1.11 Chemical Identification

How do you identify an unlabelled chemical?

You can identify chemicals through pH, colour, viscosity and odour. The odour would be the easiest way to identify a product, however, please take caution when doing so.

If a bottle is not labelled, and you want to identify the chemical it contains, NEVER sniff the contents of the bottle directly.

If you must smell the product, just remove the cap from the bottle, turn it upwards and wave it under your nose so you can just smell the inside of the cap.

NEVER stick your finger in or allow your skin to come into contact with an unidentified chemical. If still in doubt, inform your supervisor!