IMSA Chemical Safety & Hazard Communication 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which chemical storage practice is most critical to preventing dangerous reactions between stored substances?
- FIFO (First In, First Out) rotation
- Segregation by chemical compatibility (Correct answer)
- Alphabetical arrangement
- Storage by container size
Correct answer: Segregation by chemical compatibility
Segregating chemicals by compatibility prevents dangerous reactions such as fires, explosions, or toxic gas generation when incompatible substances accidentally contact each other.
Question 2: Oxidizers must be stored separately from which class of chemicals to prevent fires and explosions?
- Corrosives
- Flammables and combustibles (Correct answer)
- Compressed gases
- Inert materials
Correct answer: Flammables and combustibles
Oxidizers supply oxygen that accelerates combustion, making their separation from flammables and combustibles essential to preventing fires and explosions.
Question 3: According to OSHA 1910.106, flammable liquids storage cabinets must limit internal temperature to a maximum of what during a 10-minute fire test?
- 150°F
- 325°F (Correct answer)
- 400°F
- 500°F
Correct answer: 325°F
OSHA 1910.106 requires flammable liquids storage cabinets to maintain an internal temperature no greater than 325°F during the standard 10-minute fire exposure test.
Question 4: What is the maximum capacity allowed for a safety can used to store flammable liquids?
- 1 gallon
- 2 gallons
- 5 gallons (Correct answer)
- 10 gallons
Correct answer: 5 gallons
OSHA standards limit safety cans to a maximum capacity of 5 gallons; these cans are also required to have self-closing lids and flash arrestors.
Question 5: The NFPA 704 'diamond' rating system is primarily designed to inform:
- Workers on daily chemical handling procedures
- Emergency responders about health, flammability, instability, and special hazards (Correct answer)
- Shipping personnel about DOT transport requirements
- Purchasing departments about chemical costs
Correct answer: Emergency responders about health, flammability, instability, and special hazards
The NFPA 704 diamond provides color-coded numerical ratings (0-4) for health, flammability, and instability hazards plus special hazard notation, specifically to guide emergency responders at incident scenes.
Question 6: Chemical fume hoods are classified as which type of hazard control?
- Administrative control
- Personal protective equipment
- Engineering control (Correct answer)
- Substitution control
Correct answer: Engineering control
Fume hoods provide local exhaust ventilation, removing hazardous vapors and fumes from the worker's breathing zone through a physical engineering solution.
Question 7: Per ANSI Z358.1, emergency eyewash stations must be located within what travel time from a corrosive chemical hazard?
- 5 seconds
- 10 seconds (Correct answer)
- 30 seconds
- 60 seconds
Correct answer: 10 seconds
ANSI Z358.1 requires emergency eyewash stations to be reachable within 10 seconds of travel (approximately 55 feet) from corrosive chemical hazards to minimize eye damage.
IMSA Chemical Safety & Hazard Communication 2
Which chemical storage practice is most critical to preventing dangerous reactions between stored substances?