such as lab coats, safety closed
shoes at all times when working in the laboratory and avoid wearing loose or flammable
clothing. In addition, make sure that, when working in the lab, long hair should be tied back.

5. Students should report any incident (including all spills, breakages, or other releases of
hazardous materials) to the laboratory technician or laboratory instructor immediately; no
matter how insignificant the incidence may appear. This should include all injuries, such as
cuts, burns, breathing problems, or other signs of physical harm. It is also encouraged that,
students should report even incidents that do not result in physical harm, so that lessons can
be learned from those near misses.

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 6. Students should never remove chemicals and equipments, and supplies from the laboratory
storage area and then take them to their area homes, as it is very dangerous.

7. Carefully examine all lab equipments in the lab before starting using them, and report any
broken or defective equipment to the laboratory technician/instructor immediately.

Heating Substances

1. Never reach over an exposed flame or hot plate or even leave a flame/hot plate unattended.

2. Students should never point a test tube or any reaction vessel of any type toward another
person this is very dangerous and hazardous.

Chemical Safety

1. Do not touch, taste, or smell, any questionable chemicals in the laboratory without the
instructor or laboratory technician’s permission. It can result in chemical contaminations on
you or death.

2. Do not inhale fumes directly from the container. Only as instructed by the instructor or
laboratory technician, gently wave your hand over the opening of a container toward your
nose and keep all lids closed on chemicals containers.

3. Remember to dispose of all chemicals in their designated containers as instructed by your

4. In case of spillages, pour acids and bases over a sink and wash them off.

5. Always never pour water into an acid, always pour the acid into the water to avoid acid
splashing onto your skin or eyes.

6. Do not eat or drink in the laboratory or eat from any laboratory glassware, as it is not a safe
practice. This can result in contaminating yourself with dangerous chemicals.

7. Do not use broken glassware apparatus, because cuts and scratches can occur that can
result in chemical contaminations of yourself.

General Safety Rules

1. Read all directions for an experiment and follow the directions exactly as they are written. If
in doubt, ask the instructor.

2. Do not perform experiments that you are not authorized by your instructor laboratory
technician. Always obtain permission before experimenting on your own.

3. Do not handle any laboratory equipment unless you have specific permission from your
instructor.

4. Take care not to spill any chemicals or materials in the lab and If spills occur, ask your
instructor immediately about the proper cleaning-up procedure.

5. Dispose of all material according to the laboratory technician’s instructions. Never empty
materials into the sink or trash can if you are not instructed to do so.

6. Never eat in the laboratory. Wash your hands before and after each experiment and
whenever you are leaving the lab.

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 7. Never horse play or run in the laboratory. This will result in accidents. If found it will result
into dismissal from the lab.

8. Know the location and function of all laboratory safety equipment.

First Aid

1. Report all accidents to the laboratory technician or instructor immediately for first aids.

2. Apply direct pressure to any severe cuts to stop the bleeding of a wound

3. Know the location of the first aid kit in the lab.

4. Know the location and use of the fire blanket and fire extinguishers.

Heating and Fire Safety

1. Never reach across an open flame.

2. Know how to light and extinguish the Bunsen burner, never leave a burner unattended.

3. Do not point the chemical test tube or bottle that you are heating to yourself or to others
when it is getting heated because chemicals can rapidly boil out of the container.

4. Do not heat a liquid in a closed container for it can explode with the increase of pressure.

5. use a clamp or tongs when handling hot containers to avoid heating your hands

Electrical Safety

1. Make sure electronic equipments are off when plugging or unplugging from an outlet.

2. Make sure the work area for electrical equipment is clean and dry.

3. Do not “daisy-chain” electrical power cords.

4. Inspect power cords for cuts or abrasions that revel bare copper wire.

5. Be very aware of the location of power cords to avoid tripping and damage to persons.

End of Laboratory Activity Rules

1. Clean all laboratory equipments, apparatus and benches and return them to their
designated locations.

2. Unplug and store properly any electrical device.

3. Extinguish all candles, burners and turn off all gas lines to the Bunsen burners.

4. Finally Wash your hands to be free of any possible contaminants and leave the laboratory.

Selected Hazard Safety Symbols and Their Meaning

In a laboratory environment, there are safety symbols like the ones showing below. These symbols
are one of the essential component of safety practices in the lab. The meaning of these symbols, and
the possible hazards or dangers that they indicate in the laboratory as well as the kind of safety
requirements and recommendation that they display, makes them important to promote a safe
working environment that is free from accidents. As a result, students have been advised to obey

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these symbols whenever handling certain laboratory activities. Following below are the selected
safety symbols and the hazard that they represent.

