Environmentally Sustainable Yellow Smoke Formulations for Use in the M194 Hand Held Signal
Abstract
The burning of aerial pyrotechnic devices poses a public health risk as chemicals may be released into the water supply from solid fallout and surface water runoff. In the case of colored smoke signals, the risk is especially high because many colored smoke formulations contain highly toxic dyes that are not consumed by the key reduction-oxidation reaction. For the M194 yellow smoke hand held signal (HHS), the current in-service formulation contains two toxic anthraquinone dyes, namely benzanthrone and vat yellow 4 (VY4). To minimize the environmental impact of the M194 yellow smoke formulation, the present study aimed to replace the anthraquinone dyes with the more environmentally sustainable solvent yellow 33 (SY33). SY33, a quinoline dye that is currently used in colored smoke grenade production, has been deemed admissible by the U.S. Army Public Health Command (PHC). Several new yellow smoke formulations have been developed that meet the performance parameters (burn time, smoke output) of the M194, while providing an environmentally acceptable alternative to the current in-service formulation.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 10, 2012
- Accession Number
- ADA568955
Entities
People
- Anthony P. Shaw
- Gary Chen
- Jared D Moretti
- Jesse J Sabatini
Organizations
- United States Army Armament Research, Development and Engineering Center