White phosphorus military applications. Six naive questions about phosphorus munitions. Types of ammunition with phosphorus

Used for combat operations, ammunition was required that could destroy enemy ground forces over a large area. Incendiary bombs appeared on the eve of the First World War. These were primitive devices, consisting of a container with kerosene and an inertial fuse, the basis for which was an ordinary rifle cartridge.

In the 30s of the last century, the so-called phosphorus balls were used for bombing. The filling for them was yellow phosphorus in the form of granules 15-20 mm in size. When such a ball was dropped, it was set on fire, and closer to the ground, burning particles of phosphorus, having burned out the shell, scattered, covering a huge area with a fiery rain. The method of spraying ignited pellets from special aircraft tanks at a low altitude was also used.

During the Second World War, mankind first learned what a phosphorus bomb is in the form in which it exists today. It was a container filled with phosphorus balls weighing from 100 to 300 g, total weight up to one ton. Such ammunition was dropped from a height of about 2 km and exploded 300 m from the ground. Nowadays, incendiary projectiles based on phosphorus in the strongest armies of the world occupy a significant part of the total ammunition used for bombing.

White phosphorus

Among all the combustible substances used in incendiary munitions, white phosphorus occupies a special place. This is due to its unique chemical properties and primarily with a combustion temperature reaching 800-1000 degrees Celsius. Other an important factor the ability of this substance to ignite spontaneously when interacting with oxygen in the air is considered. When burned, white phosphorus emits thick poisonous smoke, which also causes burns of the internal respiratory tract and poisoning of the body.

A dose of 0.05-0.1 g is fatal to humans. White phosphorus is obtained artificially by the interaction of phosphorites or apatites with silica and coke at a temperature of 1600 degrees. Outwardly, it looks like paraffin, it is easily deformed and cut, which makes it very convenient for equipping any ammunition. There are also bombs stuffed with plasticized white phosphorus. Plastification is achieved by adding a viscous solution

Types of incendiary phosphorus ammunition

Today, there are several types of weapons in which the damaging substance is white phosphorus:

• aviation bombs;
• rocket projectiles;
• artillery shells;
• mortar rounds;
• hand grenades.

The first two types of ammunition are the most dangerous, as they have a greater damaging potential than the rest.

What is a phosphorus bomb

Modern phosphorus bombs are aviation munitions, consisting of a body, a combustible filler in the form of white phosphorus or a complex charge of several mixtures, as well as a mechanism for its ignition. They can be conditionally divided into two types according to the method of operation: in the air and after hitting the surface. The former are activated by a controlled detonator, based on the desired height and flight speed of the aircraft, the latter explode directly upon impact.

The body of such an aerial bomb is often made of a combustible alloy called "electron", consisting of magnesium and aluminum, which burns with the mixture. Often, other combustible substances, such as napalm or thermite, are added to phosphorus, which significantly increases the combustion temperature of the mixture. The action of a phosphorus bomb is similar to the explosion of a bomb filled with napalm. The combustion temperatures of both substances are approximately the same (800-1000 degrees), however, for phosphorus and napalm in modern ammunition, this figure exceeds 2000 ˚ C.

The air forces of some armies are armed with cluster incendiary bombs, which are a special container stuffed with dozens of small bombs. The dropped container is controlled by the onboard surveillance system and deploys at a certain height, which makes it possible for the main ammunition to hit the target more accurately. In order to understand what a phosphorus bomb is in action, it is necessary to be aware of the danger posed by its damaging factors.

Affecting factors

When using white phosphorus as a fuel for an aerial bomb, several damaging factors:

• a strong flame from burning the mixture at temperatures up to 2000 ˚ C, causing burns, terrible injuries and painful death;
• stimulating spasms and burning of the respiratory tract;
• burnout of oxygen in the area of ​​application, leading to suffocation;
• psychological shock caused by what he saw.

A small phosphorus bomb, detonated at the right height, hits an area of ​​100-200 square meters covering everything around with fire. Getting on the human body, particles of burning slag and phosphorus stick and char organic tissues. You can stop burning by blocking the access of oxygen.

