Green training ammunition. The need for criteria to rank final exposure to combustion products

For training and education of law enforcement and military personnel the use of realistic ammunition and their actual weapons is important. During these training and educational sessions the trainers as well as the shooters themselves are exposed to the products emitted by firing the ammunition. The legislation regarding occupational safety and health requires minimization of the exposure to hazardous components. In addition to this, there is also European legislation on “Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and restrictions of Chemicals” (REACH), addressing the production and use of chemical substances/products, and their potential impacts on both human health and the environment. The emitted products from ammunition are however not included in this legislation.
The use of training ammunition with a lower risk of exposure of humans and the environment to toxic constituents is to be preferred. Experimental studies are being performed to identify of the requirements needed to make the right decisions regarding the purchase of the right training ammunition. One of these studies performed by TNO on small caliber training ammunition is presented. The emitted products are analyzed on-site and off-site via sampling on Tenax adsorption tubes. The emission composition of gasses, (semi-) volatile components and particles are qualitatively and quantitatively analyzed. After firing one round of 10 cartridges the air around the weapon is presented to the cultured human lung cell (type A549) using VitrocellÒ modules. The modules are air-liquid interfaces where cultured human cells, such as lung and skin cells, can be exposed in a controlled way to air “contaminated” with various components.
The results from all the analyses performed in this study will help to obtain more insight into the “green”, “non-toxic”, “less toxic” and “environmentalfriendly” (training) ammunitions and their final exposure to the shooter and other people in close proximity such as trainers and other colleagues/trainees/students.