Table of Contents
What is worse white phosphorus or napalm?
Napalm is the most notorious incendiary substance, but it is only one of more than 180. White phosphorus munitions cause particularly severe injuries, including chemical burns down to the bone.
What is the deadliest nerve gas?
VX
VX, the most famous of the so-called V-series of persistent nerve agents (and also the deadliest known nerve agent; V is for venom), was developed by chemists at a British government facility in 1952.
Is nerve gas dangerous?
Nerve agents are highly toxic, and even small amounts can cause health effects if they are inhaled, ingested or if they contact skin or eyes. Health effects occur more rapidly (within seconds to minutes) from inhalation and ingestion exposure than from skin or eye exposure.
How does nerve gas cause death in humans?
This means the body’s muscles cannot relax, causing convulsions and death by asphyxiation due to a loss of control of the respiratory muscles. The messenger chemical, known as acetylcholine, also builds up in the brain causing it to rapidly shut down. At high enough doses a nerve agent can kill within 10 minutes.
What happens if you get hit by napalm?
Antipersonnel effects. When used as a part of an incendiary weapon, napalm can cause severe burns (ranging from superficial to subdermal), asphyxiation, unconsciousness, and death.
What’s the worst chemical weapon?
1. Novichok Agents. Novichok (meaning “newcomer” in Russian), are a relatively new form of chemical weapons first developed at the end of the Cold War by Soviet scientists. Currently, Novichok Agents are considered the most potent and deadly chemical weapons ever designed in history.
How do you protect against nerve agents?
If available, a good way to protect yourself from nerve agents is to wear appropriate chemical protective clothing and respiratory protection. However, protective equipment does not always work against nerve agents.
What does cyclosarin do?
Cyclosarin is a man-made highly toxic organic phosphate warfare agent. It was developed as a more persistent agent than sarin. Iraq is the only country thought to have produced cyclosarin in large quantities for military use in the Iran–Iraq War in the 1980s.
What happens when phosphorus burns in air?
Phosphorus ignites at approximately 86°F (30°C) in air; the ignition temperature is higher when the air is dry. Phosphorus reacts violently with oxidants, halogens, some metals, nitrites, sulfur, and many other compounds, causing a fire hazard. The agent burns rapidly, releasing dense, white irritating fumes.
What is napalm and how dangerous is it?
Napalm is an incendiary mixture of a gelling agent and a volatile petrochemical (usually gasoline (petrol) or diesel fuel).
What is Napalm made of?
Napalm is a general name for a thick oil or jelly mixed with fuel such as gasoline (petrol). In Durden’s ‘recipe’, the gasoline fuel is mixed with orange juice concentrate that provides the sticky oil. Napalm’s name comes from two of the compounds used to make the oily gel in the first preparations: naphthenic and palmitic acids.
Does Napalm produce carbon monoxide when burned?
During combustion, napalm rapidly deoxygenates the available air and generates large amounts of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide. Alternative compositions exist for different types of uses, e.g. triethylaluminium, a pyrophoric compound that aids ignition.
Can you really make napalm with orange juice and gasoline?
In the 1999 film Fight Club, the character Tyler Durden claims ‘if you mix equal parts of gasoline and frozen orange juice concentrate, you can make napalm.’ So what is napalm and how is it really made?