Characteristics of a safe and standard laboratory

In order to secure the schools, the places in the school should also be made like this. One of these important places in the school are
 the laboratories, which we have mentioned in this post!
In most schools, tests are usually conducted in the laboratory. Therefore, laboratory activities should be organized in such a way that
 there are many opportunities to observe, ask questions and discover facts. The physical structure of the laboratory should be designed
 in such a way that it is suitable for group or individual work of students and all the tools and chemicals can be easily placed in their
 original place after the experiment.

Since the teaching and learning process takes place in the laboratory, it is therefore necessary to pay special attention to the space,
 decoration, building engineering, and the arrangement of the platforms and work tables of the laboratory. Turning dark warehouses into
 laboratories is one of the irreparable mistakes of school officials who do this without knowing the importance of 
the laboratory′s educational environment. Considering the increasing use of laboratory activities and the renovation and construction of
 new schools, in this section, the physical characteristics of a chemical laboratory in terms of space, capacity, and facilities are
 examined.

A- The space of a standard laboratory
The space of a standard chemical laboratory should have the following features:
1- The minimum dimensions of the laboratory space according to the required equipment are about 7.20 meters by 10.80 meters 
(the area is about 78 square meters).
2- The height of the laboratory should be between 3 and 3.5 meters.
3- The laboratory should have at least two entrance and exit doors and the area of ​​the doors should remain empty with a radius of 1.5 meters.

4- Near the teacher′s station, in addition to the blackboard or whiteboard, there should be a laboratory table with dimensions 
of 1.5 meters by 3 meters equipped with installation pipes.
5- In addition to the laboratory area, the chemical material storage area should also be considered inside the laboratory.
6- The direction of natural light should be such that the light shines on the blackboard or whiteboard from the left side.
7- On the teacher′s desk, a platform should be considered for placing an overhead, television or video projector so that they 
can be used easily if needed.

8- The platform and work table of the students are placed in five rows with sinks in the middle of each row and four students work in
 pairs in the rows. So that it is possible to move them easily. The dimensions of students′ desks should be 80 cm and its height 
should be 75 cm.
9- The closest students′ desk to the teacher′s desk should be at least 1.5 meters away.

10- Laboratory work tables are made with anti-acid coating or granite stone, and while placing facilities such as tap water,
 electric outlet and city gas in them, it must be empty under these tables, because if the platforms are full, when sitting Students
 on four legs, their back and neck vertebrae get tired very early and sometimes it causes complications such as arthritis or spinal 
curvature in those who are in their growing age.
11- The height of the windows from the floor of the laboratory should not be less than 100 cm. The total area of ​​the windows should 
not be less than one fifth of the laboratory floor.
12- The artificial light of the laboratory should be provided by moonlight lamps each 1.2 meters long and at 1.5 meters intervals.
13- The appropriate temperature of the laboratory air is 25 degrees Celsius and the relative humidity is 65%.

14- The floor of the laboratory must have a saline floor.
15- In the part of the inner cover of the laboratory where the sinks are located, the wall should be covered with an impermeable
 material such as hard plastic or glass.
16- In terms of safety, the sockets must have a grounding wire. It is also mandatory to install a safety fuse in the power
 distribution network of the laboratories.
17- The laboratory work table should have special installation pipes for water, gas and electrical outlets.
18- The sewer pipes should be anti-acid and anti-grease and the sinks should be stainless.
19- The interior coating and the color of the roof of the laboratories can be white, pale blue, light cream, very pale green, or beige.

B- The capacity of a standard laboratory
Experts recommend the capacity of the main laboratory space between 18 and 20 people according to the facilities and conditions 
of laboratory activities. The excessive number of students in the laboratory makes it difficult for the teacher or laboratory
 instructor to control the laboratory activities, and not enough opportunities are provided to train all the students.

On the other hand, the number of students in some classes may be more than 30, in which case it is recommended to use half of the class
 in each round of laboratory activity. This work will boost and increase the activity of the laboratories. It should also be noted that
 a laboratory with 18 to 20 people economically requires less infrastructure and equipment than a laboratory with 36 to 40 people.

C- The facilities of a standard laboratory

In order to place the work tools and equipment needed for the laboratory, in addition to the shelving and cabinets, there should be the 
necessary equipment for conducting the experiment, individual and group research, teaching, discussion, observing the process of the
 experiment, writing a report and presenting it, as well as the necessary equipment for showing the film. educational materials are
 available in every laboratory.

The equipment needed for a standard chemistry laboratory are:
1- Fixed wall cupboards and shelves for storing containers for salts, solvents, reagents and other materials.
2- Locked shelves for storing delicate tools and toxic and dangerous chemicals.
3- A fire extinguisher, a bucket of sand and a laboratory shower.
4- First aid box.
5- Shelf and file for keeping books, reports, tables and models.
6- File for safety equipment (gloves, glasses, etc.).
7- Wardrobes and lab coats for teachers and students.
8- Ceiling rails to provide images and also to maintain equipment that must be installed on the side of the ceiling.
9- Ventilation and ventilation for the exit of smoke and vapors resulting from the experiment on three sides of the laboratory.
10- Laboratory hood.

11- Anticipating the necessary arrangements to completely darken the room when necessary.
12- Installing a periodic table of elements (in a large section) in a suitable place on the wall. Other walls of the laboratory can
 also be used to install other tables, graphs and scientific pictures.