TYPE OF AGENT – Nerve gas

NAME (CHEMICAL) –– pinacolyl methyl phosphonofluoridate

NAME (NATO) – GD

NAME (COMMON) – Soman

DATE OF DISCOVERY – 1944

MOLECULAR FORMULA – C₇H₁₆FO₂P

MOLECULAR WEIGHT – 182.178 g/mol

PHYSICAL STATE @ 20° C. (68° F.)  – Liquid

VAPOR DENSITY (AIR = 1.0) – 6.33

FLASH POINT – above 78° C. (172° F.)

FREEZING/MELTING POINT – -42° C. (-44° F.) does not form a crystalline solid

BOILING POINT – 167° C. (333° F.)

DECOMPOSITION TEMPERATURE – 130° C. (266° F.) for 4 hours

LIQUID DENSITY – 1.022 g/cc

VAPOR PRESSURE (mm/Hg) – 0.40 mm/Hg @20° C. (68° F.)

VOLATILITY (mg/m3) – 3,900 mg/m³ @ 25° C. (77° F.)

ODOR – Rotten fruit, oil of camphor (with impurities)

APPEARANCE – Colorless liquid, may age to a brown color

SOLUBILITY – 21 g/l g @ 20° C. (68° F.)

MEDIAN INCAPACITATING DOSAGE (ID50) – 35 mg/m³

MEDIAN LETHAL DOSAGE (LD50) – 100 mg/m³

PERSISTENCY – 24-36 hours in open air

INHALATION TOXICITY – Immediately toxic, most toxic route of exposure

SKIN TOXICITY – Not directly toxic to the skin but extremely toxic when it quickly penetrates into the blood stream

EYE TOXICITY – Very high toxicity, quickly penetrates eye tissues

RATE OF ACTION – Immediate, inhaled vapor concentrations can cause death within 10 to 15 minutes, ingested liquid may be fatal within 1 minute

SYMPTOMS (PHYSIOLOGICAL ACTION) – Inhibits breakdown of acetylcholine in the body, interrupting nerve signals, causes contraction of the pupils of the eyes, excessive mucus, tears, saliva, and sweat, nausea, gastrointestinal pain and vomiting, involuntary urination and defecation, twitching, jerking, and staggering followed by headache, confusion, drowsiness, coma and convulsions, constriction of the bronchial passages and chest tightness, spasms and death.

TREATMENT – Injections of Atropine, Pralidoxime chloride (2-PAMC1), Diazepam, supportive treatment

DURATION OF EFFECTIVENESS – Mildly persistent, remains effective for up to 48 hours in shady areas

PROTECTION – Full gas mask with hood, impermeable clothing and overboots.

DECONTAMINATION – Wash contaminated area down with sodium hydroxide solution, live steam, ammonia, or alkali may also be used

USE – Artillery and mortar projectiles, land mines, rockets, aerial bombs and spray tanks

     Soman was the last of the nerve agents developed and produced in German during WWII. Soman was considered to be an excellent chemical weapon as it was quickly lethal and could contaminate and area, making it difficult for enemy forces to cross, for a day or so. The nerve agent is not as lethal as Sarin as it requires some 30% more exposure but it is more readily absorbed into the bloodstream. The production plant for Soman and other chemical agents was captured by the Soviet forces in 1945 and the plants as well as all archives were immediately shipped East to the Soviet Union. Production of Soman and other nerve agents were up and running by 1946. The name Soman may have come from the Latin for bludgeon (club) or the Greek where it can mean sleep. The definitive records for the source of the Soman name are missing, but either term describes the agent well enough.