You can fan your hand over the substance so that the smell can start to reach your nose. This will allow you to get a whiff of the substance without sniffing it directly. It should be remembered that sniffing the substance.
When you try to directly sniff the chemicals, there is a chance that you will be damaging your nasal passages and even your lungs. You need to stay safe and just get a whiff of the odor of the chemicals that you are dealing with. You can list down and describe the substance properly if needed in the report.