War chemicals. Purpose and combat properties of chemical weapons. Classification of toxic substances. The main types of poisonous substances. The main properties of poisonous substances, the nature of contamination of objects, methods of detection
One of the means of mass destruction is chemical weapons. Poisonous substances that are used in this case are intended to harm human health. They enter the body through the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract, skin, with food or water.
These drugs can cause great harm even in small doses. Therefore, penetration through a small wound into the body is already capable of leading to serious consequences. Poisonous substances are simple methods, which are known to any chemist, while expensive raw materials are not required at all.
The Germans were the first to use chemical weapons in 1914-1918, at that time the First World War. The chlorine they used caused significant damage to the enemy army.
Chemical warfare agents are capable of putting the army out of action for a long time, therefore, analyzing the use of these drugs by Germany, most states began to prepare for the use of chemical agents in upcoming military events.
This training necessarily included providing people with the means personal protection, as well as various exercises that explain how to behave in the event of a chemical attack.
At present, the danger comes not so much from the use of chemical weapons as from accidents occurring at various chemical plants. During such extreme situations, poisoning can occur.
To know how to protect yourself from them, you need to navigate in their varieties and understand the features of the impact on the human body.
Classification of toxic substances
There are many varieties of chemicals, depending on the criterion that is taken as the basis for classification.
If we consider the goal that the enemy sets for himself, using OV, then they can be divided into the following categories:
- Deadly.
- Disabling for a while.
- Annoying.
If we focus on the speed of exposure, then toxic substances are:
- Fast acting. It only takes a few minutes to cause death or serious injury.
- Slow acting. They have a latency period.
All chemicals have a different period during which they can be dangerous to humans. Depending on this, they are:
- Persistent. Dangerous after using for some time.
- Unstable. After a few minutes, the danger subsides.
The classification of toxic substances according to their physiological effects on the body may look like this:
- General poisonous.
- Substances of skin and blister action.
- Nerve poisons.
- OV suffocating action.
- psychochemical substances.
- Annoying.
- Toxins.
The damaging effect of poisonous substances
The chemicals may be in different states Therefore, they have different routes of entry into the body. Some get in through Airways, but there are those that seep through the skin.
Chemical warfare agents have a different damaging effect, which depends on the following factors:
- Concentrations.
- Density of infection.
- Fortitude.
- toxicity.
Poisonous substances can be spread by air masses over long distances from the place of their application, while endangering people who do not have protective equipment.
Detection of OM can be done not only with the help of special equipment. Despite the fact that the characteristics of toxic substances are different, and they all have their own properties and characteristics, there are some common signs that indicate their presence:
- Clouds or fog appear at the site of the rupture of ammunition.
- There is a strange smell that is not typical for this area.
- Respiratory irritation.
- A sharp decrease in vision or its complete loss.
- Plants wither or change color.
At the first sign of a danger of poisoning, it is urgent to use protective equipment, especially if they are nerve agents.
Substances of skin and blister action
The penetration of these substances is carried out through the surface of the skin. In the vapor state or in the form of an aerosol, they can enter the body and through respiratory system.
The most common drugs that can be attributed to this group are mustard gas, lewisite. Mustard is a dark oily liquid with a characteristic odor reminiscent of garlic or mustard.
It is quite resistant, on the ground it can last up to two weeks, and in winter time and about a month. Able to affect the skin, organs of vision. In a state of vapor penetrates into the respiratory system. The danger of these substances lies in the fact that their action begins to appear some time after infection.
After exposure, ulcers may appear on the skin, which do not heal for a very long time. If you deeply inhale the agents of this group, then inflammation of the lung tissue begins to develop.
Nerve agents
This is the most dangerous group of drugs that has a lethal effect. Nerve poisons have an irreversible effect on nervous system person.
Using substances in this category, you can a short time Destroy a large number of people, as many simply do not have time to use the means of protection.
Nerve agents include:
- Sarin.
- Soman.
- VX.
- Herd.
Most people are familiar with only the first substance. Its name appears most often in the lists of OV. It is a clear, colorless liquid with a slight pleasant odor.
If this substance is used in the form of a mist or in a vapor state, then it is relatively unstable, but in a drop-liquid form, the danger persists for several days, and in winter for weeks.
Soman is very similar to sarin, but more dangerous to humans, as it acts several times stronger. Without the use of protective equipment, survival is out of the question.
