Process chemical weapons

Environmentally safe destruction of obsolete chemical weapons must be performed In facilities which assure total containment of blast effects and toxic gas In the event of an accidental detonation. Functional process requirements and recommended structural design procedures for containment rooms to accomplish this purpose are presented. The requirements presented are consistent with Department of the Army and Department of Defense Explosive Safety Board requirements. 

The Army terminology for destruction of obsolete weapons Is "demilitarization". This term encompasses all the steps required to disassemble and safely destroy or decontaminate the component materials of which the munition was constructed. National Academy of Sciences and Department of the Army Guidance for demilitarization of obsolete chemical weapons (t) requires absolute safety and security, assurance of total containment of agent during processing, maximum protection of operating personnel and Incontrovertible evidence verifying the destruction of the toxic wastes. 

The U.S. Army is in the process of destroying the country s stockpile of aging chemical weapons, stored at eight locations in the continental United States and on Johnston Atoll in the Pacific Ocean. The deadline for completing the destruction of these weapons, as specified by the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) international treaty, is April 29, 2007. Originally, the Army selected incineration as the preferred baseline destruction technology, and it currently operates two incineration facilities—one on Johnston Atoll and one at the Deseret Chemical Depot near Tooele, Utah. The Johnston Atoll Chemical Agent Disposal System (JACADS) completed destruction of the stockpile on Johnston Island in late 2000, and closure of the... 

Bonnett, P., and B. Elmasri. 2001. Base Hydrolysis Process for the Destruction of Energetic Materials, October. Aberdeen Proving Ground, Md. Program Manager for Assembled Chemical Weapons Assessment. 

Startech PWC systems are applicable to manufacturing facilities, hospitals, process plants, military sites, and municipalities. Systems have been used in the field to treat chemical weapon and explosive simulants. In addition, the vendor claims that the technology has successfully treated metals, such as lead and barium, during testing. The technology is commercially available in the United States and overseas. 

Precursor chemical materials Substances that following chemical processing and combinations, form building blocks for the construction of chemical weapons. 

The ACW II Committee advises the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) on its ACWA Program. Since 1997, the ACW II Committee and its predecessor (the ACW I Committee) have followed the development of several alternative (to incineration) technologies for the demilitarization of assembled chemical weapons. In parallel with this modified baseline process report, the ACW II Committee is preparing a report to evaluate the two ACWA technologies being considered for Pueblo. 

Recommendation 3-4b. If the development and testing of the machines for accessing agent in the modified baseline process would delay disposal operations past the Chemical Weapons Convention deadline, the Army should consider installing another technology at Pueblo. 

The CWC prohibits the development, production, acquisition, stockpiling, retention, transfer, or use of chemical weapons. Article IV requires that signatories destroy chemical weapons and any special facilities for their manufacture within 10 years (by April 29, 2007). Destruction of chemical weapons is defined as a process by which chemicals are converted in an essentially irreversible way to a form unsuitable for production of chemical weapons, and which, in an irreversible manner, renders munitions and other devices unusable as such (Smithson, 1993). The method of destruction is determined by each country, but the manner of destruction must ensure public safety and protection of the environment. 

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