MINSK, 18 November (BelTA) – The chemical mixture used by Polish law enforcement personnel at the Belarusian border has a strong irritating effect, BelTA learned from Academician-Secretary of the Chemistry and Earth Sciences Department of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus Sergei Usanov.
The official said: “Our branch of the National Academy of Sciences has very serious equipment, which allows determining the composition of any mixtures. We had samples of soil, grass. An analysis of these samples demonstrated that these mixtures contain up to 39 organic compounds, which are subdivided into several groups. Compounds that cause irritation are the first one. Deltametrin is one of the main components. It is an insecticide with a high irritating effect.”
In his words, the scientists also found capsaicin in the samples that had been provided. “It is an extract of red pepper with a bitter burning quality. The samples also contained its isomer – dihydrocapsaicin. And camphor is the third in this group of irritants,” the official noted.
“The second group contains organic compounds used to dissolve the previously mentioned chemicals. All these chemicals cannot be dissolved in water, this is why derivatives of benzene, toluene, and ethers of fatty acids have been used,” Sergei Usanov said.