Special phosphorus bombs are also used to defeat the enemy in cover. A combustible mixture heated to 1500-2000 ˚ C can burn through armor and even concrete floors, and given that oxygen in the air quickly burns out at such a temperature, there is practically no chance to survive hiding in a basement, dugout or other shelter.

It was from strangulation that hundreds of Vietnamese civilians died during one of the bombings of the US Air Force. These people found death in pre-dug dugouts, having no idea what a phosphorus bomb is.

Consequences of the use of phosphorus munitions

During the combustion of napalm and phosphorus, a lot of toxic chemicals are released into the atmosphere, among which dioxin is a powerful one with strong carcinogenic and mutagenic properties. During the Vietnam campaign, American aviation actively used napalm and phosphorus bombs. The consequences of the impact of the products of combustion of these substances on the human body can be observed in our time. In areas that were subjected to such bombardments, children are still being born with serious deviations and mutations.

Ban on the use of phosphorus bombs

Phosphorus munitions are not officially classified, but their use is limited by the protocol of the UN Convention. This document regulates their use for military purposes and prohibits their use for strikes against civilian targets. According to the protocol, phosphorus bombs are prohibited from being used in populated areas and their environs, even if military installations are located there.

Known facts of the use of phosphorus ammunition in our time

During the occupation of Kampuchea in the 1980s of the last century, the Vietnamese army used unguided rockets loaded with white phosphorus to destroy the Khmer Rouge. Rocket phosphorus shells were used by British intelligence services in 2003 near the city of Basra in Iraq.

A year later, in Iraq, the US Army used phosphorus bombs in the battles for Fallujah. You can see a photo of the consequences of this bombing in the article. In 2006 and 2009, the Israeli army used phosphorus munitions during the Second Lebanon War, as well as in the Gaza Strip during Operation Cast Lead.

How to protect yourself from the effects of burning phosphorus

In order to protect yourself as much as possible from the damaging factors of phosphorus ammunition, it is necessary to clearly define the type of weapons used. In the case of the use of phosphorus bombs by aviation, accompanied by a flame flying down and thick white smoke, or the territory burning after the explosion, you should immediately leave the affected area, moving in a windless direction.

It is better to use premises with a solid ceiling as a shelter, and if such places could not be found, basements, trenches, pits, vehicles should be used, covering oneself with improvised means, which can be metal or wooden shields, boards, awnings, etc. given that they will only provide short-term protection.

To protect the respiratory tract, it is necessary to use a filter or a soft cloth soaked in the solution. baking soda. If a burning mixture gets on clothes or an open area of ​​the skin, it is necessary to extinguish the flame by covering the affected area with a cloth, blocking the access of oxygen. In no case should the flame be knocked down by rubbing, since the burning area may increase in this case. It is not allowed to extinguish and the use of water due to the possibility of spraying a combustible mixture. It should also be taken into account that quenched white phosphorus particles can ignite again.

The first mention of phosphorus ammunition dates back to the beginning of the 20th century - in 1916, grenades filled with white phosphorus appeared in England. During the Second World War, white phosphorus began to be used as one of the substances in the filling of incendiary bombs. IN last years phosphorus weapons were actively used only american army, in particular, in Iraq during the bombing of the city of Fallujah.

Currently, phosphorus ammunition is understood as a type of incendiary or smoke ammunition equipped with white phosphorus. There are several types of such weapons and ammunition, including aerial bombs, artillery shells, rockets (rockets), mortars, hand grenades.
Crude white phosphorus is commonly referred to as "yellow phosphorus". It is a flammable crystalline substance from light yellow to dark brown in color, which does not dissolve in water, but easily oxidizes and self-ignites in air. white phosphorus as chemical compound very poisonous (causes damage to bones, bone marrow, necrosis of the jaws).

A phosphorus bomb spreads a flammable substance whose combustion temperature exceeds 1200 °C. It burns with a dazzling, bright green flame emitting thick white smoke. The territory of its distribution can reach several hundred square meters. The burning of the substance continues until the access of oxygen stops or all the phosphorus burns out.
To extinguish phosphorus, water is used in large quantities (to reduce the temperature of the source of ignition and transfer phosphorus to a solid state) or a solution of copper sulfate (copper sulfate), and after quenching, phosphorus is covered with wet sand. To protect against spontaneous combustion, yellow phosphorus is stored and transported under a layer of water (calcium chloride solution).