The nerve agents VX and Tabun are low volatile liquids that have high temperature boiling, so they are more persistent than sarin.
Asphyxiants
By the name itself, it becomes clear that these substances affect the organs of the respiratory system. Well-known drugs from this group are: phosgene and diphosgene.
Phosgene is a highly volatile, colorless liquid with a slight odor. rotten apples or hay. It is able to act on the body in a vapor state.
The drug belongs to slow-acting substances, it begins its effect after a few hours. The severity of the lesion will depend on its concentration, as well as on the state of the human body and the time spent in the contaminated area.
General toxic drugs
Chemically toxic substances from this group penetrate the body with water and food, as well as through the respiratory system. These include:
- Hydrocyanic acid.
- Cyanogen chloride.
- Carbon monoxide.
- Phosphorous hydrogen.
- Arsenic hydrogen.
With a lesion, the following symptoms can be diagnosed: vomiting appears, dizziness, a person may lose consciousness, convulsions, paralysis are possible.
Prussic acid smells like almonds, it is found in small quantities even in the seeds of some fruits, for example, in apricots, therefore it is not recommended to use fruits with stones for compote.
Although this fear may be in vain, because hydrocyanic acid has its effect only in the vapor state. When it is affected, characteristic signs are observed: dizziness, a metallic taste in the mouth, weakness and nausea.
Substances irritating
Irritating toxic substances can affect a person only for a short time. They are not fatal, but can cause temporary loss or decrease in performance. They act mainly on the nerve endings located in the skin and mucous membranes.
Their action is manifested almost instantly after application. Substances of this group can be divided into the following varieties:
- Tear.
- Sneeze.
- Causing pain.
When exposed to substances of the first group, severe pain appears in the eyes, and an abundant release of lacrimal fluid begins. If the skin of the hands is tender and sensitive, then burning and itching may appear on it.
Sneezing poisonous substances of irritating action affect the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract, which causes an attack of unrestrained sneezing, coughing, and pain behind the sternum appears. Since there is an effect on the nervous system, it can be noted headache, nausea, vomiting, muscle weakness. In severe cases, convulsions, paralysis and loss of consciousness are possible.
Substances that have a painful effect provoke pain, as from a burn, blow.
Psychochemicals
This group of drugs affects the nervous system and causes changes in the mental activity of a person. Blindness or deafness, fear, hallucinations may appear. Locomotor functions are disturbed, but such lesions do not lead to death.
The best-known representative of this category is BZ. When exposed to it, the following symptoms begin to appear:
- Dry mouth.
- The pupils become too wide.
- The pulse quickens.
- There is weakness in the muscles.
- Decreased concentration and memory.
- A person stops responding to external stimuli.
- Hallucinations appear.
- Complete detachment from the outside world.
The use of psychochemical drugs in war time leads to the fact that the enemy loses the ability to make correct and timely decisions.
First aid for exposure to poisonous substances
Protection from chemicals may also be needed in peacetime. In case of emergencies at chemically hazardous sites, it is necessary to have personal protective equipment and transport on hand so that people can be taken out of the contaminated place.
Since the agents act rapidly, in such accidents many are seriously injured, and they require immediate hospitalization. What measures can be attributed to first aid:
- The use of antidotes.
- Careful treatment of all open areas of the body in case of contact with OM drops.
- Put on a gas mask or at least a cotton-gauze bandage.
- Remove the person from the lesion. This must be done first.
- If necessary, carry out resuscitation measures.
- Evacuation from the area of infection.
First aid may vary depending on the poison. For example, if an irritant has been damaged, then the following must be done:
- Remove gas mask and uniform, if possible.
- Enter 1 ml of 2% promedol.
- Thoroughly rinse the mouth, eyes, skin of the hands and face with 2% sodium bicarbonate solution.
- If there is pain in the eyes, then it is necessary to drip a 2% solution of novocaine or atropine. You can put eye ointment on your eyelids.
- If a person suffers from cardiovascular diseases, then it is necessary to give him heart preparations.
- Treat the skin with a 5% solution of potassium permanganate and apply an anti-burn bandage.
- Take antibiotics for a few days.
Now there is special equipment and instruments that allow not only to determine the presence of toxic substances, to recognize them, but also to accurately determine their amount.
Poison Protection
If an accident occurs at a chemical enterprise, then the first task that should be faced is the protection of the population living near the place of emergency, as well as the employees of the enterprise.
