Better safe than sorry

“Welcome in my laboratory”, says PhD student Tobias Pfeiffer, “as long as you didn’t bring sandwiches with you.” Eating in the laboratory is against the safety rules and, Pfeiffer adds, just plain stupid.
Pfeiffer makes magnesium nanoparticles, which are particles that might one day be used as a hydrogen storage medium. He isn’t particularly afraid of nanoparticles, but he adheres to the adage, ‘better safe than sorry’.
Since last week, a new flowchart, called the ‘Nano safety quick check’, hangs on the walls of all laboratories in the chemical engineering department (faculty of Applied Sciences), there as a reminder to
Pfeiffer and his colleagues about how to deal with the possible risks associated with nanoparticles.

Chemicals that have always been regarded as non-toxic can become harmful when they come in the form of nanoparticles. Because of their small size, the particles may be highly reactive, and their effect on one’s metabolism cannot be easily predicted. For security reasons, the concentration of most types of particles should therefore be kept below a benchmark level of 20,000 particles per square centimeter. This level was set by the National institute for Public Health and the Environment, and that is more or less the extent to which this institute sets safety rules.

The chemical engineering department however wanted more guidance and therefore wrote a booklet, titled Nanosafety Guidelines. The flowchart on Pfeiffer’s wall is part of this booklet.
Guidelines were first issued about two years ago at the department. “Before then, everybody was essentially following their gut feelings about safety procedures”, says Professor Andreas Schmidt-Ott, one of the initiators who also worked on the guideline’s second edition, together with Valerie Butselaar, Delft Chemical Engineering’s safety officer.

“The booklet isn’t a bible”, Prof. Schmidt-Ott says. “We sharpen it up periodically, taking into account knowledge gained on nanotoxicology. It’s tailored to the present needs of our faculty, however, and the input of all researchers is included in updates.”

“The guidelines are useful as they force us to think more thoroughly about what exactly it is that we’re doing”, Pfeiffer says. The guidelines force researchers to answer questions for themselves, such as ‘are the particles soluble in water?’ (if so, they can be treated as a normal chemical), or ‘is the nanomaterial proven not to be nanotoxic?’.

For Pfeiffer, an interesting question that was recently added to the guideline is whether the particles ignite spontaneously in air. His magnesium nanoparticles do. The guideline tells him to filter the exhaust gas with special filters.
Prof. Schmidt-Ott hopes to join forces with other universities: “As far as I know we’re the only university in the Netherlands that works with such guidelines, but perhaps other universities want to use them as well, and their insights could also help us in sharpening the guidelines.”

In een thuiswedstrijd presenteert de Delftse band Mannen van Vermeer vrijdag in Speakers zijn album ‘Zeker’. De zeskoppige band brengt dan alle tracks van de cd ten gehore. Naast tien Nederlandstalige eigen nummers belooft het album een ‘speciale verrassing.’

Mannen van Vermeer laat zich naar eigen zeggen moeilijk in een hokje plaatsen. De band bestaat uit de obligate gitarist, bassist en drummer. Daarnaast heeft de band een accordeonist en een saxofonist, wat zorgt voor een eigen geluid. De frontman en zanger is Willem Overgaag. Voor wie hem als zanger niet kent, is hij wellicht bekender als voormalig eigenaar van Café Vlaanderen.

De muziek op het album is divers. Van rustig, haast jazzy tot aan stevige rock passeert de revue. De teksten zijn ‘artistiek poëtisch’ en worden bijna parlando (pratend zingend) uitgevoerd. De poëtische teksten komen het beste tot uiting in de rustigere nummers die zich kenmerken als muzikale poëzie. De stevigere nummers liggen lekker in het gehoor.

Het belooft een avond livemuziek te worden die inhoudelijk dus net even anders is dan normaal, maar met de ouderwetse gezelligheid van dien. Na het optreden van Mannen van Vermeer volgt een afterparty met een optreden van de eveneens Delftse skaformatie Bang the Skillet. Iedere bezoeker krijgt de nieuwe cd mee, dus alleen daarom al zeker de moeite waard.

Mannen van Vermeer, Speakers, 6 november 20.30 uur. Kaarten zijn €10.
www.speakers.nl
www.mannenvanvermeer.nl

“Welcome in my laboratory”, says PhD student Tobias Pfeiffer, “as long as you didn’t bring sandwiches with you.” Eating in the laboratory is against the safety rules and, Pfeiffer adds, just plain stupid.
Pfeiffer makes magnesium nanoparticles, which are particles that might one day be used as a hydrogen storage medium. He isn’t particularly afraid of nanoparticles, but he adheres to the adage, ‘better safe than sorry’.
Since last week, a new flowchart, called the ‘Nano safety quick check’, hangs on the walls of all laboratories in the chemical engineering department (faculty of Applied Sciences), there as a reminder to
Pfeiffer and his colleagues about how to deal with the possible risks associated with nanoparticles.

Chemicals that have always been regarded as non-toxic can become harmful when they come in the form of nanoparticles. Because of their small size, the particles may be highly reactive, and their effect on one’s metabolism cannot be easily predicted. For security reasons, the concentration of most types of particles should therefore be kept below a benchmark level of 20,000 particles per cubic centimeter. This level was set by the National institute for Public Health and the Environment, and that is more or less the extent to which this institute sets safety rules.

The chemical engineering department however wanted more guidance and therefore wrote a booklet, titled Nanosafety Guidelines. The flowchart on Pfeiffer’s wall is part of this booklet.
Guidelines were first issued about two years ago at the department. “Before then, everybody was essentially following their gut feelings about safety procedures”, says Professor Andreas Schmidt-Ott, one of the initiators who also worked on the guideline’s second edition, together with Valerie Butselaar, Delft Chemical Engineering’s safety officer.

“The booklet isn’t a bible”, Prof. Schmidt-Ott says. “We sharpen it up periodically, taking into account knowledge gained on nanotoxicology. It’s tailored to the present needs of our faculty, however, and the input of all researchers is included in updates.”

“The guidelines are useful as they force us to think more thoroughly about what exactly it is that we’re doing”, Pfeiffer says. The guidelines force researchers to answer questions for themselves, such as ‘are the particles soluble in water?’ (if so, they can be treated as a normal chemical), or ‘is the nanomaterial proven not to be nanotoxic?’.

For Pfeiffer, an interesting question that was recently added to the guideline is whether the particles ignite spontaneously in air. His magnesium nanoparticles do. The guideline tells him to filter the exhaust gas with special filters.
Prof. Schmidt-Ott hopes to join forces with other universities: “As far as I know we’re the only university in the Netherlands that works with such guidelines, but perhaps other universities want to use them as well, and their insights could also help us in sharpening the guidelines.”