The use of white phosphorus gives a complex effect - it is not only serious physical injuries and slow death, but also a psychological shock. The lethal dose of white phosphorus for an adult is 0.05-0.1 g. According to researchers, characteristic feature the use of this weapon is the charring of organic tissues, and when inhaling a burning mixture, burning the lungs.
For the treatment of inflicted similar weapons injuries require appropriately trained medical personnel. In the specialized literature it is noted that inexperienced and untrained doctors can also get phosphorus wounds when working with affected personnel.

Use for military purposes of munitions containing white phosphorus against targets located inside or in the vicinity of cities and other settlements, prohibited according to international agreements(Protocol III to the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons).

From the history of the use of phosphorus bombs:
1916 In England, incendiary grenades stuffed with white phosphorus were supplied to arm the troops.
Second World War. White phosphorus began to be used as one of the substances in the filling of incendiary bombs.
In 1972, according to the conclusion of a special UN commission, incendiary weapons were conditionally classified as weapons of mass destruction.
1980 According to the "Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain Conventional Weapons Which May Be Deemed to be Excessively Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects", adopted by the UN, forbidden to use incendiary weapons against civilian population and the use of air-delivered incendiary weapons against military objectives in civilian concentration areas is prohibited.

In the 1980s, the Vietnamese people's army used white phosphorus against Khmer Rouge guerrillas during the occupation of Kampuchea.
1982 Artillery 155-mm shells filled with white phosphorus were used by the Israeli army during the Lebanese war (in particular, during the siege of Beirut).
April 1984 In the area of ​​​​the port of Bluefields, while trying to install mines equipped with white phosphorus, two saboteurs of the Nicaraguan Contras were blown up.
June 1985 "Contras" passenger ship "Bluefields Express" and burned the ship with American phosphorus grenades.

1992 During the siege of Sarajevo, phosphorus shells were used by Bosnian Serb artillery.
2004 The bombs stuffed with this substance were dropped by the Americans on Fallujah (Iraq).
2006, during the Second Lebanon War, artillery shells with white phosphorus were used Israeli army.
year 2009. During Operation Cast Lead in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli army used smoke munitions containing white phosphorus.
year 2014. Semyonovka. The command of the anti-terrorist operation is committing war crimes against the civilian population of the south-east of Ukraine.

Introduction

In connection with the war of Ukraine against the Donetsk and Luhansk republics, a lot of nonsense is written and said in the press and on TV. Bandera FIRED Lugansk, Slavyansk (and further to choose from) PHOSPHORUS BOMB. Slavyansk, Lugansk BOMBED with phosphorus mines. That is, phosphorus bombs are SHOT and mines are BOMBED. Well, there's nothing to be done - what kind of education are such and leading. Recently at all - Marines on maneuvers, she practiced landing on an unprepared PREMISES.
There are a lot of stupid articles on the internet.

In this article, the burning temperature of a phosphorus bomb is overestimated by exactly two and a half times.

This is not Ukraine, but the style of the illiterate presentation of the material is the same - not a mine, but a projectile was fired from a mortar, and a phosphorus bomb had already arrived at the target.

And this is the height of idiocy - I will tell you the device of a phosphorus bomb and upload a photo of THERMITE.
In all other articles, they stupidly rewrite each other about a bomb stuffed with WHITE PHOSPHORUS. Why white and not red, yellow or just plasticized?
Probably this is all happening because phosphorus bombs do not exist. Rather, not quite so. Any incendiary bomb equipped with napalm contains phosphorus. He then sets fire to napalm. But I have not heard about phosphorus bombs. I didn’t hear in the sense that no one provided me with a photograph with the inscription a phosphorus bomb produced by such and such a country has such and such an index, was produced or is being produced at the present time. If anyone has such information, then write - we will rewrite the article.

What phosphorus ammo do I know about

Of course, there are artillery shells and mortars filled with phosphorus. Specifically, a mine for a one hundred and twenty-millimeter mortar TR-Z-843A of the forty-third year model was equipped with thirty-six thermal elements pressed into YELLOW phosphorus. Subsequently, mines began to be equipped with a mixture of phosphorus and a synthetic substance resembling rubber. When the expelling charge breaks, this mixture is crushed into large burning pieces, which can be seen in the photographs and video frames of which there are so many on the Internet now.

