A graduate student at Hokkaido University has died after severe exposure to hydrofluoric acid (HF) during an experiment in a science faculty building, the university announced Aug. 27. Two students who attempted to rescue the victim sustained minor injuries but are in stable condition.
HF is uniquely hazardous because of its ability to penetrate skin with a delayed onset of pain. The fluoride ion binds with systemic calcium and can cause severe tissue destruction or fatal cardiac arrest.
The university released a brief statement on its website but declined to provide further details—such as the student’s department or principal investigator—when contacted by C&EN, responding that an investigation into the cause of the accident is ongoing.
“Hokkaido University takes this tragic accident extremely seriously,” an automated translation of the statement says. “The loss of a student’s precious life in an accident of this nature at a university, where education and research should be conducted in a safe environment, is a matter of profound concern.”
Student deaths in university laboratories are extremely rare. The 2008 death of Sheri Sangji in a University of California, Los Angeles, chemistry lab prompted universities across the US to undertake a comprehensive review of safety measures for handling hazardous reagents. Last year, a student died from carbon dioxide poisoning at Tokushima University after a large quantity of dry ice vaporized in an enclosed space.
Hokkaido University has been expanding its semiconductor research capabilities. It established the Institute for Frontier Education and Research on Semiconductors in 2025 and opened a semiconductor prototyping laboratory in July. HF is widely used as an etching agent in computer chip fabrication, though it is not known whether the accident was related to semiconductor research.
Labs that handle HF typically stock calcium gluconate gel, which is intended to chelate fluoride ions before they can penetrate the skin. While several Japanese universities recommend keeping calcium gluconate on hand, safety experts note that topical gels may be insufficient in cases of extensive body exposure. Hokkaido University did not respond when asked whether calcium gluconate is routinely stocked.