The most reliable means of protection mass use asylums are considered, which must be provided for at such enterprises. But poisonous substances begin their effect immediately, therefore, when chemicals are released, time passes by seconds and minutes, and assistance must be provided urgently.
All employees of the enterprise must be equipped with special breathing apparatus or gas masks. Now they are actively working on the creation of a new generation gas mask, which will be able to protect against all types of poisonous substances.
For chemical accidents great importance the speed of the withdrawal of people from the contaminated area plays a role, and this is possible only if all these measures are clearly planned in advance, equipment for urgent evacuation is provided and stands ready.
The population of nearby settlements should be notified in a timely manner of the danger of infection so that people take all necessary measures protection. Beforehand, it is necessary to conduct conversations in case of such situations, so that the population has an idea of how to protect themselves from toxic substances.
The basis of the damaging effect of chemical weapons is toxic substances (S), which have a physiological effect on the human body.
Unlike other military means, chemical weapons effectively destroy the enemy's manpower over a large area without destroying materiel. This is a weapon of mass destruction.
Together with the air, toxic substances penetrate into any premises, shelters, military equipment. The damaging effect persists for some time, objects and terrain become infected.
Types of poisonous substances
Poisonous substances under the shell of chemical munitions are in solid and liquid form.
At the moment of their application, when the shell is destroyed, they come into a combat state:
- vaporous (gaseous);
- aerosol (drizzle, smoke, fog);
- drip-liquid.
Poisonous substances are the main damaging factor of chemical weapons.
Characteristics of chemical weapons
Such weapons are shared:
- According to the type of physiological effects of OM on the human body.
- For tactical purposes.
- By the speed of the coming impact.
- According to the resistance of the applied OV.
- By means and methods of application.
Human exposure classification:
- OV nerve agent action. Deadly, fast-acting, persistent. They act on the central nervous system. The purpose of their use is the rapid mass incapacitation of personnel with the maximum number of deaths. Substances: sarin, soman, tabun, V-gases.
- OV skin blister action. Deadly, slow acting, persistent. They affect the body through the skin or respiratory organs. Substances: mustard gas, lewisite.
- OV of general toxic action. Deadly, fast acting, unstable. They disrupt the function of the blood to deliver oxygen to the tissues of the body. Substances: hydrocyanic acid and cyanogen chloride.
- OV suffocating action. Deadly, slow acting, unstable. The lungs are affected. Substances: phosgene and diphosgene.
- OV psychochemical action. Non-lethal. They temporarily affect the central nervous system, affect mental activity, cause temporary blindness, deafness, a sense of fear, restriction of movement. Substances: inuclidyl-3-benzilate (BZ) and lysergic acid diethylamide.
- OV irritating action (irritants). Non-lethal. They act quickly, but for a short time. Outside the infected zone, their effect stops after a few minutes. These are tear and sneezing substances that irritate the upper respiratory tract and can affect the skin. Substances: CS, CR, DM(adamsite), CN(chloroacetophenone).
Damage factors of chemical weapons
Toxins are chemical protein substances of animal, plant or microbial origin with high toxicity. Typical representatives: butulic toxin, ricin, staphylococcal entsrotoxin.
The damaging factor determined by toxodose and concentration. The zone of chemical contamination can be divided into the focus of exposure (people are massively affected there) and the zone of distribution of the infected cloud.
First use of chemical weapons
Chemist Fritz Haber was a consultant to the German War Office and is called the father of chemical weapons for his work in the development and use of chlorine and other poisonous gases. The government set the task before him - to create chemical weapons with irritating and toxic substances. It's a paradox, but Haber believed that with the help of a gas war, he would save many lives by ending the trench war.
The history of application begins on April 22, 1915, when the German military first launched a chlorine gas attack. A greenish cloud arose in front of the trenches of the French soldiers, which they watched with curiosity.
When the cloud came close, a sharp smell was felt, the soldiers stinged in the eyes and nose. The mist burned the chest, blinded, choked. The smoke moved deep into the French positions, sowing panic and death, followed by German soldiers with bandages on their faces, but they had no one to fight with.
By evening, chemists from other countries found out what kind of gas it was. It turned out that any country can produce it. Salvation from him turned out to be simple: you need to cover your mouth and nose with a bandage soaked in a solution of soda, and plain water on a bandage weakens the effect of chlorine.
