Solutions and Technological Advances to Decreasing MeCl2Innovative Solutions for Reducing Methylene Chloride
Oral Presentation
Prepared by M. Murshak
Merit Laboratories, Inc., 2680 East Lansing Drive, EAST LANSING, Michigan, 48823, United States
Contact Information: [email protected]; 517-202-1340
ABSTRACT
Safety comes first. The laboratory industry is ahead of the game in keeping its scientists safe. Extraction laboratories are one of the most expensive areas of the lab and where most of MeCl2 is used. Merit’s mission is to keep our staff safe from all chemicals. MeCl2 reduction is optimized in the following areas: 1) reduce sample size of extractions using modern instrumental extraction techniques like solid phase extractions, and low volume MeCl2 soil extraction methods, 2) investigate substitute solvents, such as Ethyl Acetate/Hexane, Ethyl Acetate/Ethanol, etc., 3) use solvent free air methods, such as TO15 and TO17.
Everyone is interested minimizing or eliminating solvents. However, EPA’s requirements such as sample size, along with the difficulty in following required methods, presents additional challenges to transition to modern advancements utilizing less or no solvents. This presentation addresses current solutions and technological advances to decreasing use of solvents and increasing human safety.
