Commentary
Fire, Water, and Soot—A Cautionary Tale
Abstract
A fire in an organic chemistry laboratory caused serious damage to a large part of the Chemistry and Biochemistry area. The fire is believed to have been caused by a buildup of flammable vapors that were ignited by a drying oven. Hot weather, poor air circulation, and ductless fume hoods may have contributed to conditions favorable to initiating the fire. The volume of flammable solvents stored in the laboratory enhanced the heat and extent of the fire. Fire safety doors and closed storage cabinets helped to limit the spread of the fire, though damage from water and soot was extensive.
Keywords (Audience):
High School / Introductory ChemistryKeywords (Domain):
Safety / HazardsKeywords (Feature):
CommentaryKeywords (Subject):
Laboratory Equipment / ApparatusCiting Articles
Citation data is made available by participants in CrossRef's Cited-by Linking service. For a more comprehensive list of citations to this article, users are encouraged to perform a search in SciFinder.
This article has been cited by 1 ACS Journal articles (1 most recent appear below).

Safety Pays
John W. MooreJournal of Chemical Education2001 78 (1), 7Safety Pays
John W. MooreJournal of Chemical Education2001 78 (1), 7Importance of safety in the classroom and laboratory.
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History
- Received: August 03, 2009
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