Aerosol Spray Weapon Refresher

There has been a great deal of attention focused on electronic control devices of late... you know, TASERs. While everyone is thinking about, researching, and developing training for TASERs, it's possible to lose sight of the broader picture - TASERs aren't the only non-lethal weapon in the police arsenal.

It wasn't that long ago that we were all focused on aerosol weapons as the latest, greatest thing. In fact, many of the issues we're wrestling with now are the same ones that we wrestled with back in the aerosol days. But, because of all the public and media attention on TASERs, we don't see much regarding aerosol weapons any more. So, I thought it was time for a refresher.

Terminology Issues

Keep in mind that "Mace" is a brand name, and should not be used as a generic term for your aerosol weapon. In fact, let's expand that a little more, and say that you shouldn't generically refer to your aerosol as "OC" either. Always refer to it by name, as in "Freeze+P" or "BodyGuard", or whatever the actual name of the product is that you use. Please do not use the term "tear gas" to refer to your aerosol weapon.

Remember that what we typically refer to as "tear gas" isn't a gas at all. It's a micro-particulate solid that is delivered to its target by different mechanisms. If we're talking about crowd control munitions, we typically refer to things like grenades and projectiles. These devices deliver their active ingredients in a cloud that's generated through either a burst-type (ballistic) mechanism, or a burning (pyrotechnic) process. The cloud that expands when the device goes off contains small particles of the active ingredient, or agent.

The two active agents that are used in crowd munitions are CN and CS "tear gas". CS (real name - Orthochlorobenzalmalononitrile) and CN (real name - Chloroacetophenone) are crowd control agents that were originally developed in the 1920s. In 1962, a refined version of CN was marketed as a personal spray device (Phenylchlormethylketone), under the trade name Mace (don't worry, there's no quiz). Many police agencies utilized Mace in the 1960s and 1970s, but it largely fell out of favor, especially once pepper based products began to come on line. Mace is now a trade name of Mace Security International, under which they sell various products, including pepper based aerosols.

Oleoresin Capsicum (OC) based products were developed for law enforcement use in the 1980s. OC is a pepper based product, the active ingredient of which is derived from hot peppers. This active ingredient - capsaicin - is also used in various other products, including foodstuffs and sports ointments.

Nowadays, the broadest market segment for aerosols in the law enforcement community is straight OC products, while there is some marketing of blend products - most typically made up of a combination of CS and OC. There is much debate as to the effectiveness of OC versus CS/OC blends, and some debate regarding the relative safety (or potential harm) in the use of one or the other.

Flammability Issues

Flammability is an issue for departments that use aerosol weapons, especially if they also use TASERs. Although each aerosol weapon contains a small amount of active agent, that agent is "carried" in a mixture of other products, some of which are likely to be flammable.

In order to reach its maximum effectiveness, OC must dry. When delivered as a spray mist, particles that evaporate quickly will generally aid in more rapid effectiveness of the OC. One of the most effective ways to project OC is as a finely atomized mist, and the finest mist particles can be atomized in alcohol. For that reason, alcohol is used in many aerosol weapons. However, as one would expect, alcohol is flammable and that can present at least a theoretical problem for agencies that carry both an aerosol and an ECD (electronic control device).