After 2 days, the Germans repeated the attack, but the Allied soldiers soaked clothes and rags in puddles and applied them to their faces. Thanks to this, they survived and remained in position. When the Germans entered the battlefield, machine guns “spoke” to them.
Chemical weapons of the First World War
On May 31, 1915, the first gas attack on the Russians took place. Russian troops mistook the greenish cloud for camouflage and brought even more soldiers to the front line. Soon the trenches filled with corpses. Even the grass died from the gas.
In June 1915, they began to use a new poisonous substance - bromine. It was used in projectiles.
In December 1915 - phosgene. It smells like hay and has a lingering effect. Cheapness made it easy to use. At first they were produced in special cylinders, and by 1916 they began to make shells.
Bandages did not save from blistering gases. It penetrated through clothes and shoes, causing burns on the body. The area was poisoned for more than a week. Such was the king of gases - mustard gas.
Not only the Germans, their opponents also began to produce gas-filled shells. In one of the trenches of the First World War, Adolf Hitler was also poisoned by the British.
For the first time, Russia also used this weapon on the battlefields of the First World War.
Chemical weapons of mass destruction
Experiments with chemical weapons took place under the guise of developing poisons for insects. Used in gas chambers concentration camps "Cyclone B" - hydrocyanic acid - an insecticidal agent.
"Agent Orange" - a substance for deleafing vegetation. Used in Vietnam, soil poisoning caused severe diseases and mutations in the local population.
In 2013, in Syria, in the suburbs of Damascus, a chemical attack was carried out on a residential area - the lives of hundreds of civilians were claimed, including many children. A nerve agent was used, most likely Sarin.
One of modern options A chemical weapon is a binary weapon. It comes to combat readiness in the end chemical reaction after connecting two harmless components.
Victims of chemical weapons of mass destruction are all those who fell into the strike zone. Back in 1905, an international agreement was signed on the non-use of chemical weapons. To date, 196 countries around the world have signed up to the ban.
In addition to chemical to weapons of mass destruction and biological.
Types of protection
- Collective. The shelter can provide long stays for people without personal protective equipment if it is equipped with filter-ventilation kits and is well sealed.
- Individual. Gas mask, protective clothing and a personal chemical bag (PPI) with antidote and liquid to treat clothing and skin lesions.
Prohibition on use
Humanity was shocked by the terrible consequences and huge losses of people after the use of weapons of mass destruction. Therefore, in 1928, the Geneva Protocol came into force on the prohibition of the use in war of asphyxiating, poisonous or other similar gases and bacteriological agents. This protocol prohibits the use of not only chemical, but also biological weapons. In 1992, another document came into force, the Chemical Weapons Convention. This document complements the Protocol, it speaks not only of a ban on the manufacture and use, but also on the destruction of all chemical weapons. The implementation of this document is controlled by a specially created committee at the UN. But not all states signed this document, for example, Egypt, Angola, North Korea, South Sudan did not recognize it. It also entered into legal force in Israel and Myanmar.
poisonous substances - toxic chemical compounds that have certain physical and chemical properties that make it possible to use them in combat for the purpose of destroying manpower, contaminating terrain and military equipment.
Poisonous substances form the basis of chemical weapons. Being in a combat state, they infect the human body, penetrating through the respiratory system, skin and wounds from fragments of chemical munitions. In addition, a person can get injured as a result of eating contaminated food and water, as well as exposure to toxic agents on the mucous membranes of the eyes and nasopharynx.
Combat state OB - such a state of matter in which it is used on the battlefield in order to achieve the maximum effect in the defeat of manpower. Types of combat state of OV: steam, aerosol, drops. Qualitative differences in these combat states are determined mainly by the particle size of the fragmented OM.
Steam formed by molecules or atoms of matter.
Aerosols are heterogeneous (heterogeneous) systems consisting of solid or liquid particles of a substance suspended in the air. Particles of a substance with a size of 10 -6 -10 -3 cm form finely dispersed, practically not settling aerosols; particles with a size of 10 -2 cm form coarse aerosols, and therefore, in the gravitational field, they settle relatively quickly on various surfaces.
Drops - larger particles with a size of 0.5 . 10 -1 cm and above, which, unlike coarse aerosols, settle (fall on the surface) quickly.
Agents in the state of vapor or fine aerosol contaminate the air and infect manpower through the respiratory organs (inhalation injury). The quantitative characteristic of air contamination with vapors and fine aerosols is mass concentrationFROM – the amount of OM per unit volume of contaminated air (g/m 3).
