Main suspect, ammonium nitrate seems to be at the origin of the gigantic explosion which shook Beirut (Lebanon) this Tuesday August 4th. What is this salt and what are its effects on health?
NH4NO3, these few letters are at the origin of the double explosion in Beirut (Lebanon) which occurred this Tuesday evening, August 4th. They mainly correspond to ammonium nitrate. Added to a neutral product like chalk, it gives one of the most widely used fertilizers in the world: ammonium nitrate. This essential product for intensive agriculture is unfavorably known for its explosiveness. Its detonation occurs around 210°C and it is used as a component of civil (quarries) and military (mines) explosives. In its wake, numerous industrial disasters including the explosion of the AZF factory in Toulouse on September 21, 2001 which claimed the lives of 31 people.
The provisional toll of these detonations in Lebanon is a hundred deaths and more than 4,000 injured. Among them, many people complain of irritation. According to the Paris Chemical Toxicology Association (ATC) this molecule islow toxicity in acute toxicity”, that is to say by a massive and unique grip of the product. In case of inhalation of the product mixed with dust, it irritates the respiratory system and sometimes causes headaches, assure the experts of the association. If ammonium nitrate comes into contact with the eyes, it may cause “inflammatory phenomena” such as redness or conjunctivitis.
In high doses: danger for the stomach, oxygenation and nerves
However, if ingested at very high doses, it can develop gastrointestinal disorders such as vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain. An ingestion of between 64 and 234g can also irritate the stomach lining and acidify it resulting in severe fatigue or heartburn. This ammonium nitrate can also form nitrosamines in the stomach environment, that is to say carcinogenic substances.
Once passed into the blood, it is possible at high doses that the lips or nails turn blue, a sign of severe intoxication causing methemoglobinemia. This intoxication makes certain hemoglobins – a protein present in the blood and the muscles and essential in the breathing process – unsuitable by preventing them from transporting oxygen. Although, according to ATC scientists, ammonium nitrate has a low methemoglobinemic power, it can also stain nails, lips and skin blue in the long term.
The members of the ATC affirm that it would be possible that this absorption causes in the long term nervous disorders like convulsions, and cardiac like the tachycardia. In the event of a fire, ammonium nitrate produces toxic fumes including nitric oxide. According to the National Institute for Research and Safety (INRS), in addition to being a powerful irritant, this gas dilates the arteries of the respiratory tract, but at high doses, it can cause sometimes fatal pulmonary edema. In high concentrations, it can also attack the central nervous system.
According to the ATC, 75% of ammonium nitrate swallowed is evacuated in the urine in 24 hours. There remains the problematic role of the remaining 25% which, in high doses, can unfortunately degrade health. On the environment, ammonium nitrate will quickly dissolve in water. According to the ATC, this substance is of low toxicity to aquatic life except at high doses. It will probably fertilize the algae which should then proliferate. The NH4NO3 diluted in the air should be digested by bacteria or fungi which will in turn release NO2, a volatile gas involved in the greenhouse effect.
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