On Sunday evening I begrudgingly pulled out my lab manual to read up on the experiment I was doing the next day. My concentration levels suddenly increased when I read the word CYANIDE! We were actually going to play with (work is probably a more sensible word to use) cyanide. I became increasingly more focused when I realised I was going to be responsible for handling this potentially lethal toxic chemical.
After arriving in the lab it was apparent that everyone was slightly anxious due to the fact our lives were in in our hands-literally. After convincing a senior academic I was not going to eat it, he dubiously gave me his signature of authorisation so I could obtain the chemical. Wearing not so glamorous blue gloves I handled the cyanide and cautiously mixed it with the other products. After a little waiting for the reaction to complete, I was safe in the knowing all of the cyanide had been consumed. Everyone in the lab looked overwhelmingly relieved. Fortunately there was no need call the emergency services or any accidents to report and we all left the lab feeling pleased with ourselves.
Subscribe to sjr53's posts
When I did that experiment, there had been a mess up in the lab, and the IMS alcohol bottles were full of acetone, so there was still cyanide in our products and we had to scrap everything!!