NaH spill

I was performing a NaH (60wt% dispersion in mineral oil) reduction for the first time. NaH is a pyrophoric solid that reacts violently with water. The mineral oil dispersion is stable in ambient, but must be kept away from moisture as much as possible. An experienced labmate was closely watching as I performed the experiment. After measuring out and transporting 0.9 g of NaH on a weighing paper, it was accidentally spilled inside the hood. Because of the ice bath that was set up for the NaH reduction, there was a pool of water on the fume hood floor (it should have been cleaned up before bringing the NaH). Some of the spilled NaH got into contact with this water. The expert labmate quickly stepped in and dispensed hexane from a squirt bottle to push the NaH solid away from the water. Then, ethanol (IPA would have been ideal but was not readily available in the surrounding) was slowly squirted onto the solid covered with hexane, and gentle bubbling was observed. The quenching was continued with more ethanol, and eventually, water. After bubbling was no longer visible, everything was wiped up with a damp paper towel, collected, and submerged in water before being thrown into trash. *Lessons: 1. To quench a NaH spill, first use hexane to cover it. The hexane is inert and absorbs the heat generated from the quenching reaction. Then, quench it slowly first with IPA, then methanol, then water. Even after everything looks quenched, excercise extra caution by letting the waste soak in water for some time before discarding. 2. Just before using NaH, make sure protic liquids (water, alcohol, etc.) are absent from the workspace. Also, be prepared to act when a spill occurs; have the necessary reagents nearby (hexane & IPA & water) and do a mental simulation ("What if..."). 3. In general, if you're handling a hazardous material/situation that you have never handled before, ask an expert to accompany you.