Napalm and Afghan caves (my title)

Naval Facilities Engineering Command ^ | 10 Dec 2001 | unknown

[pttttt]

What Is Napalm?

   Napalm is a mixture of benzene (21%), gasoline (33%), and polystyrene (46%). Benzene is a normal component of gasoline (about 2%). The gasoline used in napalm is the same leaded or unleaded gas that you put in your car.

   Gasoline is a mixture of hydrocarbons, which burn in an engine. It is a clear liquid, made from crude oil that burns and explodes easily. It naturally contains some benzene (which makes gas smell the way it does). Gasoline is lighter than, and floats on, water, but it will not mix with water. It dissolves grease and oil but will not dissolve polystyrene by itself, more benzene must be added to it. If gasoline is inhaled or swallowed, it can be dangerous or fatal. Breathing it results in an intense burning sensation in the throat and lungs, resulting in bronchitis and, eventually, pneumonia and possibly death. Swallowing gasoline results in inebriation (drunkenness), vomiting, dizziness, fever, drowsiness, confusion, and cyanosis (blue color).

   Benzene is a light, colorless, aromatic liquid made from a variety of raw materials, mostly crude oil and coal. In many ways it is similar to gasoline, of which it is a part. The major uses of benzene are in making plastics and other chemicals, not fuel, although it could be used as one. If benzene is breathed or swallowed, it causes throat irritation, rest lessens, excitement, depression, and, finally, convulsions, which can lead to death. A long exposure to benzene vapors (months or years) leads to bone marrow depression and in rare cases, leukemia.

  Polystyrene is the white, tough plastic that is used to make cups, plates, and other tableware and food containers. In the pure state it is slightly heavier than water. It dissolves easily in acetone and benzene, but not in gasoline. It is not poisonous; if swallowed it passes unchanged through the digestive tract. But it is possible to choke on it. Heated polystyrene softens at about 185 F. At higher temperatures it turns back into styrene, the chemical from which it was made. Styrene has been tested as toxic to rats. In air, polystyrene melts and burns with a yellow, sooty flame. Styrene itself has a sharp, unpleasant smell that is easy to recognize.

   

Page Last Modified: 10 Dec 2001

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Also see: http://www.13thbombsquadron.org/combattactics.html

[pttttt]

A dumb question: Does the US military still have napalm bombs or flamethrowers in the inventory? It seemed like they were pretty effective under certain conditions and might be useful in cleaning out some of the Afghan caves, especially since there is now some talk of using nukes. Or are there technical issues which make it not useful for this?

Most references now (like the one above) seem to treat it more as an environmental problem.

[Restorer]

Most references now (like the one above) seem to treat it more as an environmental problem.

Well, that makes sense. If people are firing it off in your environment, you've got a problem.

[Bogey78O]

I believe the last stockpile was burned in a furnace somewhere near Baton Rouge.

[jlogajan]

It's a delivery problem. It won't go very deep in a tunnel. And flame requires more oxygen to stay alight than humans do to remain concious. It is also a very good homing beacon for incoming small arms and mortar fire.

[Shooter 2.5]

I could be wrong but I don't think our guys are really going into the caves. It's not worth it. We're going to do what we did in WWII. We're going to seal them up and come back in a month.

[El Gato]

It's been replaced, more or less, by Fuel Air Explosives. They aren't considered as "inhumane" as throwing sticky burning stuff at people. Much better to justcrush them with the overpressure of the explosion or rip out their lungs with the mother of all sucking sounds caused when the FAE uses up all the oxygen. FAE are not all that new, going back to the Vietnam war, and in fact being used on various smaller ordance by Eastern block forces for some time before Ron's smackdown of the Evil Empire. (On RPGs for example). There a new version, called the thermobaric bomb/warhead that is almsot tailor made for caves and bunkers, and which was rushed through testing in December and deployed in limited numbers in January. It features a better penetration capability, just the thing for cave bound foes, and also a new solid fuel rather than the old liquid or gas versions.

[pad 34]

Victory!