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Agent DM was developed by the American chemist Roger Adams of the US Chemical Warfare Division during World War I as an improvement on diphenylchlorarsine, the latter having been introduced by the Germans in 1913. DM is commonly called "adamsite" or "vomiting Gas". It contains about 27 per cent arsenic. On re-crystallization from benzene-glacial acetic acid, DM is a yellow solid with essentially no odor. It is an irritant at a concentration of a fraction of a milligram per cubic meter and is believed to be lethal at 1500 mg/m3 for 10 minutes exposure. The agent DM is prepared by mixing diphenylamine with arsenic trichloride. The product used in chemical munitions is grossly impure and contains a variety of contaminants. According to the authoritative Merck Index, Vol. 8, Page 804, 1968, DM causes ". . . profuse watery nasal discharge; severe pain in nose and chest; sneezing, coughing, nausea, vomiting, depression, weakness. Sensory disturbances may occur." It takes about six minutes for DM to take effect, therefore, CN (Chloroacetophenone) is mixed with DM in order to start the action on the eyes immediately. Shortly after, the individual starts violent sneezing and coughing and the solid particles of the chemical settle in the lungs. A subject will lose complete control of himself. Severe headaches, vomiting and nausea similar to a severe state of seasickness are present and the effects are so much longer lasting and often so severe that medical treatment is required. DM is capable of poisoning water and open foodstuffs in the areas that are affected. Due to DM’s severe and fatal effects, at the present almost no agency is adopting this agent any longer.
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