Bill,

Due to our location, it takes 6 months or longer in many cases to order and receive chemicals and shipping can be very expensive.  It is not feasible to order a few bottles of ethyl ether or THF every month and we must order in bulk quantities meaning that things are at least halfway through their shelf life before we even receive them.  Because of this, we have a program in place for peroxide monitoring.  In a nutshell, once the expiration date is reached, the chemicals are tested every six months for peroxide formation and the bottles are tagged showing testing and results.  If it tests positive (I think the level we use is over 20ppm but will have to reference my notes back at the office on Sunday), then we handle the neutralization and disposal.  Due to our location, we are not comfortable with the waste company handling compounds that test positive, so we neutralize them ourselves before sending them off as waste.

If there is something we can not handle; for example, the discovery of ethers that expired in the early 90s, then we call out the military to handle the retrieval and disposal.

I am not sure if this helps, but thought I would give you my two cents.

Regards,

Brandon Chance

Safety and Environmental Compliance Manager
Office of Building Operations & HSSE
Texas A&M University at Qatar
brandon.chance**At_Symbol_Here**qatar.tamu.edu

PO Box 23874 | Doha, Qatar
TAMUQ Building Room 225E | Education City

(o) +974.4423.0495 | (m) +974.6668.3552 | SkypeIn USA 001.281.764.1776

www.qatar.tamu.edu

It‚s Time For Texas A&M
From: >
Reply-To: DCHAS-L >
Date: Fri, 28 Oct 2011 10:55:07 -0400
To: >
Subject: [DCHAS-L] Peroxide Formers - Questions
All

I would like to know how folks are handling peroxide formers.   Some background on my program is that we have 2 lists.   Group A ˆ we require disposal after 3 months from opening (i.e. Sodium amide).  And Group B ˆ we require disposal 12 months after opening and 24 months after receipt (whichever comes first) (i.e. ether, THF∑etc.).

Specifically, I would like to know what folks do for the following:

1.      A researcher identifies a peroxide former is past the expiration date.  What do they do?

a.       Call EHS

b.      Do you have date ranges that then trigger EHS.   For example, if THF is 1 year past its required disposal date then do they call EHS.   But if the date is within 1 year past the disposal date then they follow normal waste disposal guidelines.

2.      What are your timeframes for requiring folks to contact EHS?

a.      Group A

b.      Group B

3.       Do you have timeframes for when EHS would consider the material a „High Hazard‰ and call in a High haz waste contractor?

4.      Or, do you rely on visual cues and knowledge of the specific chemical.

Your feedback is appreciated.    Thanks

Bill Galdenzi

Environmental, Health, and Safety

Boehringer-Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals

(203) 778-7759

bill.galdenzi**At_Symbol_Here**boehringer-ingelheim.com

Click here to see the EHS webpage

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