Thermobaric weapons distinguish themselves from conventional weapons by using atmospheric oxygen, instead of carrying an oxidizer in their explosives. They are also called high-impulse thermobaric weapons (HITs), fuel-air explosives (FAE or FAX) or sometimes "fuel-air munitions", "heat and pressure" weapons, or vacuum bombs. A conventional weapon is a weapon that does not incorporate chemical, biological or nuclear payloads. ... An oxidizing agent is a substance that oxidizes another substance in electrochemistry or redox chemical reactions in general. ... This article is concerned solely with chemical explosives. ... The bayonet, still used in war as both knife and spearpoint. ...

They produce more explosive energy for a given size than do other explosives.

Some thermobaric weapons work by first expelling a cloud of explosive mist using a small charge, then igniting it with a second charge. These consist of a container of a volatile liquid (or a finely powdered explosive or a metal powder) and, typically, two separate explosive charges. After the munition is dropped or fired, the first explosive charge (or some other dispersal mechanism) bursts open the container at a predetermined height and disperses the fuel in a cloud that mixes with atmospheric oxygen. Once the fuel is appropriately mixed, the second charge detonates, propagating an explosion (blast wave) through the cloud. This article is concerned solely with chemical explosives. ... General Name, Symbol, Number oxygen, O, 8 Chemical series Nonmetals, chalcogens Group, Period, Block 16, 2, p Appearance colorless Atomic mass 15. ...

An accidental fuel-air explosion may occur as a result of a boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion (BLEVE), for example when a tank containing liquified petroleum gas burst. Silo explosions, caused by the ignition of finely-powdered atmospheric dust, are another example. BLEVE, pronounced blevy, is an acronym for Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosion. ... 45 kg LPG cylinders Liquified petroleum gas (also called liquefied petroleum gas, liquid petroleum gas, LPG, LP Gas, or autogas) is a mixture of hydrocarbon gases used as a fuel in heating appliances and vehicles, and increasingly replacing fluorocarbons as an aerosol propellant and a refrigerant to reduce damage to... Grain elevators are buildings or complexes of buildings for storage and shipment of grain. ... After just three years of use dust has blocked this laptop heat sink, making the computer unusable Dust is a general name for minute solid particles with diameter less than 500 micrometers (otherwise see sand or granulates) and, more generally, for finely divided matter. ...

Many newer types of thermobaric weapons do not disperse the fuel before igniting it, but are "single stage" bombs which have one explosive charge that both ignites and disperses the fuel.

Note on terminology

This section may contain original research or unverified claims.
Please help Wikipedia by adding references. See the talk page for details.

From the open literature it appears that some experts draw a distinction between the terms thermobaric weapon and fuel-air explosive based on the primary intended effects: "thermobaric" relating to closed-zone convection or air displacement as the primary objective, and "fuel-air" for use as area-denial or "daisy cutter"–like ordnance through blast and combustion, in a role somewhat similar to that of cluster bomb weapons. Other sources use "fuel-air" as the general case, subsuming "thermobaric" as previously detailed; still others use the two terms interchangeably. The term "thermobaric" appears to be of Russian/Soviet origin. Image File history File links Stop_hand. ... A 15,000lb BLU-82/B on display at the USAF museum Note: Though commonly called daisy cutter, Daisy Cutter actually refers to the fuse extender on the nose of the bomb. ... Demonstration cluster bomb cutaway, showing bomblets (photo circa 1943) Cluster munitions are air-dropped or ground launched shells that eject multiple small submunitions (bomblets). ...

Weapon effects

The blast wave destroys unreinforced buildings and equipment. Unprotected personnel are injured or killed as well. The antipersonnel effect of the blast wave is more severe in foxholes, on personnel with body armor, and in "stiff" enclosed spaces such as caves, buildings, and bunkers.

The overpressure within the detonation can reach 3 MPa (430 lbf/in²) and the temperature can be 2500 to 3000 °C. Outside the cloud the blast wave travels at over 3 km/s. Following the initial blast is a phase in which the pressure drops below atmospheric pressure creating an airflow back to the center of the explosion strong enough to lift and throw a human. It draws in the unexploded burning fuel to create almost complete penetration of all non-airtight objects within the blast radius, which are then incinerated. Asphyxiation and internal damage can also occur to personnel outside the highest blast effect zone, e.g. in deeper tunnels, as a result of the blast wave, the heat, or the following air draw. MPA is a TLA (three-letter acronym) that may mean: MasterPaulAnne Macedonian Press Agency Marine Protected Area Maryland and Pennsylvania Railroad (AAR reporting mark MPA) Master of Public Administration Master of Public Affairs Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics Medical-Psychological Assessment Mid-atlantic Pagan Alliance Motion Picture Association Music Publishers... Asphyxia is a condition of severely deficient supply of oxygen to the body. ...

