Dear members,

Happy New Year! I have a few questions for the group on the use of mineral oil bath for organic syntheses. Our researchers swear by them. However, if left unattended on a hot plate, it can cause a fire if the oil overheats. This has happened a few times on our campus.

My questions for the group are as followed:

1.    .What temperature range is normally accepted for oil versus some other medium.< /p>

2.     How long do you use an oil bath before you change the oil, or better yet what factors would dictate that you change the oil.

3.    What safety margin do you set for the rheostat, if the flash point is x do you set the rheostat to x-?. < /p>

Any thoughts or suggestions on this subject would be most welcome. Again, thank you very much for your help.

Best wishes

Yung Morgan, MsPH
Laboratory Safety
Industrial Hygiene Services
Environmental Health and Safety
117 Draper hall
UMASS,Amherst MA 01003
phone (413)  545-2682
Fax  (413) 545-2600
email : pmorgan**At_Symbol_Here**ehs.umass.edu