Chemical Disposal Method

Acid Spills (hydrochloric or sulfuric acid):

1.Neutralize spill with sodium bicarbonate/baking soda

2. Wait until bubbling/fizzing has stopped

3. When using a neutralizing spill kit, the kits are buffered and will not have a bubbling action.Be
careful not to over-neutralize

4. Test pH of the spill after the neutralization reaction has stopped with pH paper

5. Once pH is between 6 and 9, the material can be transferred into an appropriate secondary
container for disposal

6. Wipe all surfaces with a sponge and wash all of the material down the sink.

**Some acids cannot be neutralized and will require special procedure for spill clean-up. Examples:
chromic acid and hydrofluoric acid.

Base Spills (Sodium or Potassium hydroxide):

1.Neutralize spill with a DILUTE acid (such as vinegar, 3M HCl, citric acid)

2. Wait until bubbling/fizzing has stopped a. When using a neutralizing spill kit, the kits are buffered and
will not have a bubbling action. Be careful not to over-neutralize

3. Test pH of the spill after the neutralization reaction has stopped with pH paper

4. Once pH is between 6 and 9, the material can be transferred into an appropriate secondary container
for disposal

5. Wipe all surfaces with a sponge and wash all of the material down the sink

Organic Spills : (Acetone, Benzene, Ethylene glycol, Formaldehyde, Methylene chloride,

Perchloroethylene, Toluene, Xylene, 1,3-butadiene )

1. Use an absorbent medium such as sand or vermiculite to absorb the spill and prevent runoff.

2. Transfer the spilled material into an appropriate secondary container.

3. Mark the container with the "Hazardous Waste" label and contact the Environmental Health
Solid Waste: 1. Most solid chemical spills can be swept up and transferred directly to a secondary
container after the spill occurs.

2. Mark the container with a "Hazardous Waste" label and contact the Environmental Health Safety
Office.

Mercury Spills:

1. Mercury spills require special clean up procedures

2. Utilize the special Mercury Spill Kit when dealing with mercury spills. Instructions for clean up are
located on the Mercury Spill Kit container.

3. For broken mercury thermometers, clean up spilled mercury as described above a. and collect
mercury and broken thermometer in a sealable plastic bag for disposal.

4. Contact Environmental Health Safety Office.

** For mercury spills greater than 1 thermometer, contact Campus Police.

Metal Wastes: Solutions containing the following metals cannot go down the sink under any
circumstances: arsenic (As), barium (Ba), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), lead (Pb), mercury
(Hg), molybdenum (Mo), nickel (Ni), selenium (Se), silver (Ag), and zinc (Zn). Special waste containers will
be placed in the lab to collect each type of metal for subsequent disposal by environmental health and
safety personnel.

Neutralization Reactions

The task of any pH adjustment system is to adjust the pH of the process stream into the
defined acceptable discharge range. In the case of an acid neutralization, caustic (NaOH) is
added to the effluent stream to pH Neutralize the solution. This neutralization, or titration can
be expressed as follows:
HCl + NaOH NaCl + H 2 O

In the example shown above hydrochloric acid (HCl) is neutralized with caustic (NaOH) and
yields ordinary table salt (NaCl) and neutral water. NaCl, being very soluble in water,
remains dissolved in solution, and very little or no solids are generated. It is the task of the
pH adjustment system to add just the right amount of caustic to achieve the end point of the
neutralization that is desired. This is not quite as simple as it may seem because of the
logarithmic nature of the pH titration curve (remember the definition of pH above). The
titration curve shown below depicts graphically the neutralization process of HCl with NaOH
as the neutralizing agent.