– September 14, 2017
By Raeanna Morgan
Nestled within 100 square miles in Southern Indiana, Crane
Army Ammunition Activity supports the hi-tech mission of destroying obsolete
munitions for the Department of Defense. For more than two decades, white
phosphorus rounds have been successfully demilitarized within a closed system
and converted into agriculture fertilizer, both ensuring the future readiness
for the storage of increasingly modernized munitions and providing a product
that supports America’s farmers.
An obstacle presented itself in an otherwise smooth operation
when the need to demilitarize red phosphorus rounds became imperative in
continuing future readiness for the warfighter. Due to small molecular
differences that caused differing burning points, Crane Army engineers had to
work to design a process that would ensure the safe extraction of red
phosphorus so that the mission could continue on for decades to come.
The History
In 1989, the mission to demilitarize white phosphorus in a
closed system and turn it into phosphoric acid was brought to Crane Army Ammunition
Activity. Since that time, the white phosphorus-to-phosphoric acid conversion
plant has been considered a successful mission. Not only does it demilitarize
an obsolete munition in a safe and environmentally friendly way, it produces
two revenue generating materials: agricultural fertilizer and metal for
recycling. In one day, the facility produces 48,000 pounds of phosphoric acid.
About twenty years later, a new problem presented itself.
There was a growing stockpile of a variety of munitions containing red
phosphorus taking up square footage in storage that could be used to house more
modern munitions.
“Previously, we had no capability of getting rid of red
phosphorus,” CAAA’s demilitarization program manager Paul Allswede said. “We
couldn’t open burn it because of the negative environmental impacts, so there
were developmental steps taken to address the shortfall for the Department of
Defense. That was when the question of, ‘Can you process it through the white
phosphorus-to-phosphoric acid conversion plant’ came about.”
The Partnership
After the need was established, SciTech Services won the
Department of Defense Ordnance Technology Consortium contract to develop an
economical and environmentally friendly process that would convert the red
phosphorus found in smoke grenades to phosphoric acid.
Specifically, they wanted to utilize an existing
demilitarization capability, the white phosphorus-to-phosphoric acid conversion
plant at Crane Army. SciTech Services then sub-contracted Gradient Technology
to perform the design, fabrication, and integration of a prototype machine that
had the ability to disassemble the smoke grenades and remove the material.
Since 1999, Gradient Technology and Crane Army have worked together on several
different demilitarization projects.
Unlike white phosphorus munitions that can be sliced open or
have holes punched into the projectile to start the conversion process
immediately, red phosphorus has an extremely low ignition point. This meant the
extraction process of the red phosphorus from certain munitions containing red
phosphorus would be much more difficult than that of munitions containing white
phosphorus. Gradient Technology was able to develop a process that safely
removes the red phosphorus from the round with the lowest probability of
ignition.
Last year, a limited test was done which proved that the
system was viable, and the process was put in place to begin demilitarizing
L8A3 Smoke Grenades.
The Process
The L8A3 Smoke Grenade is an obscurant that, when used,
generates a smoke screen to provide cover for the soldier. It contains red
phosphorus. Items containing red phosphorus require protocols to be in place in
order to ensure the safe storage and handling of the munition because of the
hazardous byproducts that red phosphorus can create.
“Red phosphorus outgasses phosphine, meaning that as the
composition sits in storage it will throw off a gas,” CAAA’s demilitarization
program manager Paul Allswede said. “When the composition is stored in the ammo
cans there are gas-absorbing modules that absorb the phosphine, which is
odorless, flammable and very hazardous. However, if the temperature of the ammo
can gets too high the phosphine will out-produce what can be absorbed by the
gas-absorbing modules.”
While storage is an option for the grenade, a concentrated
amount of phosphine can be very dangerous to those who deal with it in close
proximity. It is flammable and toxic, which is why having a method to dispose
of it in a timely manner in order to avoid storage is very important.
The Future
After this process takes place, the red phosphorus is
treated like the white phosphorus. It goes to the same conversion plant and is
converted into phosphoric acid that will eventually be used for fertilizer.
All around there are benefits to this type of closed
demilitarization system. Not only is CAAA getting rid of a munition that can
become hazardous as it begins to deteriorate, it is also generating revenue
that will offset production costs which ultimately will save taxpayer dollars.
Currently, this effort is funded by the Product Director for
Demilitarization and managed by the Joint Munitions Command Industrial
Capabilities Directorate – Demilitarization Division.
The Red Phosphorus Demilitarization process is a Department
of Defense Ordnance Technology Consortium contract to develop an economical and
environmentally friendly process to download the red phosphorus from smoke
grenades to further utilize an existing demilitarization capability, the white
phosphorus-to-phosphoric acid conversion plant at CAAA, to convert the red
phosphorus into phosphoric acid.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment