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Brief History and Use of Chemical Warfare Agents in Warfare and Terrorism
Published in Brian J. Lukey, James A. Romano, Salem Harry, Chemical Warfare Agents, 2019
Harry Salem, Andrew L. Ternay Jr., Jeffery K. Smart
In about 660, Callinicus of Heliopolis invented a weapon called Greek fire, also referred to as Byzantine fire, wildfire, and liquid fire (Figure 1.1). Since its formulation was a carefully guarded military secret, the exact ingredients remain unknown. It probably consisted of naphtha, niter, and sulfur; petroleum and quicklime sulfur; or phosphorus and saltpeter. It may have been ignited by a flame or ignited spontaneously when it came into contact with water. If it was the latter, the active ingredient could have been calcium phosphide, made by heating lime, bones, and charcoal. On contact with water, calcium phosphide released phosphine, which ignited spontaneously. However, Greek fire was also used on land. The ingredients were apparently heated in a cauldron and then pumped out through a siphon or large syringe, known as a siphonarios, mounted on the bow of the ship. Greek fire was also used in hand grenades made of earthenware vessels containing chambers for fluids that when mixed, ignited when the vessel broke on impact with the target. It was used very effectively in naval battles, as it continued burning even under water and was known to the Byzantine enemies as a wet, dark, sticky fire, because it stuck to the unfortunate objects hit and was impossible to extinguish. It was also very effective on land as a counter-force suppression weapon used against besieging forces. Greek fire was first used on the battlefield to repel the Arab siege of Constantinople in 674–677, then at the Battle of Syllaeum, in 717–718, against the Muslims, and later, against the Russian attacks in 941 and 1043. The Byzantines also used Greek fire against the Vikings in 941 and against the Venetians during the fourth Crusade (Waitt, 1942; CBW Info, 2005; Wikipedia, 2007b).
Exploring research gaps and trends in the management of acute phosphide poisoning: a systematic review
Published in Critical Reviews in Toxicology, 2023
Zahraa Khalifa Sobh, Marwa Kholief, Eman Khalifa Sobh, Manal Ibrahim Fathy Balah
Metal phosphides are one of the highly toxic pesticides that the US EPA classified as Category I poisons (Environmental Protection Agency 1998). Metal phosphides are widely used to protect stored grains because of their ideal properties, including their effectiveness against various pests, extreme potency, and leaving nontoxic residues in crops. Because of low cost and permissive legislation, metal phosphides are extensively used in agricultural countries with limited resources, including Iran, India, and Egypt. Metal phosphides include aluminum phosphide (AlP), zinc phosphide (Zn3P2), magnesium phosphide (Mg3P2), and calcium phosphide (Ca3P2). However, AlP and Zn3P2 are the most popular phosphides with reported human toxicities in literature (Bumbrah et al. 2012). In the last few years, metal phosphides gained popularity as suicidal agents, and published literature from different countries pointed to an alarming surge in phosphide-related morbidities and mortalities (Sharma et al. 2014; Alibeigi et al. 2021; Deraz et al. 2022).