• whotookkarl@lemmy.world
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    8 months ago

    White phosphorus is incredibly easy to obtain in small volumes (if you have a matchbook you already have some red phosphorus), and in larger volumes it’s found in some pretty common minerals. Unfortunately the possible damage done or weapons use of a material isn’t always reflected in how difficult it is to obtain. According to the ACS 900,000 tons are produced annually & mostly used in fertilizer and pesticide.

    https://www.acs.org/molecule-of-the-week/archive/w/white-phosphorus.html