Emergency responders were on scene at a University of Delaware biomedical engineering building Wednesday night.
The only student inside the building was mixing hydrochloric and nitric acids, or Aqua Regia solution, when a fire started, UD spokesman Peter Bothum said. He pressed the alarm around 8 p.m. and firefighters extinguished the flames. Damage was largely contained to a water bath and a fume hood, Bothum said.
Deputy Chief Jeff Sands of Aenta Hose Hook and Ladder said firefighters responded to the fire that has since been extinguished. But as a precaution, responders called in the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control Hazmat teams.
"We don't know what is involved," Sands said. "So we are just making sure and taking extra precautions."
Investigators are still determining the cause of the fire, Bothum said.