Please excuse the cross postings.

With National Chemistry Week just around the corner, I am wondering if any of you allow your faculty to perform the "Rainbow Flame Demonstration" using spray bottles?

For this method there are a series of spray bottles, each with its own unique salt solution dissolved in methanol. Each bottle is sprayed at an open flame and you get a nice colorful "WOW!" result as the mist ignites (one spray bottle at a time, not all bottles at once). This would be done in a public space (all viewers seated at least 10 feet away, as per NFPA 45).

My faculty like this method because they say that the sprayed mist poses little risk. I would very much appreciate your comments, and if you do allow some method of the Rainbow Demo then what is your SOP if you don't mind sending (can send offline).

I am very much aware of the recent rainbow accidents, and I also have the ACS "A Safer Rainbow" video, so please don't reply with links to those various accidents. I do not, however, have any links to accidents caused by using this spray bottle method. If you are aware of such links then please do send those. Or, do you consider the spray bottle method to be an acceptable method? My gut tells me that it is not an acceptable method (there seems to be many variables with using spray bottles, including flashback potential), but I will gladly accept the wisdom of the group.

Thanks.

Pat

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Patrick Ceas, Ph.D.

Chemical Hygiene Officer | Environmental Health & Safety

St. Olaf College

Office: 507-786-3560 | Mobile: 507-321-0379

312 Regents Hall of Natural Sciences

1520 St. Olaf Avenue Northfield, MN 55057

ceas**At_Symbol_Here**stolaf.edu

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