Source: Purdue University Chemistry Lab Safety Document, Topic 2
Tags: lab attire, splash goggles, closed-toe shoes, lab dress code, PPE, personal protective equipment, Purdue chemistry, what to wear to lab
Difficulty: Beginner Prerequisites: None. Read this before your first lab session.
This covers everything you need to know about what to wear (and what not to wear) to a Purdue chemistry lab. The clothing rules exist because chemicals can spill, splash, or ignite, and your attire is the first physical barrier between those hazards and your skin. Violations result in immediate removal from lab with a zero for that session. This is not a suggestion; it is enforced policy.
Cover your skin from shoulders to ankles. Wear closed-toe, closed-heel shoes and indirectly vented splash goggles at all times. Avoid loose, baggy, or synthetic clothing. Tie back long hair. Failing to comply means a zero and dismissal.
Splash goggles (chemical splash goggles)
Eye protection that seals around your eyes to prevent liquid splashes from reaching them. Must be indirectly vented. Think of them as the most important single piece of safety gear you own in the lab.
Indirectly vented goggles
Goggles with covered vents that allow airflow but block liquid splashes from entering. This is the specific type required. Directly vented goggles (with open holes) do not provide adequate splash protection.
Personal protective equipment (PPE)
Any wearable equipment designed to minimise exposure to hazards. In your chemistry lab, this primarily means goggles and gloves.
Closed-toe, closed-heel shoes
Shoes that fully cover the top of the foot, the toes, and the heel. Sneakers and boots qualify. Sandals, flip-flops, clogs, and any shoe exposing skin do not.
Long trousers that cover your legs to your ankles. No shorts, skirts, or capri trousers.
A shirt that covers your shoulders, chest, and abdomen. No tank tops, no bare midriff, no plunging necklines.
Closed-toe, closed-heel shoes with socks. The shoe must cover the top of the foot.
No holes or netting in clothing. You cannot tape over holes to make them acceptable.
Baggy or loose-fitting clothing: hanging sleeves, oversized sweaters, puffy coats, flowing skirts. These can catch fire, drag through chemicals, or knock over equipment.
Dangling accessories: long earrings, necklaces, loose bracelets. Same hazards as loose clothing.
Synthetic fabrics such as rayon and polyester. These burn faster and are more permeable to chemicals than natural fabrics like cotton or wool.
Shoulder-length or longer hair must be tied back at all times in the lab.
Loose hair can fall into chemicals, catch fire, or obstruct your line of sight.
You must wear indirectly vented splash goggles from the moment the pre-lab lecture ends until you leave the lab. No exceptions.
This includes time spent writing the lab report after finishing the experiment.
Goggles protect against chemical splashes and prevent you from transferring chemicals from your hands to your eyes.
Store your goggles in your lab drawer, labelled and inside a plastic bag.
If you forget them, purchase a pair from one of the chemistry storerooms.
Wear gloves when your TA directs you to.
Remove gloves before leaving the lab for any reason (restroom, storeroom, end of session).
Put on a fresh pair when you return.
Arriving without proper clothing or goggles results in removal from lab.
You receive a score of zero for that lab session.
The dismissal counts as an absence or fail-to-complete lab.
Professors, course supervisors, and lab staff will check clothing and shoes at random during the semester.
Professional chemistry labs, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and even brewery and food-science labs enforce similar or stricter dress codes. In industry, the PPE requirements scale up with hazard level, but the principle is the same: cover your skin, protect your eyes, and eliminate anything that can catch, dangle, or drip into your work.
Students often think goggles are optional once the experiment is done and they are just writing. They are not. Goggles stay on until you physically leave the lab.
Some students believe taping over holes in clothing makes them acceptable. It does not. The policy is explicit on this point.
Students sometimes assume clogs count as closed-heel shoes because they cover the toes. They do not. The heel must also be fully enclosed.
Wearing a lab coat does not exempt you from the clothing rules underneath. Your base layer must still meet all requirements.
⚠️ The goggle policy (indirectly vented, on from pre-lab to exit, no exceptions) is tested in multiple-choice and scenario questions.
⚠️ Know the exact penalty: zero score, counts as absence or fail-to-complete.
⚠️ Expect a question about why synthetic fabrics are discouraged (burn faster, more permeable).
⚠️ The glove rule (remove before leaving, fresh pair on return) is a common exam detail.
True or false: You may remove your goggles once your group finishes the experiment and begins writing the report.
Fill in the blank: Goggles must be ______ vented.
True or false: Clogs are acceptable lab footwear.
True or false: Synthetic fabrics like polyester are preferred in the lab because they are easy to wash.
Fill in the blank: Before leaving the lab for any reason, you must remove your ______.
Answers: 1. False (goggles stay on until you leave). 2. Indirectly. 3. False (heel must be enclosed). 4. False (they burn faster and are more permeable). 5. Gloves.
Q: A student arrives to lab wearing jeans with ripped knees and argues they can cover the holes with tape. Can they stay?
A: No. The lab safety policy states that holes in clothing cannot be made acceptable by covering them with tape. The student will be dismissed with a zero.
Q: Why are indirectly vented goggles required instead of directly vented ones?
A: Indirectly vented goggles have covered vents that allow airflow but block liquid splashes from reaching your eyes. Directly vented goggles have open holes that would let splashed chemicals through.
Q: Your lab partner finishes early and takes off their goggles to write the report while others are still working. What should you say?
A: Goggles must be worn at all times from the end of the pre-lab lecture until you leave the lab. There are no exceptions, even if your own experiment is complete. Removing them risks dismissal with a zero.
Q: Why should you avoid wearing a large, puffy coat in the lab?
A: Loose or bulky clothing can catch fire, drag through chemicals, or knock over equipment and glassware.
Q: You need to use the restroom during lab. What do you do with your gloves?
A: Remove them before leaving the lab. When you return, put on a fresh pair.
Lab attire ties directly to the emergency scenarios topic. Several scenarios (acid soaking into a sweater sleeve, chemical splashing into an eye) are caused or worsened by improper clothing. The equipment topic is also connected: knowing where the safety shower and eyewash are matters most when a clothing or goggle failure leads to chemical exposure.
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