[labnetwork] Response procedures for unknown odors in the lab?

[Hathaway, Malcolm R]

Hi Ryan,

Here at Harvard CNS, we don't have a specific response plan for an "unknown odor".  We have ambient gas sensors for all of the toxic gases that we use, and flow sensors for the fume hood exhaust, both of which trigger cleanroom evacuations as necessary.

However, when we do encounter an unknown odor, we pursue it vigorously, to make sure it is not a sign of trouble.

For chemical spills, even of relatively benign materials, our protocol is to evacuate the cleanroom if any detectable odor is noted during or after cleanup, even if hand-held VOC sensors don't sense anything.  The reason for this is to prevent potential exposures to our more sensitive/vulnerable users (pregnant women, etc).

Typical issues have involved photoresist trash bags (which we now double-bag in front of a fume hood to minimize odors).  One of the more tricky ones to isolate was when someone was baking resist on full wafers, in an unvented oven outside the photo bay.  Took us quite a while to isolate that one.


Mac Hathaway
Safety Officer
Senior Process and Systems Engineer
Harvard Center for Nanoscale Systems
11 Oxford St.
Cambridge, MA  02138
617-495-9012


On 7/3/2019 1:43 PM, Ryan R Anderson wrote:
Hi everyone,

I am curious to find out about what response procedures people might have in place if users/staff encounter an unknown odor in the cleanroom (cleanroom evacuation, full building evacuation, how to reenter, etc.?).  If anyone can share an overview of your procedures or any information regarding actual incidents involving unknown odors and methods to safely determine the source of the odor that would be great.

Thanks

Ryan Anderson
Manager, Center for Nano-MicroManufacturing
1209 Kemper Hall
University of California at Davis
One Shields Avenue
Davis, CA 95616
Phone: 530-601-3943
Email: rrand at ucdavis.edu<mailto:rrand at ucdavis.edu>
https://cnm2.ucdavis.edu/






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