The Field Deployable Hydrolysis System (FDHS) is a transportable, high throughput neutralization system developed by the
U.S. Army
The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...
for converting
chemical warfare material into compounds not usable as weapons.
Operation
Neutralization is facilitated through chemical reactions involving reagents that are mixed and heated to increase destruction efficiency, which is rated at 99.9 percent.
[
The transportable FDHS is a self-contained system that includes power generators and a laboratory. Operational inputs include consumable materials such as water, reagents and fuel. It is designed to be set up within 10 days and is equipped with redundant critical systems.][ An on-site crew of 15 trained personnel, including SME support, is needed for each shift of a possible 24-hour operational cycle.][
]
Development
A 20-week design and development phase was funded by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency
The Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) is both a defense agency and a combat support agency within the United States Department of Defense (DoD) for countering weapons of mass destruction (WMD; chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear ...
in February 2013. The effort to develop a functional prototype was led by subject-matter experts from the Edgewood Chemical Biological Center
The United States Army Combat Capabilities Development Command Chemical Biological Center (DEVCOM CBC) is the United States Department of Defense's principal research and development resource for non-medical chemical and biological defense (CB ...
(ECBC) in partnership with the United States Army Chemical Materials Agency
The United States Army Chemical Materials Activity (CMA) is a separate reporting activity of the United States Army Materiel Command (AMC). Its role is to enhance national security by securely storing the remaining U.S. chemical warfare materie ...
.[ An operational model was developed over the course of six months, with the participation of 50 ECBC employees.][
]
Deployment
Two of these units were deployed on the for use in the destruction of Syria's chemical weapons
The destruction of Syria's chemical weapons began on 14 September 2013 after Syria entered into several international agreements which called for the elimination of Syria's chemical weapon stockpiles and set a destruction deadline of 30 June 2 ...
.
References
{{reflist
Chemical weapons demilitarization
Chemical warfare
United States Army vehicles