OM in the form of a coarse aerosol or droplets infect the area, military equipment, uniforms, protective equipment, water bodies and are capable of infecting unprotected personnel both at the time of the cloud of contaminated air settling and after the settling of OM particles due to their evaporation from contaminated surfaces, as well as upon contact personnel with these surfaces and when using contaminated food and water. A quantitative characteristic of the degree of contamination of various surfaces is infection density Qm is the amount of OM per unit area of the contaminated surface (g/m2).
The quantitative characteristic of contamination of water sources is OM concentration, contained in a unit volume of water (g / m 3).
Poisonous substances form the basis of chemical weapons.
2 Educational question Classification of toxic substances according to their effect on a living organism. Ways to protect against ov.
In the US Army, the most widely used classification is based on the division of known agents according to tactical purposes and physiological effects on the body.
By tactical purpose OVs are divided into groups according to the nature of their damaging effect: deadly, temporarily incapacitating manpower, annoying and training.
By physiological effect on the body distinguish OV:
nerve agents: GA (tabun), GB (sarin), GD (soman), VX (Vi-X);
blistering: H (technical mustard), HD (distilled mustard), BT and HO (mustard mustard formulations), HN (nitrogen mustard);
general toxic action: AC (hydrocyanic acid), SC (cyanogen chloride);
asphyxiants: CG (phosgene);
psychochemical: BZ (B-Z);
irritants: CN (chloroacetophenone), DM (adamsite), CS (CS), CR (CI-Ar).
All toxic substances, being chemical compounds, have a chemical name, for example: AC - formic acid nitrile; HD, dichlorodiethyl sulfide; CN is phenyl chloromethyl ketone. Some OM also received conditional names of various origins, for example: mustard gas, sarin, soman, adamsite, phosgene. In addition, for practical use (for marking ammunition, containers for hazardous materials), conventions- ciphers. In the US Army, OB ciphers usually consist of two letters (for example, the previously mentioned GB, VX, BZ, CS). Other ciphers may be used in other NATO armies.
The greatest development in recent times received substances VX, GB, HD, BZ, CS, CR, as well as toxins. Botulinum toxin and staphylococcal enterotoxin can be used as agents.
By speed of attack distinguish:
high-speed agents that do not have a period of latent action, which in a few minutes lead to death or to loss of combat capability as a result of temporary damage (GB, GD, AC, CK, CS, CR);
slow-acting agents that have a period of latent action and lead to damage after some time (VX, HD, CG, BZ).
The speed of the damaging effect, for example, for VX, depends on the type of combat state and the route of exposure to the body. If in the state of coarse aerosol and drops, the skin-resorptive effect of this agent is slow, then in the state of vapor and fine aerosol, its inhalation damaging effect is achieved quickly. The speed of action of the OV also depends on the size of the dose that has entered the body. At high doses, the effect of OB manifests itself much faster.
depending on the duration of the retention of the destructive ability of lethal agents are divided into two groups:
persistent agents that retain their damaging effect for several hours and days (VX, GD, HD);
unstable agents, the damaging effect of which persists for several tens of minutes after their application.
OB GB, depending on the method and conditions of use, can behave both as stable and unstable OB. In summer conditions, it behaves as an unstable agent, especially when infecting non-absorbent surfaces; in winter conditions, it behaves as a persistent agent.
AT capitalist countries producing OM, depending on the level of production they are divided into the following groups:
service OBs (produced in large quantities and are in service; in the USA these include VX GB, HD, BZ, CS, CR);
standby OBs ( toxic substances, which are not currently produced, but, if necessary, can be produced by the chemical industry in sufficient quantities; in the USA, this group includes AC CG, HN, CN, DM).
One of the means of mass destruction is chemical weapons. Poisonous substances that are used in this case are intended to harm human health. They penetrate the body through the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract, skin, with food or water.
These drugs can cause great harm even in small doses. Therefore, penetration through a small wound into the body is already capable of leading to serious consequences. Poisonous substances are obtained by simple methods, which are known to any chemist, while expensive raw materials are not required at all.
The Germans were the first to use chemical weapons in 1914-1918, at that time the First World War was going on. The chlorine they used caused significant damage to the enemy army.
Chemical warfare agents are capable of putting the army out of action for a long time, therefore, analyzing the use of these drugs by Germany, most states began to prepare for the use of chemical agents in upcoming military events.
