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White phosphorus is the first allotrope of phosphorus, and in fact the first elementary substance to be discovered that was not known since ancient times. [3] It glows greenish in the dark (when exposed to oxygen) and is highly flammable and pyrophoric (self-igniting) upon contact with air.
This page is subject to the extended confirmed restriction related to the Arab-Israeli conflict. US Air Force Douglas A-1E Skyraider dropping a 100-pound (45 kg) M47 white phosphorus bomb on a Viet Cong position in South Vietnam in 1966 White phosphorus munitions are weapons that use one of the common allotropes of the chemical element phosphorus. White phosphorus is used in smoke ...
Irish inventions and discoveries are objects, processes or techniques which owe their existence either partially or entirely to an Irish person. Often, things which are discovered for the first time, are also called "inventions", and in many cases, there is no clear line between the two. Below is a list of such inventions.
While the cause was linked to the use of white phosphorus within 5 years, it took almost a century of strikes, bans, and taxes to stop its use in the industry. Image credits: Flares117
It can cause “excruciating burns and lifelong suffering,” a Human Rights Watch spokesperson said.
Elemental phosphorus was first isolated as white phosphorus in 1669 by Hennig Brand and marked the first "discovery" of an element not known since Antiquity. The name phosphorus is a reference to the god of the Morning star in Greek mythology, inspired by the faint glow of white phosphorus when exposed to oxygen .
Brand kept his discovery secret, as alchemists of the time did, and worked with the phosphorus trying unsuccessfully to use it to produce gold. His recipe was: [5] Let urine stand for days until it gives off a pungent smell. [4] (This step was not necessary, as later scientists discovered that fresh urine yielded the same amount of phosphorus). [6]
People exposed to white phosphorus can suffer severe and sometimes deadly bone-deep burns. It can cause organs to shut down, and burns on just 10% of the body can be fatal, HRW said.