Other Chemical Hazards and Toxins

Ammonium nitrate (NH₄NO₃) is principally used as a high nitrogen content fertilizer in agricultural applications. It is also a major component of industrial explosives, and similar mixtures have been used as improvised explosive devices. Thousands of people have been killed in accidental ammonium nitrate explosions triggered either by a shock/explosion, or by fire spreading into a storage facility. Overuse as a fertilizer can lead to contamination of drinking water. 

Corrosive substances are materials, such as strong acids and strong bases, that, through chemical reactions, cause visible destruction of biological tissues, and other materials. Acids are substances that have a high tendency to donate protons when completely dissociating into ions in water; whereas strong bases are substances that accept protons when completely dissociating into ions in water. Both are highly corrosive and catalyse the decomposition of biological molecules. (Burrows et al., 2021)

Chemical agents or ‘chemical warfare agents’ (chemical weapons) are chemicals, including dual -use chemicals, used to cause intentional death or harm through their toxic properties, and are a major public hazard. (OPCW, 2024a, b, c).