This training necessarily included providing people with personal protective equipment, as well as various exercises that explain how to behave in the event of a chemical attack.
At present, the danger comes not so much from the use of chemical weapons as from accidents occurring at various chemical plants. During such extreme situations, poisoning can occur.
To know how to protect yourself from them, you need to navigate in their varieties and understand the features of the impact on the human body.
Classification of toxic substances
There are many varieties of chemicals, depending on the criterion that is taken as the basis for classification.
If we consider the goal that the enemy sets for himself, using OV, then they can be divided into the following categories:
- Deadly.
- Disabling for a while.
- Annoying.
If we focus on the speed of exposure, then toxic substances are:
- Fast acting. It only takes a few minutes to cause death or serious injury.
- Slow acting. They have a latency period.
All chemicals have a different period during which they can be dangerous to humans. Depending on this, they are:
- Persistent. Dangerous after using for some time.
- Unstable. After a few minutes, the danger subsides.
The classification of toxic substances according to their physiological effects on the body may look like this:
- General poisonous.
- Substances of skin and blister action.
- Nerve poisons.
- OV suffocating action.
- psychochemical substances.
- Annoying.
- Toxins.
The damaging effect of poisonous substances
Chemicals can be in different states, so they have different ways of penetrating the body. Some get in through the respiratory tract, and there are some that seep through the skin.
Chemical warfare agents have a different damaging effect, which depends on the following factors:
- Concentrations.
- Density of infection.
- Fortitude.
- toxicity.
Poisonous substances can be spread by air masses over long distances from the place of their application, while endangering people who do not have protective equipment.
Detection of OM can be done not only with the help of special equipment. Despite the fact that the characteristics of toxic substances are different, and they all have their own properties and characteristics, there are some common signs that indicate their presence:
- Clouds or fog appear at the site of the rupture of ammunition.
- There is a strange smell that is not typical for this area.
- Respiratory irritation.
- A sharp decrease in vision or its complete loss.
- Plants wither or change color.
At the first sign of a danger of poisoning, it is urgent to use protective equipment, especially if they are nerve agents.
Substances of skin and blister action
The penetration of these substances is carried out through the surface of the skin. In the vapor state or in the form of an aerosol, they can enter the body through the respiratory system.
The most common drugs that can be attributed to this group are mustard gas, lewisite. Mustard is a dark oily liquid with a characteristic odor reminiscent of garlic or mustard.
It is quite resistant, on the ground it can last up to two weeks, and in winter for about a month. Able to affect the skin, organs of vision. In a state of vapor penetrates into the respiratory system. The danger of these substances lies in the fact that their action begins to appear some time after infection.
After exposure, ulcers may appear on the skin, which do not heal for a very long time. If you deeply inhale the agents of this group, then inflammation of the lung tissue begins to develop.
Nerve agents
This is the most dangerous group of drugs that has a lethal effect. Poisonous nerve agents have an irreparable effect on the human nervous system.
Using substances of this category, it is possible to incapacitate a large number of people in a short time, as many simply do not have time to use protective equipment.
Nerve agents include:
- Sarin.
- Soman.
- VX.
- Herd.
Most people are familiar with only the first substance. Its name appears most often in the lists of OV. It is a clear, colorless liquid with a slight pleasant odor.
If this substance is used in the form of a mist or in a vapor state, then it is relatively unstable, but in a drop-liquid form, the danger persists for several days, and in winter for weeks.
Soman is very similar to sarin, but more dangerous to humans, as it acts several times stronger. Without the use of protective equipment, survival is out of the question.
The nerve agents VX and Tabun are low volatile liquids with a high boiling point and are therefore more persistent than sarin.
Asphyxiants
By the name itself, it becomes clear that these substances affect the organs of the respiratory system. Well-known drugs from this group are: phosgene and diphosgene.
Phosgene is a highly volatile, colorless liquid with a slight smell of rotten apples or hay. It is able to act on the body in a vapor state.
The drug belongs to slow-acting substances, it begins its effect after a few hours. The severity of the lesion will depend on its concentration, as well as on the state of the human body and the time spent in the contaminated area.
General toxic drugs
Chemically toxic substances from this group penetrate the body with water and food, as well as through the respiratory system. These include:
- Hydrocyanic acid.
- Cyanogen chloride.
- Carbon monoxide.
- Phosphorous hydrogen.
