A student was injured early Tuesday evening at Sisler Hall when a sensitive chemical compound exploded in his hands.
Hamed Ibrahim, 26, was transferring a vial with four grams of Benzotriazol-1-yl-sulfonyl azide, a shock-sensitive chemical compound, to a scale to weigh it at about 4:50 p.m.
"The chemical became unstable when he transferred it from the vial to the scale," said Richard Saulsberry, district fire chief for Gainesville Fire Rescue.
When the compound exploded, it caused minor cuts to Ibrahim's face, hands and lower forearms, he said.
Ibrahim was taken to Shands, where he was treated for minor injuries, said Janine Sikes, director of UF public affairs.
Other students were in the lab at the time of the explosion but did not feel the direct effects of the explosion.
Judit Kovacs, a chemistry Ph.D. student, was three feet from the explosion when it happened.
She said at first her ears were ringing and felt clogged.
By the time the first fire engine arrived, Ibrahim had cleaned himself off and was waiting outside the evacuated building, said Todd Ellis, a lieutenant with the Hazmat team.
"You can't take the risk out of a laboratory," he said. "It's always going to be there."
