POISON+GAS+IN+WW1



CHLORINE Counter-measures Phosegene MUSTARD GAS BY LEVI media type="youtube" key="-lSLWnfCP6M" height="349" width="425" SOURCES [] []
 * Chlorine requires a concentration of 1,000 parts per million to be fatal
 * Destroys tissue in the lungs, through the formation of hydrochloric acid
 * Despite not being as awesome a weapon as hoped, it looked scary so it was still used.
 * Germans issued their troops with gauze pads filled with cotton waste, and bottles of a bicarbonate to dampen the pads
 * chlorine was overcome by the introduction of phosgene
 * prepared by some French chemists
 * first used by France in 1915
 * Colourless and has an odor like "mouldy hay"
 * Phosgene is difficult to detect, making it a more effective weapon.
 * often mixed with an equal volume of chlorine, The Allies called this combination //White Star//
 * some of the symptoms of exposure took 24 hours or more to manifest.
 * Although phosgene was never as notorious in public consciousness as mustard gas, it killed far more people
 * about 85% of the 100,000 deaths caused by chemical weapons during World War I
 * The most widely reported and effective gas of WW1
 * introduced by Germany in July 1917 prior to the [|Third Battle of Ypres]
 * Not a very good killing agent but was used to harass and disable the enemy and pollute the battlefield.
 * Delivered in artillery shells, mustard gas was heavier than air, and it settled to the ground as an oily liquid
 * . Once in the soil, mustard gas remained active for several days, weeks, or even months, depending on the weather conditions
 * The skin of victims of mustard gas blistered, their eyes became very sore and they began to vomit. Mustard gas caused internal and external bleeding and attacked the bronchial tubes, stripping off the mucous membrane