- Arsenic hydrogen.
With a lesion, the following symptoms can be diagnosed: vomiting appears, dizziness, a person may lose consciousness, convulsions, paralysis are possible.
Prussic acid smells like almonds, it is found in small quantities even in the seeds of some fruits, for example, in apricots, therefore it is not recommended to use fruits with stones for compote.
Although this fear may be in vain, because hydrocyanic acid has its effect only in the vapor state. When it is affected, characteristic signs are observed: dizziness, a metallic taste in the mouth, weakness and nausea.
Substances irritating
Irritating toxic substances can affect a person only for a short time. They are not fatal, but can cause temporary loss or decrease in performance. They act mainly on the nerve endings located in the skin and mucous membranes.
Their action is manifested almost instantly after application. Substances of this group can be divided into the following varieties:
- Tear.
- Sneeze.
- Causing pain.
When exposed to substances of the first group, severe pain appears in the eyes, and an abundant release of lacrimal fluid begins. If the skin of the hands is tender and sensitive, then burning and itching may appear on it.
Sneezing poisonous substances of irritating action affect the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract, which causes an attack of unrestrained sneezing, coughing, and pain behind the sternum appears. Since there is an effect on the nervous system, headache, nausea, vomiting, muscle weakness can be noted. In severe cases, convulsions, paralysis and loss of consciousness are possible.
Substances that have a painful effect provoke pain, as from a burn, blow.
Psychochemicals
This group of drugs affects the nervous system and causes changes in the mental activity of a person. Blindness or deafness, fear, hallucinations may appear. Locomotor functions are disturbed, but such lesions do not lead to death.
The best-known representative of this category is BZ. When exposed to it, the following symptoms begin to appear:
- Dry mouth.
- The pupils become too wide.
- The pulse quickens.
- There is weakness in the muscles.
- Decreased concentration and memory.
- A person stops responding to external stimuli.
- Hallucinations appear.
- Complete detachment from the outside world.
The use of psychochemical means in wartime leads to the fact that the enemy loses the ability to make correct and timely decisions.
First aid for exposure to poisonous substances
Protection from chemicals may also be needed in peacetime. In case of emergencies at chemically hazardous sites, it is necessary to have personal protective equipment and transport on hand so that people can be taken out of the contaminated place.
Since the agents act rapidly, in such accidents many are seriously injured, and they require immediate hospitalization. What measures can be attributed to first aid:
- The use of antidotes.
- Careful treatment of all open areas of the body in case of contact with OM drops.
- Put on a gas mask or at least a cotton-gauze bandage.
- Remove the person from the lesion. This must be done first.
- If necessary, carry out resuscitation measures.
- Evacuation from the area of infection.
First aid may vary depending on the poison. For example, if an irritant has been damaged, then the following must be done:
- Remove gas mask and uniform, if possible.
- Enter 1 ml of 2% promedol.
- Thoroughly rinse the mouth, eyes, skin of the hands and face with 2% sodium bicarbonate solution.
- If there is pain in the eyes, then it is necessary to drip a 2% solution of novocaine or atropine. You can put eye ointment on your eyelids.
- If a person suffers from cardiovascular diseases, then it is necessary to give him heart preparations.
- Treat the skin with a 5% solution of potassium permanganate and apply an anti-burn bandage.
- Take antibiotics for a few days.
Now there is special equipment and instruments that allow not only to determine the presence of toxic substances, to recognize them, but also to accurately determine their amount.
Poison Protection
If an accident occurs at a chemical enterprise, then the first task that should be faced is the protection of the population living near the place of emergency, as well as the employees of the enterprise.
The most reliable means for protecting mass use are shelters, which must be provided for at such enterprises. But poisonous substances begin their effect immediately, therefore, when chemicals are released, time passes by seconds and minutes, and assistance must be provided urgently.
All employees of the enterprise must be equipped with special breathing apparatus or gas masks. Now they are actively working on the creation of a new generation gas mask, which will be able to protect against all types of poisonous substances.
In chemical accidents, the speed of evacuation of people from the contaminated area is of great importance, and this is possible only if all these measures are clearly planned in advance, equipment for urgent evacuation is provided and is at the ready.
The population of nearby settlements should be notified in a timely manner of the danger of infection so that people take all necessary protective measures. Beforehand, it is necessary to conduct conversations in case of such situations, so that the population has an idea of how to protect themselves from toxic substances.
