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Program Executive Office, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (PEO ACWA)Program Executive Office, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (PEO ACWA)Program Executive Office, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (PEO ACWA)Program Executive Office, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (PEO ACWA)
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      Program Executive Office, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (PEO ACWA)


      Mission: The safe elimination of chemical weapons at Pueblo and Blue Grass by Sept. 30, 2023

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      Blue Grass Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant (BGCAPP)

      BGCAPP is safely destroying the chemical weapons stockpile currently in storage at the Blue Grass Army Depot near Richmond, Kentucky.

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      Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant (PCAPP)

      PCAPP is safely destroying the chemical weapons stockpile currently in storage at the U.S. Army Pueblo Chemical Depot in Colorado.

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Anniston Project Manager Explains Destruction Technology

Published: February 20, 2018 | Category: PCAPP News, Technology
The Static Detonation Chamber is a heated, armored vessel capable of processing chemical agent-filled munitions.

The Static Detonation Chamber is a heated, armored vessel capable of processing chemical agent-filled munitions.

The former site project manager of the Anniston Chemical Agent Disposal Facility, Alabama, shared his experience with the Static Detonation Chamber during the January 31 Colorado Chemical Demilitarization Citizens’ Advisory Commission meeting.

“An operator puts an item on the processing line and doesn’t touch it again,” said Tim Garrett, the current site project manager of the Anniston Field Office. “It reduces safety risks because there is no manual interaction or additional equipment interaction.”

Garrett said the SDC is a heated, armored vessel which operates at 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit and is capable of processing conventional and chemical munitions. The inner chamber is made of heat resistant stainless steel and has excellent tensile properties.

Currently, the Anniston SDC is processing non-contaminated energetic components from the Pueblo stockpile. At the end of January, the unit had processed almost 25,000 propellants and more than 40,000 bursters.

While the technology is able to withstand a detonation, in most cases the munition experiences a deflagration. The explosive is heated up to its auto ignition temperature, burning the component so it no longer has the characteristics of an explosive, Garrett said.

The project manager said the SDC is a clean technology and emissions testing has confirmed compliance with environmental requirements.

In 2010, an SDC was installed at the Anniston facility in support of the mission to destroy the chemical weapons stockpile at Anniston Army Depot. Overpacks, chemical munitions that had leaked or were sampled in the past to determine the condition of the mustard agent, and items not conducive for processing by baseline equipment were treated by the unit.


PCAPP Technology Articles

  • Agent-filled 4.2-inch mortar rounds are monitored during Static Detonation Chamber agent trial testing operations at the Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant.

    Static Detonation Chamber Trial Testing Concludes

    Published: May 13, 2022
  • After a chemical weapon is drained of agent and rinsed with high-pressure hot water, Agent Washwater Separator tanks collect fluid before sending it to Agent Neutralization Reactors to destroy the mustard agent. The Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant has two tanks, providing the plant with redundancy when neutralizing agent.

    Backup Systems Allow for Safe Repairs

    Published: March 28, 2022
  • All chemical weapons from the Colorado stockpile are sorted into four color-coded lots to reduce delays in destruction due to problematic munitions.

    Color Coding Boosts Chemical Weapon Destruction

    Published: March 23, 2022
  • A Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant ordnance technician holds the first 4.2-inch mortar round to be processed in the Static Detonation Chamber complex.

    First Agent Destroyed in Static Detonation Chamber

    Published: February 22, 2022
  • Static Detonation Chamber ordnance technicians Rachelle S. and Mike W. remove a 57mm conventional ammunition round from its fiber tube during SDC non-agent Trial Burn Testing.

    Conventional Explosives Demonstrate Static Detonation Chamber Capability

    Published: February 15, 2022
  • Munitions transporters unload inert 4.2-inch mortar rounds from the back of a Modified Ammunition Vehicle during Integrated Operations Demonstrations. (Portions of this photograph have been blurred in accordance with Department of Defense guidelines)

    Pueblo Static Detonation Chamber Team Demonstrates Operations

    Published: February 2, 2022
  • Ethylene glycol and monochlorobenzene are being used as mustard agent surrogates during testing of the Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant’s Static Detonation Chamber units.

    Mustard Agent Alternatives Used in Testing

    Published: January 12, 2022
  • Control room footage shows Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant workers preparing a cardboard box containing an empty, inert projectile for trial burn testing in a PCAPP Static Detonation Chamber unit.

    Detailed Timeline Guiding Pueblo Static Detonation Chamber Testing

    Published: December 2, 2021
  • Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant ordnance technicians place an empty, inert projectile into a cardboard box to begin trial burn testing at the PCAPP Static Detonation Chamber.

    Pueblo Static Detonation Chamber Trial Burn Testing Begins

    Published: November 2, 2021
  • Three Static Detonation Chamber units at the Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant will augment the main plant by destroying 4.2-inch mortar rounds containing mustard agent. Phase one testing of the units slated to begin in late 2021.

    First Phase of Pueblo Detonation Testing to Begin

    Published: October 8, 2021
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Recent PCAPP Articles

  • Colorado Commission Welcomes New Member

    Colorado Commission Welcomes New Member

    May 4, 2022
  • Backup Systems Allow for Safe Repairs

    Backup Systems Allow for Safe Repairs

    March 28, 2022
  • Plant Closely Monitors Permit Requirements

    Plant Closely Monitors Permit Requirements

    February 24, 2022
  • New Bechtel Pueblo Team Manager Takes Helm

    New Bechtel Pueblo Team Manager Takes Helm

    November 18, 2021
  • Redevelopment CEO Appointed to Colorado Advisory Commission

    Redevelopment CEO Appointed to Colorado Advisory Commission

    October 28, 2021
  • Mentorship Critical to Pueblo Plant Maintenance

    Mentorship Critical to Pueblo Plant Maintenance

    August 30, 2021

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Program Executive Office, Assembled Chemical Weapons Alternatives (PEO ACWA)