The same thing happens with a projectile stuffed with phosphorus - the picture shows that the burning elements continue to fly along the trajectory of the projectile or mine. In a phosphorus bomb, the burning elements would have to fall vertically.
The bursting charge of a phosphorus mine is very small, so the shank remains undamaged.

There is also an incendiary warhead for the system hail. Officially, it is designated - 9Н510.

As you can see, it contains hexagonal cups made of ELECTRON alloy - ninety percent magnesium and ten percent aluminum. An incendiary mixture of complex composition is pressed into each cup. The composition was designated - MS-87M

As you can see, the composition is quite complex, but again, not a word about white phosphorus. There were one hundred and eighty incendiary elements in total. They scattered over an area of ​​approximately eighty by eighty meters, which gave an area of ​​destruction of six thousand four hundred square meters. The total weight of the elements was about six kilograms. The burning time of the element is two, three minutes.
Can anyone provide the same data (with photographs and indexes) about our phosphorus bombs? And there could not have been others in Ukraine.

Phosphorus as an incendiary

Against the backdrop of phosphorus hysteria, such terrible photos of the victims of phosphorus bombs began to be posted on the Internet. Although, judging by the absence of smoke and the height of the flame, this person was not even set on fire with napalm, but was doused with something like acetone or a solvent based on it.
Phosphorus burns with the release of a huge amount of white smoke, the fire is often not visible at all. The combustion temperature is just over nine hundred degrees.
Phosphorus itself is very poisonous and at the same time is a poisonous substance. Just by breathing air in the area where phosphorus ammunition is used, you can get pulmonary edema with lethal outcome.
Well, a small technical digression, or why

Phosphorus bombs do not equip white phosphorus

The fact is that white (really white as snow washed by Ariel) can only be obtained in the laboratory. Mythical bombs, as well as mines and shells, are stuffed with technical or YELLOW phosphorus.

The top photo is what is obtained in the laboratory. On the bottom, what are phosphorus bombs filled with mines and shells.

What happened in Ukraine anyway?

In the title of the article is a photograph in which the ancient threw off the bomb. Judging by the explosion of phosphorus. But that was a long time ago and far from Ukraine.

But judging by these photographs, an air explosion of a mortar phosphorus mine is clearly visible. Large burning pieces are visible, characteristic of plasticized phosphorus. In the bottom photo, you can even count that there were six mortars.

The shanks from phosphorus mines scattered throughout the territory also leave no doubt what ammunition was used.

I found a video on the Internet with which a photo was taken for the intro of the article. The bomb there is stuffed with ordinary napalm. And a lot of white smoke gives a phosphorus fuse, which sets fire to napalm.

How to protect yourself from phosphorus bombs

It would be more correct to write - HOW TO PROTECT FROM BURNING PHOSPHORUS? And they are protected from it as well as from any incendiary substance. In the event of a threat of attack by incendiary substances, one should always carry a thick cape that can cover the entire body. True, after the first hit of burning phosphorus, the cape will have to be thrown away. Since burning phosphorus has a poisonous effect, it is necessary to leave the place of shelling as soon as possible or use an INSULATING GAS MASK. For those who are not in the know - an insulating gas mask, it is also sometimes called a breathing device, it is something like a small scuba gear. It is often used by firefighters. True, there is a simplified version. In it, instead of air cylinders, special cartridges are used, which, when initiated, begin to release oxygen, but they do not last very long.

Hysteria with phosphorus bombs and white phosphorus continues

Quite a lot of time has passed since the first use of phosphorus mines in Slavyansk, Lugansk and Donetsk. Everyone had time to study the problem in sufficient depth. But the main thing is not true, the main thing is to raise a hysterical wave about white phosphorus. This, oddly enough, plays into the hands of Bandera.

Here is another illiterate statement about the use of phosphorus bombs.

But Bandera refute the previous statement. And they say honest truth because they don't have phosphorus bombs. As for mortar phosphorus mines, they were not charged with such charges. Therefore, any accusation must be legally accurate and technically competent.