Warfare agents (OV) - toxic chemical compounds designed to defeat the enemy's manpower.
OM can affect the body through the respiratory system, skin and digestive tract. The combat properties (combat effectiveness) of agents are determined by their toxicity (due to the ability to inhibit enzymes or interact with receptors), physicochemical properties (volatility, solubility, resistance to hydrolysis, etc.), the ability to penetrate through biobarriers of warm-blooded animals and overcome protective equipment.
Chemical warfare agents are the main damaging element of chemical weapons.
Classification.
The most common tactical and physiological classifications of OS.
Tactical classification
According to saturated vapor pressure (volatility) on:
unstable (phosgene, hydrocyanic acid);
resistant (mustard gas, lewisite, VX);
poisonous smoke (adamsite, chloroacetophenone).
By the nature of the impact on manpower on:
lethal (sarin, mustard gas);
temporarily incapacitating personnel (chloracetophenone, quinuclidyl-3-benzilate);
irritant: (adamsite, CS, CR, chloroacetophenone);
educational: (chloropicrin);
By the speed of the onset of the damaging effect:
fast-acting - do not have a latent period (sarin, soman, VX, AC, CH, CS, CR);
slow-acting - have a period of latent action (mustard gas, phosgene, BZ, lewisite, adamsite);
Physiological classification.
According to the physiological classification, they are divided into:
nerve agents (organophosphorus compounds): sarin, soman, tabun, VX;
general toxic agents: hydrocyanic acid; cyanogen chloride;
blister agents: mustard gas, nitrogen mustard, lewisite;
OS, irritating the upper respiratory tract or sternites: adamsite, diphenylchlorarsine, diphenylcyanarsine;
suffocating agents: phosgene, diphosgene;
eye irritating agents or lacrimators: chlorpicrin, chloracetophenone, dibenzoxazepine, chlorobenzalmalondinitrile, bromobenzyl cyanide;
psychochemical agents: quinuclidyl-3-benzylate, BZ.
Chemical munitions.
Ammunition equipped with military toxic chemicals (BTCS) - poisonous substances, toxins, phytotoxicants. X.b. various types form a system of chemical weapons - one of the types of weapons of mass destruction. The transfer of BTXV to a combat state is the main and specific function of X.b. According to the method of such a translation, X.b. explosive (shells, mines, missile warheads, bombs, cluster elements), pouring (pouring aviation devices - VAP (Fig. 1)), spraying (spraying aviation devices - RAP), thermal (checkers, grenades), thermomechanical and mechanical ( aerosol generators) action. Aerosol generators, VAP and RAP reusable are also called chemical warfare devices.
X.b. delivered to the target: firearms (artillery shells and mines), jet engines (warheads of missiles and rockets), aircraft manned and unmanned aerial vehicles (chemical warfare devices, bombs, grenades), as well as manually thrown (hand grenades). In addition, it is possible to install chemical bombs and land mines on the ground.
X.b. has a single scheme of the device, which includes 5 main structural elements: a shell with BTXV, made in the form of a body, cylinder or reservoir of various designs; a source of energy for the destruction of the shell and the transfer of the mass of BTXV into an aerodispersed state (charges of high explosives, powder charges, pyrotechnic compositions, compressed gases; for some X.b., for example VAP, high-speed oncoming air flows are used as an energy source); means for bringing the energy source into action at a given moment of time ( different kinds fuses, fuses, squibs); device for docking with the carrier, which makes it possible to use X.b. using appropriate means of delivery to the target; a device for stabilizing the movement of X. b., ensuring that it hits the target. When developing a specific design scheme X.b. take into account the type of BTXV, the chosen method of transferring to a combat state, as well as the features of the carrier with which it is supposed to use this X.b.
A special variety of X.b. are binary chemical munitions, the action of which is based on the use of two (hence the name "binary") non-toxic or low-toxic components that, when mixed, can enter into a chemical reaction to form highly toxic BTCS. The components of such substances are contained in the ammunition separately from each other and are mixed only during the flight to the target. In other words, the final part of the technological process for the production of deadly gases is transferred from the shop to the body of the ammunition and is carried out only on the flight path.
Read also...
- Are there benefits for large families when entering a university List of benefits for large families
- Causes of bleeding during early pregnancy: what to do?
- What to do if a child has a leg pain in the thigh when walking: causes, treatment and folk remedies
- What to do and how to treat watery diarrhea in a child?
