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Policies

Please familiarize yourself with the following general policies used in IMSERC. Additionally, learn more about Crystallography-related policies and NMR-related policies, if you are a user of these techniques in IMSERC.

Instrument Access

  • You may only use instrumentation with your own log in credentials and are responsible for any issues that occur while logged in
    • Allowing another user to access instrumentation on your account will result in suspension of access to instrumentation and require a meeting with your supervisor prior to reinstatement
  • Training is complete only when you receive access in NUcore / login information for the instrument

Safety Policies

  • Policies set by Office of Research Safety based on what experiments may be performed in the area
  • Substantial closed-toed shoes and cover unprotected skin whenever possible. Suitable clothing shall be worn in the laboratory space; shorts are not appropriate. See more details under the '5.3.1 Clothing' section at Office of Research Safety
  • Eye protection required in all equipment areas
  • ANSI approved safety glasses required when working with any open containers (even aqueous samples)
  • No open containers in NMR area, unless they are water / buffered solutions
  • No gloves permitted while using computers or in public areas (i.e., opening doors)
    • Only acceptable to use gloves when actively handling samples
  • Gloves must be disposed of properly
  • Users must retrieve samples and dispose of in your own lab
    • Only exception is MS samples which are very dilute and can be disposed of as solvent
  • Unlabeled samples left in lab will be disposed of immediately as unknown waste

Broken Samples and Spills

  • Notify a staff person (even if you clean the spill yourself)
  • Cleaning supplies are located under the sink in the MS lab (BG70)
  • Dispose of hazardous waste and sharps in the appropriate locations

Equipment Issues

  • Report all equipment issues to IMSERC staff
  • For emergencies (sample stuck, solvent leaks or when equipment operation poses a safety risk / danger to the equipment), place a stop sign at the instrument
  • Stop signs are located of the shelf next to the login computer

Area Cleanliness

  • Samples must be removed immediately after experiments are complete or they must be disposed of as unknown waste
    • MS samples may be left and disposed of as solvent waste
    • NMR samples on automated instruments will be kept for several weeks and then tubes will be recycled
  • Unattended / unlabeled samples will be disposed of
  • In cases of sample spills, the last user will be required to clean up the area
    • Report spills you encounter immediately

Computing Policies

  • Instrument computers are to be used for data collection and processing only
  • No web-surfing or gaming allowed on IMSERC instrument computers, including email. Reading and searching for research articles is acceptable. Check the list of allowed sites that can be visited from an instrument computer
  • Use of thumb drives is limited to instruments in login area and microscope computer
  • Use IMSERC approved network shares and access data from your own computer or computers in the login area
  • Do not unplug Ethernet cables from instruments
  • IMSERC has WiFi throughout the lab for your personal computing connectivity
  • If you use IMSERC's Terminal Server, once done with analysis, move the analyzed data to a new network location managed by yourself / your group. Please remove the data once done with it, as the data cannot stay on the server (do not forget we commonly scrub this data from the server) for an extended period. For accessing IMSERC's Terminal Server, please follow instructions under the 'Software Access' section on our 'Frequently Asked Questions' page