Chemical Warfare Agents

This file lists the known chemical agents currently in military applications worldwide.

The datafile does not include several agents (chlorine, for example) which have been in disuse, but which could conceivably be revived. Database users must exercise their judgement. Additionally, mixtures of agents (GB/HD, for example) sometimes have slightly different properties and effects than when used separately. Biological agents have extremely difficult parameters and were omitted intentionally; they may be added later if sufficient, easily interpretable data can be obtained at the unclassified level.

No attempt to define "persistent" and "non-persistent" has been made here. Persistence is related to delivery means, weather, vegetation, humidity, and other factors. Instead, the approximate persistence (in hours) appears in two columns based soley on temperature - it is a guide only to explain the relative persistence of agents to each other.

The action column describes the relative speed of the agent on exposed personnel. The speed is relative to the other agents listed, with "instant" and "immediate" being the fastest, and "delayed" the slowest - often meaning hours or days later. The degree of exposure, the type of exposure (skin, inhalation, ingestion, etc) and other factors determine the effect on any potential casualty.

The "state" and "odor" columns give observers some reference as to what to expect if an agent is present. However, agents can be mixed with other materials, altering their signatures. These are some potential indicators that agents are present; when suspected, agents are best detected by dedicated chemical detection equipment.

Physiological effects were not added to the table, nor was nation or origin. Oftentimes, agents cause certain effects when inhaled, others when ingested, and still others when absorbed. Nation of origin was regarded as immaterial, given the relative ease of producing most agents. Although some agents are tactically delivered by only selected means, since most can be delivered by a wide range of methods, no attempt has been made to list these here.