What is lewisite made up of?
What is lewisite made up of?
lewisite, in chemical warfare, poison blister gas developed by the United States for use during World War I. Chemically, the substance is dichloro(2-chlorovinyl)arsine, a liquid whose vapour is highly toxic when inhaled or when in direct contact with the skin. It blisters the skin and irritates the lungs.
Is lewisite the same as mustard gas?
Lewisite causes dermal, ocular, and respiratory lesions similar to those caused by mustard gas. Lewisite is about 10 times more volatile than mustard gas (Budavari, 2000). Exposure to lewisite is very painful. Both the vapor and liquid lewisite can penetrate skin.
What is the chemical name for lewisite?
Chemical composition Lewisite can be a mixture of molecules with a different number of vinylchloride groups on the arsenic chloride: lewisite itself (2-chlorovinylarsonous dichloride), along with bis(2-chlorovinyl)arsinous chloride (lewisite 2) and tris(2-chlorovinyl)arsine (lewisite 3).
Which gas is an antidote of lewisite?
Dimercaprol is a chelating agent that is an antidote for lewisite poisoning, available as an ointment, eyedrops or intramuscular preparation.
Has lewisite been used?
Lewisite was produced in 1918 to be used in World War I, but its production was too late for it to be used in the war. Lewisite has been used only as a chemical warfare agent. It has no medical or other practical use. Lewisite is not found naturally in the environment.
Is there an antidote for lewisite?
ANTIDOTE: British Anti-Lewisite (BAL; dimercaprol) binds to the arsenic in lewisite to decrease the toxicity of this agent. BAL is given by intramuscular (IM) injection as an antidote for whole-body (systemic) health effects of lewisite but has no effect on local lesions of the skin, eyes, or airways.
What is lewisite used for?
Who created lewisite?
Retired chemist L. Philip Reiss, 79, with a photo of his grandfather, Winford Lee Lewis, the inventor of the chemical warfare agent lewisite.
How do you treat lewisite?
How lewisite exposure is treated. Treatment consists of removing lewisite from the body as soon as possible and providing supportive medical care in a hospital setting. An antidote for lewisite is available and is most useful if given as soon as possible after exposure.
Who used lewisite?
Although chemical weapons were not used in major combat during World War II, the Japanese used lewisite and mustard gas in China during most of the war years. In one horrible experiment, prisoners were forced to drink ‘crude water,’ which was a liquid form of lewisite or mustard gas.