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LAB 1: SAFETY AWARENESS AND SAFE PRACTICES IN BIOLOGY LABORATORY
Aim

• To understand lab safety and its important safety procedures that can be used to prevent
laboratory injuries, illnesses, fatalities, and accidents, as well as knowing lab safety symbols
and their application to promote safe working environment.

Introduction

An essential safety part of any biology laboratory is working in the lab while at the same time
following all the prescribed safety rules and conducting yourself in a safe and accepted standard way
that will protect you and your friends from all hazardous scenes and accidents.

Although some equipments, chemicals and specimen in a lab look good when observing them, it is
important to know that, some of them are dangerous to be working with, and as such, they need to
be satisfied safe before using them. Note as well that, in lab, accidents do not just happen, but
instead they are caused by carelessness, improper and unsafe handling of equipment or
inappropriate and unsafe behavior. Most of the lab work you will be doing or conducting need to be
satisfied safe from any possible hazards and contaminations that can result in accidents. In this
practical activity, you will be learning on how to apply biology safety techniques by you actively
conducting and observing safety rules, as well as understanding safety symbols, and pictures that are
used to promote safety in a lab. In addition, you will also learn how to prevent accidents and have an
environment that is free of accidents. In this case, you will review some safety guidelines, safety
symbols, pictures and then become familiar with the location of all safety equipments in the lab.

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Apparatus/Materials

a. Laboratory manual, lab safety equipment (for demonstration)

b. Laboratory safety acid proof coat, safety goggles and shoes.

Safety Activity Part A: Basic Rules of Safety

1. Hint: Before coming to the laboratory, carefully study the lab safety rules and study the
hazard safety symbols in the laboratory manual.

2. Before entering the lab, make sure that, you have put on your personal protective
equipments (P.P.E). No P.P.E not allowed doing the lab activity into the laboratory.

3. Now settle yourself comfortably safe with your pens, pencils and plain papers with your
P.P.E well equipped on you.

4. Then on your white plain paper, list down the number of basic safety rules that have been
listed in the manual and which you have studied (which can qualify you to be operating and
work in the laboratory safely).

Safety Activity Part B: Safety Symbols

5. Study and draw the safety symbols displayed in the laboratory as well as those given in the
laboratory handout or the entire laboratory environment.

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 6. Review each of the symbols drawn and then describe what each of the symbols means to
the lab safety.

7. Besides each drawings of the symbols, indicate in writing the meaning of each of the symbol
drawn and its use in the lab.

Safety Activity Part C: Sub-Standard Practices

8. Next, look at each of the drawings of pictures below (A, B, C and D) and then explain why the
activities displayed by those pictures are unsafe for the laboratory activities and the people
who are working in the lab.

9. After looking at the pictures above and studying them, discuss what can be done to control
or eliminate such unsafe scenes displayed by the pictures above, so as for you to prevent
accidents from happening in a laboratory.

10. Analyze and give solutions on what should be done to the pictures above so that a safer or
standard practice is achieved in a lab.

Safety Activity Part D: Emergence Equipment

11. After that, then look at the safety equipments below.

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 • Discuss where you think the equipment displayed above can be used and also give reasons
why it is important to have such kinds of equipment in the biology laboratory.

Safety Activity Part E: Personal Protective Equipments (PPE)

12. Look at the pictures showing below;

• State the collectively name for the pictures above and state why the equipments are
important to be used in any laboratory.

Safety Activity Part F

13. Look at the equipment below:

• State the reason why it is advisable to clean your hands with soap after touching and using it,
even if by appearance it is looking to be clean and attractive with all its beautifulness parts
displayed. Give reasons for your answer.

Task

 Write a full laboratory report and discuss it in detail over what you have achieved during
safety practical orientation of working safely in a lab.