The cardinal rule of explosives safety

The US Military and its contractors work safely with energetic materials on both an industrial scale and a laboratory scale. Practices and procedures used with these materials will benefit academic and research laboratories that work with reactive, energetic, and explosive materials. The most effective practice may be one of the simplest and least expensive to implement. This is especially useful for laboratories beginning new projects with inexperienced laboratory workers. Though not a substitute for a detailed chemical hazard analysis with strictly enforced standard laboratory procedures, the cardinal rule of explosives safety must be adhered to at all times: “Expose the minimum number of people to the minimum amount of explosive for the minimum amount of time”This information was originally presented at the 246th ACS National Meeting in Indianapolis, Indiana September 9, 2013 for the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety symposium “Managing reactive chemistry”.