The effects produced by FAEs (a long high duration pressure and heat impulse) are often likened to the effects produced by low-yield nuclear weapons, but without the problems of radiation—although this is inexact; for all current and foreseen subkiloton yield nuclear weapon designs, prompt radiation effects predominate, producing some secondary heating—very little of the nominal yield is actually delivered as blast. The significant injury dealt by either weapon on a targeted population is nonetheless great. The mushroom cloud of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, Japan, 1945, rose some 18 km (11 mi) above the hypocenter. ... Ionizing radiation is a type of particle radiation in which an individual particle (for example, a photon, electron, or helium nucleus) carries enough energy to ionize an atom or molecule (that is, to completely remove an electron from its orbit). ... A megaton or megatonne is a unit of mass equal to 1,000,000 metric tons, i. ... The first nuclear weapons, though large, cumbersome and inefficient, provided the basic design building blocks of all future weapons. ...

Some fuels used, such as ethylene oxide and propylene oxide, are highly toxic. A device using such fuels is very dangerous even if the fuel fails to ignite; the device then becomes essentially a chemical weapon. The chemical compound ethylene oxide is an important industrial chemical used as an intermediate in the production of ethylene glycol and other chemicals, and as a sterilant for foodstuffs and medical supplies. ... Propylene oxide is a highly toxic flammable chemical compound. ... Dressing the wounded during a gas attack by Austin O. Spare, 1918. ...

History

RPO-A Shmel

Arguably, the use of flamethrowers in the trench warfare of World War I (the flamethrower was a German invention) could constitute the first use of a primitive "vacuum weapon", in that they could suffocate people protected from the direct weapon effects inside a pillbox or bunker. Other such effects were seen to occur in the firestorms at Dresden and elsewhere. Image File history File links Rpo. ... Image File history File links Rpo. ... German troops use a flamethrower on the Eastern Front during the Second World War A flamethrower is a mechanical device designed to throw flames or, more correctly, project an ignited stream of liquid. ... Combatants Allies: Serbia, Russia, France, Romania, Belgium, British Empire, United States, Italy, and others Central Powers: Germany, Austria-Hungary, Bulgaria, Ottoman Empire Casualties Military dead:5 million Civilian dead:3 million Total dead:8 million Military dead:4 million Civilian dead:3 million Total dead:7 million The First World... Bunkers in Albania A bunker is a defensive military fortification. ... From left to right: Brühls Terrace; the Hofkirche and the castle; the Semper Opera House. ...

In the form that exists today, these devices (often dubbed Fuel-Air Munitions) are said to have been developed in the 1960s and used by the United States during the Vietnam War to destroy Viet Cong tunnels, clear forest for helicopter landing sites and to clear minefields. However, it is not clear that this is entirely the case; in particular, the very large parachute-delivered "Daisy Cutter" bomb used for this purpose was suspected to have been such a weapon but the current published details indicate that it was not (it seems to be filled with ANFO, a mixture of ammonium nitrate and jet fuel, instead). FAMs are certainly in published literature available to English-speaking readers by the mid-1970s (Cite to come). The 1960s decade refers to the years from 1960 to 1969, inclusive. ... Combatants Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam) United States of America South Korea Thailand Australia New Zealand the Philippines Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) National Liberation Front (Viet Cong) Strength ~1,200,000 (1968) ~420,000 (1968) Casualties South Vietnamese dead: 1,250,000+ US dead: 58,226 US wounded... A Viet Cong soldier, heavily guarded, awaits interrogation following capture in the attacks on Saigon during the festive Tet holiday period of 1968. ... Various anti-tank and anti-personnel land mines A landmine is a type of self-contained explosive device which is placed onto or into the ground, exploding when triggered by a vehicle or person. ... A 15,000lb BLU-82/B on display at the USAF museum Note: Though commonly called daisy cutter, Daisy Cutter actually refers to the fuse extender on the nose of the bomb. ... ANFO stands for Ammonium Nitrate / Fuel Oil (most often diesel fuel, sometimes kerosene). ... RTECS number BR9050000 Supplementary data page Structure and properties n, εr, etc. ... Russian kerosene lamp Kerosene or paraffin oil (British English, not to be confused with the waxy solid also called paraffin) is a colorless flammable hydrocarbon liquid. ...

In 2003, United States Marines used a thermobaric version of their Shoulder-Launched Multipurpose Assault Weapon, called a Shoulder-Launched Multipurpose Assault Weapon - Novel Explosion (SMAW-NE), in the Invasion of Iraq. One team of Marines reported that they had destroyed a large one-story masonry type building with one round from 100 meters. [1] The thermobaric explosive used in this weapon, PBXIH-135 or a variant, was developed at the Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) Indian Head Division and had previously been used in BLU-118/B air-dropped bombs against al Qaeda and Taliban forces in Afghanistan in early March, 2002. The Shoulder-Launched Multipurpose Assault Weapon is a shoulder-launched missile weapon, based on the Israeli B-300 ,with the primary function of being a portable anti-armor rocket launcher. ... For other uses of the term, see Iraq war (disambiguation) The 2003 invasion of Iraq (also called the 2nd or 3rd Persian Gulf War) began on March 20, 2003, when forces belonging primarily to the United States and the United Kingdom invaded Iraq without the explicit backing of the United...

