Safety
As they combine unstably bound oxygen together with hydrogen and carbon in the same molecule, organic peroxides ignite easily and burn rapidly and intensely. The same applies to organic materials contaminated with organic peroxides. Since peroxides can form spontaneously in some materials, some caution must be exercised with such "peroxide forming materials", such as the common ethers diethyl ether, tetrahydrofuran or ethylene glycol dimethyl ether. Acetone peroxide, a powerful explosive, is an unwanted and dangerous byproduct of several chemical reactions, ranging from synthesis of MDMA (where it is a by-product of isosafrole oxidation in acetone) to industrial production of phenol (where the second product of the cumene process, acetone, is partially oxidized to peroxide on the second reaction step). Accidental preparation of organic peroxides can occur by mixing ketone solvents (most commonly acetone) with waste materials containing hydrogen peroxide or other oxidizers and leaving the mixture standing for several hours.
For safe handling of concentrated organic peroxides, an important parameter is temperature of the sample, which should be maintained below the SADT of the compound.
Read more about this topic: Organic Peroxide
Famous quotes containing the word safety:
“Man gives every reason for his conduct save one, every excuse for his crimes save one, every plea for his safety save one; and that one is his cowardice.”
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)
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—George Orwell (1903–1950)
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—Christopher Lasch (b. 1932)