About This Archive  | DCHAS-L 2012 Index   | DCHAS-L Yearly Index
person wearing a disposable face shield and surgical style mask

Check out Safety Emporium for your N95, N99, and face shield needs.

Previous by Date:
Subject: Re: [DCHAS-L] water aspirator - vacuum question
Date: December 4, 2012 12:43:15 PM EST
Author: "Kennedy, Sheila" 		Next by Date:
Subject: Re: [DCHAS-L] water aspirator - vacuum question
Date: December 4, 2012 12:52:01 PM EST
Author: Rita Kay Calhoun

From: Alex Moretto <moretto**At_Symbol_Here**CHEM.UCSB.EDU>
Subject: Re: [DCHAS-L] water aspirator - vacuum question
Date: December 4, 2012 12:47:00 PM EST
Reply-To: DCHAS-L <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**MED.CORNELL.EDU>
Message-ID: <CAA4EBLvfWs5hw23P=k0-xeZGYOzwHH_42kQTYnR8co6yBpyyfQ**At_Symbol_Here**mail.gmail.com>


Hi

I ama  PhD Chemist with 15 years experience in industry, and who now works at a major research university.

I have not seen an aspirator used in almost 2 decades.  They waste huge amounts of water and pollute the waste water stream.  The standard in industry and in the academic groups where I currently work is to use diaphragm pumps.  House vac is OK as long as there is an effective trap between the experimental set up and the house vac. 

Thanks

Alex
-- 
Alessandro F. Moretto, Ph.D.
Chemical Laboratory Safety Officer
MLPS/COE
2660 Physical Sciences Building North
U.C. Santa Barbara
(Tel.)805-893-4930 (Fax)805-893-4120


On 12/4/2012 5:27 AM, Kim Auletta wrote:
I need the expert opinion of chemists working with 21st century ideas!

I was in a lab yesterday in Chemistry that is run by a PI older than the hills. His lab is filtering powders and solvents using the sink aspirator. All of the tygon tubing (both sides of vacuum & flasks) is discolored and shows signs of deterioration. They say this tubing is only looking that way because its really old. There was a flask for trap set up between the sample & the sink. I tried to explain that this set up may be allowing solvents to go into the water & down the drain. They tried in their best "I'm the seasoned PhD Chemist and you're not" voices to tell me it was ok and that there was no other way to do this and that everyone, including in industry, does it this way. Really? 

So - my questions to all of you enlightened chemists:
1. Do you still use the sink aspirator/vacuum?
2. If so, what kind of trap do you use to prevent solvent or other hazardous material (liquid & vapor) from going down the drain?
3. If you no longer use this filter/vacuum set up, what do you use?

thanks for your help!

Kim Gates Auletta
Laboratory Safety Specialist
Environmental Health & Safety
Stony Brook University
Stony Brook, NY 11794-6200
kim.auletta**At_Symbol_Here**stonybrook.edu
631-632-3032
FAX: 631-632-9683
EH&S Web site: http://www.stonybrook.edu/ehs/lab/



-- 
Alessandro F. Moretto, Ph.D.
Chemical Laboratory Safety Officer
MLPS/COE
2660 Physical Sciences Building North
U.C. Santa Barbara
(Tel.)805-893-4930 (Fax)805-893-4120

Previous post   |  Top of Page   |   Next post


The content of this page reflects the personal opinion(s) of the author(s) only, not the American Chemical Society, ILPI, Safety Emporium, or any other party. Use of any information on this page is at the reader's own risk. Unauthorized reproduction of these materials is prohibited. Send questions/comments about the archive to secretary@dchas.org.
The maintenance and hosting of the DCHAS-L archive is provided through the generous support of Safety Emporium.