Arsenicals history

During this period in arsenic history, many unusual, sometimes bizarre, uses were found for the metalloid. With the development of the Marsh test in 1836, the use of arsenic was shifted from homicide to suicide. A compilation of the common means of suicide in Prussia in 1913, for instance, showed the following startling results ... 

Nitrogen Compounds Ammonia Phosphorus History Properties Sources Uses Arsenic History Properties Uses... 

Arsenal extended to the year 1902, and the history of the depot was one of gradual construction with the ultimate idea of an establishment for the storage of powder. However, a few years before the Spanish American War, the depot began assembling powder charges for cannon. This propellant charge loading, Picatinny s first production activity, has never ceased... 

General Refs 129) G.H. Custard, G. Francis W. Schnackenberg, Small Arms Incendiary Ammunition , Frankford Arsenal Report No R-1407, Vol 1-4 (Dec 1956), AD 159 322 130) J.R. Partington, A History of Greek Fire and Gun Powder , W. Heffer and Sons, Cambridge (1960) 131) Anon, EngrgDesHndbk,... 

Other factors associated with the risk of NMSC include exposure to ionizing radiation and arsenic, which is connected with BCC. Chemical carcinogens that give rise to NMSC include industrial hydrocarbons that are found in coal tars, soot, asphalt, paraffin waxes, and tobacco.21 Exposure to the human papilloma virus (HPV-6, -11, -16, and -18) has been linked to SCC.31 Lastly, a personal history of previous melanoma is a risk factor for developing another primary melanoma. 

Kleinfeld (1980) reported a case of arsine poisoning in a 31-y-old man. The exposure to arsine occurred from a leaking canister thought to be empty. The exposure duration was estimated to be 1-2 min, but no actual or estimated arsine concentrations were available. The victim presented with hematuria. On hospital admission, no intact erythrocytes were present in the urine, hematocrit was 43%, and hemoglobin was 9.8 g/ dL. The hematocrit dropped to as low as 18%, the correction of which required one unit of packed cells. Based upon the exposure history and the subject s note of a "garlicky" odor, the diagnosis was arsine-induced hemolytic anemia. Urinary arsenic was 7.2 mg/L on admission and 0.1 mg/L 4 d later. The patient was subsequently discharged. 

Reid, E. Emmet. "History of Offense Research, John Hopkins University Station", Historical Report No. H-149, Chemical Warfare Service, Edgewood Arsenal Technical Library. 

Just as in the early history of lawn chemicals, when only a handful of toxic substances dominated the market, known risks concerning these substances has never stood in the way of their use and marketing. As in the case of both lead arsenate and DDT, as long as any level of uncertainty concerning the exact risks... 

Arsenic in the elemental form is a brittle, grayish crystal that becomes darker when exposed to air. It is seldom found in the pure elemental form but rather in minerals (compounds). It has a long history of use as a poison, and many alchemists were poisoned when using it in their attempts to produce gold from base metals. 

Martin DE, Martin BB, Alldredge, RE.. Arsenic, Nitrate, and Perchlorate in Water — Dangers, Distribution, and Removal. Bulletin for the History of Chemistry 2008 33 17-24. 

The story of the Lake Danmark Explosion that levelled many buildings at Picatinny Arsenal on 10 July 1926 is well told in the "History. of Explosions , published under the direction of the Institute of Makers of Explosives. Their rept reads, in part, as follows ... 

History of Picatinny Arsenal , Dover, NJ (31 March 1931) Chapter IX, "Safety and the Lake Denmark Explosion , pp 72—91... 

---