The Soviet armed forces also developed FAE weapons, including thermobaric warheads for shoulder-launched RPGs (RPO-A Shmel Bumblebee). Russian forces have a wide array of these weapons ([2]) and reportedly used them against Chinese forces in a 1969 border conflict, and certainly used them in Afghanistan and in Chechnya. Russian troops report that a single RPO-A round in an urban environment has an equivalent effect to a 156mm artillery round. State motto (Russian): Пролетарии всех стран, соединяйтесь! (Transliterated: Proletarii vsekh stran, soedinyaytes!) (Translated: Workers of the world, unite!) Capital Moscow Official language None; Russian (de facto) Government Federation of Soviet republics Area  - Total  - % water 1st before collapse 22,402,200 km² Approx. ... An RPG is a hand-held, shoulder-launched antitank weapon capable of firing an unguided rocket containing an explosive warhead. ... 1969 (MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1969 calendar). ... Capital Grozny Area - total - % water Ranked 80th - 15,300 km² - negligible Population - Total - Density Ranked 49th - est. ...

An FAE system from Israel was developed for minefield clearing. The system uses a small rocket propelled thermobaric charge which explodes over the minefield and activates exposed or buried mines. Various anti-tank and anti-personnel land mines A landmine is a type of self-contained explosive device which is placed onto or into the ground, exploding when triggered by a vehicle or person. ...

Thermobaric weapons in fiction

Such a bomb was used at the beginning of the movie Outbreak, starring Dustin Hoffman and Rene Russo, and threatened to be used at the end to wipe out a quarantined town. Outbreak (1995) is a suspense film starring Dustin Hoffman, Rene Russo, and Morgan Freeman. ... Dustin Hoffman Hoffman with Ben Stiller in 2004s Meet the Fockers. ... Rene Russo Rene Russo (born February 17, 1954 in Burbank, California, USA) is an American film actress and model. ...

A fuel-air device was used to destroy the submarine USS Ethan Allen in the novel The Hunt for Red October, to cover the escape of the defecting Soviet submarine. USS Ethan Allen (SSBN-608), lead ship of her class, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for Ethan Allen. ... Harper Collins 1993 paperback edition The Hunt for Red October, Tom Clancys first novel, was published in 1984. ...

A fuel-air bomb can be ordered in the game Mercenaries: Playground of Destruction. For destroying enemy personnel and light-armour vehicles such as Jeeps and some APCs, it is the most powerful weapon available, and has a large price tag attached.

Fuel-air bombs are mentioned in Stealth. Stealth is a 2005 action/adventure thriller starring Josh Lucas, Jessica Biel and Jamie Foxx. ...

In the game Command & Conquer: Generals, a fuel-air bomb strike can be called in by the US Forces.

In the sci-fi novel Gust Front by John Ringo, US forces used an FAE, consisting of a propane-filled office building, to destroy the city of Fredericksburg in an attempt to stop an invading alien army. John Ringo is an American science fiction and fantasy author, who specializes in the subgenre of military science fiction, concentrating on SF scenarios that have a lot of infantry battles and other types ground combat. ...

Johann Vierziger uses a fuel air hand grenade, referred to as a bunker buster, in David Drake's sci-fi action/adventure novel The Sharp End. First Sergeant Bradley uses a similar device in Drake's short story Teem Effort David Drake (born September 24, 1945) is a successful author of science fiction and fantasy literature. ...

The video game Resident Evil 4 features incendiary grenades as weapons which appear to contain napalm or a similarly volatile fuel. Resident Evil 4 (Japanese: バイオハザード４, Biohazard 4) (often abbreviated RE4) is a survival horror game published and developed by Capcom. ...

The bombers in Battalion Wars are described as carrying "fuel-air bombs". Battalion Wars (Japanese: 突撃!!ファミコンウォーズ Totsugeki! Famicom Wars), part of the Nintendo Wars series, is a real-time strategy game for the Nintendo GameCube. ...

An Urban Myth exists about a man attempting to play a practical joke on his newlywed friends, consisting of an acetylene filled waterbed in their new house, accidentally destroying the house and surrounds for some distance and putting the local security forces on alert due to the sheer loudness of the explosion. In the myth fortune prevails and nobody is actually injured.

External links

• Aspects of thermobaric weaponry
• Thermobaric warhead for RPG-7
• Defense Update: Fuel-Air Explosive Mine Clearing System
• Foreign Military Studies Office - A 'Crushing' Victory: Fuel-Air Explosives and Grozny 2000