TYPE OF AGENT –Lachrymatory and Lung Injurant agent

NAME (CHEMICAL) – Chloropicrin

NAME (COMMON) – Trichlornitromethane, Nitrochloroform, Vomiting gas (British), PS (American), Aquinite (French) Klop (German)

DATE OF DISCOVERY – 1848

MOLECULAR FORMULA – CCl₃NO₂

MOLECULAR WEIGHT – 164.4 g/mol

PHYSICAL STATE @ 20° C. – Liquid

VAPOR DENSITY (AIR = 1.0) – 5.6

FREEZING/MELTING POINT – -69° C. (156° F.)

BOILING POINT – 112° C. (234° F.)

DECOMPOSITION TEMPERATURE – 112° C. (234° F.)

LIQUID DENSITY – 1.786 g/ml

VAPOR PRESSURE (mm/Hg) – 18 mm/Hg @ 20° C. (68° F.)

VOLATILITY (mg/m3) – 165 g per m³

ODOR – Stinging and pungent

APPEARANCE – Colorless liquid, faint yellow color when impurities are present

SOLUBILITY – Slight

MEDIAN INCAPACITATING DOSAGE (ID50) – 9 mg-min/m³ (0.05 oz per 1,000 ft³ for 10 minutes)

MEDIAN LETHAL DOSAGE (LD50) – 2,000 mg-min/m³ (0.08 oz per 1,000 ft³ for 10 minutes)

PERSISTENCY – High, 1 to 3 hours in open, 4 hours in woods, during winter 12 hours in the open, 1 week in woods

INHALATION TOXICITY – Immediate and severe irritation to the nose, throat, and lungs,

SKIN TOXICITY – Strong irritant, exposure of skin to liquid immediately causes severe pain, can cause sores and lesions

EYE TOXICITY – Immediate irritation leading to severe pain that can last for hours

RATE OF ACTION – Rapid

SYMPTOMS (PHYSIOLOGICAL ACTION) – Severe eye irritation followed by nose, throat, and lung irritation, can cause nausea and vomiting on inhalation, lung congestion and fluid buildup. Skin irritation and burning sensation

TREATMENT – Remove from exposure, remove contaminated clothing, wash (flood) contaminated areas with water, wipe off splashes of liquid on skin with alcoholic disodium sulfate, supplemental oxygen if needed

PROTECTION – Gas mask, protective clothing

DECONTAMINATION – Spray down area with sodium sulfite solution in alcohol

USE – Artillery and Mortar shells, grenades

     Chloropicrin was one of the later agents employed during WWI, the Germans being the first to use it against the Italians on the Western Front in the Spring of 1917. It is a powerful irritant that can cause nose and throat irritation, coughing, and vomiting from exposure to the agent vapors. Additionally, it produces immediate burning, pain, and copious tearing. The eyelids forced themselves closed even where the agent is in limited concentrations. It is a severe actions agent and can cause permanent organ and lung damage. It was sued by all combatants during WWI. Chloropicrin was mixed with other agents, such as Chlorine, Phosgene, and other more well-known chemical weapons. Though the US stockpiled the agent during WWII, it has abandoned its use.