. "Appendix C: Physical Properties of Chemical Agents in Munitions Stored at Blue Grass Army Depot and Pueblo Chemical Depot." Review of Secondary Waste Disposal Planning for the Blue Grass and Pueblo Chemical Agent Destruction Pilot Plants. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press, 2008.
The following HTML text is provided to enhance online
readability. Many aspects of typography translate only awkwardly to HTML.
Please use the page image
as the authoritative form to ensure accuracy.
Review of Secondary Waste Disposal Planning for the Blue Grass and Pueblo Chemical Agent Destruction Pilot Plants
Appendix C Physical Properties of Chemical Agents in Munitions Storedat Blue Grass Army Depot and Pueblo Chemical Depot
Munitions containing the nerve agents GB and VX are stored at the Blue Grass Army Depot as are munitions containing mustard agent H. Munitions containing mustard agent HD or HT are stored at Pueblo Chemical Depot. Values for a number of physical properties of these agents are given in Tables C-1 and C-2.
Below are the first 10 and last 10 pages of uncorrected machine-read text (when available) of this chapter, followed by the top 30 algorithmically extracted key phrases from the chapter as a whole. Intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text on the opening pages of each chapter.
Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.
Do not use for reproduction, copying, pasting, or reading; exclusively for search engines.
OCR for page 59
Review of Secondary Waste Disposal Planning for the Blue Grass and Pueblo Chemical Agent Destruction Pilot Plants
Appendix C
Physical Properties of Chemical Agents in Munitions Stored at Blue Grass Army Depot and Pueblo Chemical Depot
Munitions containing the nerve agents GB and VX are stored at the Blue Grass Army Depot as are munitions containing mustard agent H. Munitions containing mustard agent HD or HT are stored at Pueblo Chemical Depot. Values for a number of physical properties of these agents are given in Tables C-1 and C-2.
TABLE C-1 Physical Properties of Nerve Agents
Agent Characteristic
GB
VX
Chemical formula
C4H10FO2P
C11H26NO2PS
Molecular weight
140.10
267.38
Boiling point (°C)
150 (extrapolated)
292 (extrapolated)
Freezing point (°C)
−56
≤51
Vapor pressure at 25°C (mm Hg)
2.48
0.000878
Volatility at 25at 25°C (mg/m (mg/m3)
18,700
12.6
Surface tension at 20°C (dynes/cm)(dynes/cm)
26.5
32.0
Kinematic viscosity (cSt)
1.28 at 25°C
12.26 at 20°C
Liquid density at 25°C (g/cm3)
1.0887
1.0083
Solubility (g/100 g of distilled water)
100; soluble in organic solvents
5 at 25°C; best solvents are dilute mineral acids
Heat of vaporization (cal/g)
82.9
71.8
Heat of combustion (cal/g)
5,600
8,300
SOURCE: NRC, 2005; Abercrombie, 2003.
OCR for page 60
Review of Secondary Waste Disposal Planning for the Blue Grass and Pueblo Chemical Agent Destruction Pilot Plants
TABLE C-2 Physical Properties of Mustard Agentsa
Agent Characteristic
HD
HTb
Chemical name
Bis (2-chloroethyl) sulfide or 2,2'-dichlorodiethyl sulfide
Same as HD with 20 to 40 wt% agent T, bis[2-(2-chlorethylthio) ethyl] ether
Chemical formula
C4H8Cl2S
Not applicable
Molecular weight
159.07
188.96 (based on 60/40 wt%)
Vapor density (relative to air)
5.5 (calculated)
6.5 (calculated based on 60/40 wt%)
Boiling point (°C)
218 (extrapolated)
No constant boiling point
Decomposition temperature (°C)
180
165 to 180
Freezing point (°C)
14.45
1.3 (measured as melting point)
Vapor pressure at 25°C (mm Hg)
0.106
7.7 × 10–2 (calculated based on Raoult’s law equation)
Volatility at 25°C (mg/m3)
9.06 × 102 (calculated from vapor pressure)
7.83 × 102 (calculated from vapor pressure)
Diffusion coefficient for vapor in air (cm2/sec)
0.060 at 20°C (68°F)
0.05 at 25°C (77°F)
Flash point (°C)
105
Flash point range 109 to 115
Surface tension (dynes/cm)
43.2 at 20°C (68°F)
44 at 25°C (77°F)
Viscosity at 20°C (cSt)
3.52
6.05
Liquid density at 25°C (g/cm3)
1.2685
1.263
Solubility (g/100 g of distilled water)
0.092 at 22°C (72°F); soluble in acetone, carbon tetrachloride, chloroform, tetrachloroethane, ethyl benzoate, ether
Slightly soluble in water; soluble in most organic solvents
Heat of vaporization
Not available
(Btu/lb)
190
(J/g)
82
Heat of combustion
Not available
(Btu/lb)
8,100
(J/g)
3,482
aMustard agents are labeled H, HD, and HT. The active ingredient in all these blister agents is bis(2-chloroethyl) sulfide, or (ClCH2CH2)2S. HD, called the distilled mustard, is nominally pure mustard agent. H, often called Levinstein mustard, was approximately 70% pure mustard agent and 30% impurities at the time of manufacture. However, the stored H mustard agent has deteriorated over time and its physical properties are highly variable. H is the only form of mustard agent stored at Blue Grass Army Depot.
bOverall proportional composition of the mixture. HT is prepared by a chemical process that synthesizes the HT directly in such a way that it contains both the HD and T constituents without further formulation.
SOURCES: Adapted from U.S. Army, 1988; Abercrombie, 2003; BPT, 2004.
REFERENCES
Abercrombie, P.L. 2003. Physical Property Data Review of Selected Chemical Agents and Related Compounds: Updated Field Manual 3-9 (FM 3-9), ECBC-TR-294, September. Edgewood, Md.: U.S. Army Edgewood Chemical Biological Center.
BPT (Bechtel Pueblo Team). 2004. Initial Design for the Pueblo Chemical Agent Destruction Pilot Plant (PCAPP) Project, Rev. A—redacted for release to NRC, January 16. Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md.: Program Manager, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives.
NRC. 2005. Interim Design Assessment for the Blue Grass Chemical Agent Destruction Pilot Plant. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press.
U.S. Army. 1988. Chemical Stockpile Disposal Program Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement. Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md.: U.S. Army Chemical Materials Agency.
