This converts the
alcohol into a gas known as ethylene (C_{2}H_{4}). Passing a stream of
chlorine gas into a tank of melted sulfur produces sulfur monochloride
and this treated with the ethylene makes the "mustard." The final
reaction was carried on at the Edgewood Arsenal in seven airtight tanks
or "reactors," each having a capacity of 30,000 pounds. The ethylene gas
being led into the tank and distributed through the liquid sulfur
chloride by porous blocks or fine nozzles, the two chemicals combined to
form what is officially named "di-chlor-di-ethyl-sulfide"
(ClC_{2}H_{4}SC_{2}H_{4}Cl). This, however, is too big a mouthful, so
even the chemists were glad to fall in with the commonalty and call it
"mustard gas."
The effectiveness of "mustard" depends upon its persistence. It is a
stable liquid, evaporating slowly and not easily decomposed. It lingers
about trenches and dugouts and impregnates soil and cloth for days. Gas
masks do not afford complete protection, for even if they are
impenetrable they must be taken off some time and the gas lies in wait
for that time.
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