US EPA

3626442 

Book/Book Chapter 

Teratogenic chemicals in undergraduate general chemistry laboratories 

Kolb, DK 

1988 

Elsevier 

Amsterdam, Netherlands 

Teratogens: Chemicals which cause birth defects 

31 

247-255 

English 

10.1016/S0166-1116(09)70070-6 

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166111609700706
Exit
 

has other version or edition 1010240 Teratogenic chemicals in undergraduate chemistry laboratories

This chapter outlines the teratogenic chemicals that might have adverse effects on undergraduate students who happened to be expectant mothers. Twenty potentially teratogenic chemicals are listed. The ones that appear to present most risk for the pregnant chemistry student are the organic liquids. Some of these (aniline, butanone, carbon disulfide, formaldehyde, and phenol) could easily be omitted from introductory laboratory courses. Benzene and toluene might be substituted by xylene (or perhaps by other hydrocarbons), and both chloroform and carbon tetrachloride could be replaced by methylene chloride. Eliminating potential teratogens from Organic Chemistry laboratories would be much more difficult . Many different volatile liquids and low melting solids are handled in the Organic laboratory, and the common practice of issuing “unknowns” to students , especially in Organic Analysis courses, greatly increases the number and variety of compounds to which students might be exposed. Fortunately, there is a strong movement at present toward the miniaturization of glassware and experiments in undergraduate laboratories. Among the many benefits of this trend is the reduced volume of organic waste materials and the diminished student exposure t o potentially hazardous chemicals. 

DCN-176766; Laboratory workers; Education; Solvent vapors; Organic solvents; Chemical industry workers; Reproductive system disorders; Reproductive hazards; Reproductive effects; 62-53-3; 7440-38-2; 71-43-2; 78-93-3; 7440-43-9; 75-15-0; 630-08-0; 56-23-5; 67-66-3; 64-17-5; 50-00-0; 7439-92-1; 7758-95-4; 10099-74-8; 7439-97-6; 108-95-2; 69-72-7; 108-88-3; 7646-85-7; 7733-02-0 

Kolb, VM 

Studies in Environmental Science: Volume 31 

9780444429148