Chemical warfare (CW) involves

using the toxic

properties of chemical
substances as weapons.

Chemical warfare
Definition[edit source | editbeta]
Chemical warfare is different from the use of conventional
weapons or nuclear weapons because the destructive
effects of chemical weapons are not primarily due to
any explosiveforce. The offensive use of
living organisms (such as anthrax) is considered biological
warfare rather than chemical warfare; however, the use of
nonliving toxic products produced by living organisms
(e.g. toxins such as botulinum toxin, ricin,
and saxitoxin) is considered chemical warfare under the
provisions of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC).
Under this Convention, any toxic chemical, regardless of its
origin, is considered a chemical weapon unless it is used for
purposes that are not prohibited (an important legal
definition known as the General Purpose Criterion).[1]
About 70 different chemicals have been used
or stockpiled as chemical warfare agents during the 20th
century. The entire class known as Lethal Unitary Chemical
Agents and Munitions have been scheduled for elimination
by the CWC.[2]
Under the Convention, chemicals that are toxic enough to
be used as chemical weapons, or that may be used to
manufacture such chemicals, are divided into three groups
according to their purpose and treatment:
 Schedule 1 – Have few, if any, legitimate uses. These
may only be produced or used for research, medical,
pharmaceutical or protective purposes (i.e. testing of
 chemical weapons sensors and protective clothing).
Examples include nerve agents, ricin, lewisite and mustard
gas. Any production over 100 g must be reported to
the OPCW and a country can have a stockpile of no more
than one tonne of these chemicals.
 Schedule 2 – Have no large-scale industrial uses, but may
have legitimate small-scale uses. Examples
include dimethyl methylphosphonate,
a precursor to sarin but which is also used as a flame
retardant and Thiodiglycol which is a precursor chemical
used in the manufacture of mustard gas but is also widely
used as a solvent in inks.
 Schedule 3 – Have legitimate large-scale industrial uses.
Examples include phosgene and chloropicrin. Both have
been used as chemical weapons but phosgene is an
 important precursor in the manufacture of plastics and
chloropicrin is used as a fumigant. The OPCW must be
notified of, and may inspect, any plant producing more
than 30 tonnes per year.
Chemical warfare agents[edit source | editbeta]
See also: List of chemical warfare agents
A chemical used in warfare is called a chemical warfare
agent (CWA). About 70 different chemicals have been used
or stockpiled as chemical warfare agents during the 20th
and 21st-centuries. These agents may be in liquid, gas or
solid form. Liquid agents that evaporate quickly are said to
be volatile or have a high vapor pressure. Many chemical
agents are made volatile so they can be dispersed over a
large region quickly.
The earliest target of chemical warfare agent research was
not toxicity, but development of agents that can affect a
target through the skin and clothing, rendering
protective gas masks useless. In July 1917, the Germans
employed mustard gas. Mustard gas easily penetrates
leather and fabric to inflict painful burns on the skin.
Chemical warfare agents are divided
into lethal and incapacitating categories. A substance is
classified as incapacitating if less than 1/100 of the lethal
dose causes incapacitation, e.g., through nausea or visual
problems. The distinction between lethal and incapacitating
substances is not fixed, but relies on a statistical average
called the LD50.
Ideal protection begins with nonproliferation treaties such as
the Chemical Weapons Convention, and detecting, very
early, the signatures of someone building a chemical
weapons capability. These include a wide range of
intelligence disciplines, such as economic analysis of
exports of dual-use chemicals and equipment, human
intelligence (HUMINT) such as diplomatic, refugee, and
agent reports; photography from satellites, aircraft and
drones (IMINT); examination of captured equipment
(TECHINT); communications intercepts (COMINT); and
detection of chemical manufacturing and chemical agents
themselves (MASINT).
If all the preventive measures fail and there is a clear and
present danger, then there is a need for detection of
chemical attacks,[7]collective protection,[8][9][10] and
decontamination. Since industrial accidents can cause
dangerous chemical releases (e.g., the Bhopal disaster),
these activities are things that civilian, as well as military,
organizations must be prepared to carry out. In civilian
situations indeveloped countries, these are duties
of HAZMAT organizations, which most commonly are part of
fire departments.
Detection has been referred to above, as a
technical MASINT discipline; specific military procedures,
which are usually the model for civilian procedures, depend
on the equipment, expertise, and personnel available. When
chemical agents are detected, an alarm needs to sound,
with specific warnings over emergency broadcasts and the
like. There may be a warning to expect an attack.
If, for example, the captain of a US Navy ship believes there
is a serious threat of chemical, biological, or radiological
attack, the crew may be ordered to set Circle William, which
means closing all openings to outside air, running breathing
air through filters, and possibly starting a system that
continually washes down the exterior surfaces. Civilian
authorities dealing with an attack or a toxic chemical
accident will invoke the Incident Command System, or local
equivalent, to coordinate defensive measures.[10]
Individual protection starts with a gas mask and, depending
on the nature of the threat, through various levels of
protective clothing up to a complete chemical-resistant suit
with a self-contained air supply. The US military defines
various levels of MOPP (mission-oriented protective
posture) from mask to full chemical resistant suits; Hazmat
suits are the civilian equivalent, but go farther to include a
fully independent air supply, rather than the filters of a gas
mask.
Collective protection allows continued functioning of groups
of people in buildings or shelters, the latter which may be
fixed, mobile, or improvised. With ordinary buildings, this
may be as basic as plastic sheeting and tape, although if the
protection needs to be continued for any appreciable length
of time, there will need to be an air supply, typically a
scaled-up version of a gas mask.[9][10]