Army Systems Containing DU
The Army uses alloyed DU in the 25, 105, and 120 millimeter (mm) kinetic energy cartridges. The Bradley Fighting Vehicle will use the 25 mm cartridge (not released for use as of May 1995) in its chain gun. The M1 and M60 series tanks use the 105 mm cartridge; the Army also plans to use the 105 mm in the main gun of the XM8 Armored Gun System. The M1A1 and M1A2 Abrams Tank main guns use the 120 mm cartridge. A cross section of a typical 120 mm DU round is shown in Figure 3-1. DU is used as an armor component on the M1 series heavy armor (HA) tanks. Small amounts of DU are used as an epoxy catalyst for the M86 Pursuit Deterrent Munition (PDM) and the Area Denial Artillery Munition (ADAM).

More than 50 current and former sites have been involved in the production, manufacture, development, testing and storage of DU for various DoD uses. As of February 1994, contractors had produced more than 1.6 million DU penetrators for tank ammunition and more than 55 million DU penetrators for small caliber (20, 25 and 30 mm) applications. More than 99 percent of the small-caliber production has been for the U.S. Air Force (30 mm GAU-8)

---- ----------
120mm DU Sabot round-------------Sabot separating from
(cutaway) for the M1A1 tank--------the DU penetrator

Army Contractors
Several contractors are licensed to load, to assemble and pack and to fabricate and test DU ammunition at Army or non-government sites. Alliant Tech Systems, Inc., and Olin Ordnance test DU munitions at the Energetic Material Research and Technology Center in Socorro, N.M. (formerly the Terminal Effects Research and Analysis (TERA) Facility). Alliant Tech Systems conducted open air testing of DU munitions for the Army at the Naval Weapons Center (NWC) in China Lake, Calif., from 1979 to 1989. The Army has completed remediation at NWC that meets NRC and California criteria. Alliant Tech Systems is also authorized to fabricate DU munitions at the Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant in Minnesota (NRC, 1992a). The General Electric Company is licensed to test DU munitions at the Ethan Allen Firing Range in Burlington, Vt. The Army has stopped using the Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant and the Ethan Allen Firing Range for DU operations; the contractors are decommissioning these sites according to the terms of their contracts.

Aerojet Ordnance Tennessee, Inc., (AOT) of Jonesborough, Tenn., and Nuclear Metals, Inc., (NMI) of Concord, Mass., are licensed to produce DU penetrators (Hickman, 1993; Vumbaco, 1993a). The Manufacturing Sciences Corporation (MSC) of Oak Ridge, Tenn., produces DU castings, bar stock, sheet and plate (Liby, 1993).

The M919 25 mm DU round is produced exclusively by Olin Ordnance in Marion, Il.; the rounds were originally produced by Aerojet Manufacturing of Chino, Calif., while the M774, M833 and M900 (105 mm) penetrators and the M829, M829A1 and M829A2 (120 mm) penetrators have been made by both AOT and NMI (Hickman, 1993). 105, 120 and 25 mm cartridges contain DU penetrators. The penetrators are produced under subcontract to a government prime ammunition production contractor (usually Alliant Tech Systems of Edina, Minn., or Olin Ordnance of St. Petersburg, Fla.). The prime contractor then contracts for the metal parts manufacturing and projectile assembly with Olin Ordnance of Red Lion, Pa.; Chamberlain Manufacturing of Waterloo, Iowa; or National Manufacturing Corporation of St. Louis, Mo. Two government owned, contractor-operated (GOCO) plants load, assemble and pack (LAP) the complete tank rounds: the Milan Army Ammunition Plant (MAAP) of Milan, Tenn., operated by Martin Marietta Ordnance Systems, Inc. and the Iowa Army Ammunition Plant (IAAP) of Middletown, Iowa, operated by Mason & Hanger - Silas Mason Company, Inc. (Van Dorn, 1993; Vumbaco, 1993a; Crumpler, 1993; Hickman, 1993). Aerojet performs LAP for the 25 mm DU rounds. Each facility operates under its own license.

NMI also produces cast billets that are used to make armor for the M1A1 Heavy Armor tank. During development of the M1A1 armor system, MSC also produced cast billets. The DOE fabricates them into DU armor at its Special Manufacturing Capability Site at Idaho Falls, which is operated by Babcock and Wilcox Idaho, Inc. The Lima Tank Plant in Lima, Ohio, operated by the Land Systems Division of the General Dynamics Corporation, installs the DU armor on the tanks and covers it with homogeneous rolled steel armor (McGuire, 1993a, 1993b, 1993c, 1993d; Liby, 1993).

Alliant Tech Systems, Inc., manufactures the M86 PDM and ADAM at the Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant in New Brighton, Minn. Very small quantities of DU serve as a catalyst in an epoxy molding compound that forms the body of these two mines. Each 206-gram mine contains approximately 0.101 g of DU. Based on the weight percent of DU within the molding compound, the mines are exempt from NRC licensing (10 CFR 40.13). In a survey of radioactivity that Alliant Tech Systems, Inc., conducted in 1983, observed readings were well below NRC requirements for an unrestricted work area (DA, 1991).

DU Ammo Storage
The Army stores DU ammunition at depots and installations. Figure 3-13 outlines the policies and procedures that pertain to the handling, storage and use of DU.
Large caliber (120 mm) M829 series rounds are factory-packed in individual, waterproof metal containers that interlock into pallets holding either 25 or 30 rounds (Figure 3-14) (Hooker and Hadlock, 1986). The 105 mm rounds are packaged in either metal or fiber con tainers. Metal containers are interlocked into 30-container pallets. Fiber containers are packed with two rounds per wooden box, either 15 or 20 boxes per pallet (Bratlett et al., 1979). Medium caliber rounds (25 mm), such as M919 ammunition, are stored belted, 15 rounds per belt, two belts per can, with 27 cans per pallet (Hadlock and Parkhurst, 1990).

Friendly Fire Analysis – G.W.I.
DU-penetrators have a “sharpening effect” upon impact that allows greater penetration through armor (Hartline, 1993; Danesi, 1990). Weapon testing shows that when a DU round penetrates an armored vehicle, it may pass completely through the vehicle or ricochet around and fragment inside the vehicle. During Operation Desert Storm, an armor commander of the 1st Infantry Division said crews hit armored target vehicles at ranges in excess of 3,000 meters (1.8 miles). Tank commanders often fired more than one DU round at targets that were hit but did not explode. The commanders indicated that it was difficult to clearly determine that they had hit such distant targets (ACC, 1991).

When a kinetic energy round penetrates a vehicle, it contaminates the vehicle interior with dust and fragments. Metal fragments from the penetrator and the vehicle’s hull can scatter inside the vehicle, killing and injuring personnel, destroying equipment, and causing secondary explosions and fires. As much as 70 percent of a DU penetrator can be ‘aerosolized’ [dust fragments] when it strikes a tank (Fliszar et al., 1989). Aerosols containing DU oxides may contaminate the area downwind. DU fragments may also contaminate the soil around the struck vehicle (Fliszar et al., 1989).

During Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm, 29 U.S. vehicles were contaminated with DU on the battlefield, 21 of these were unfortunate friendly fire incidents involving DU munitions. DU rounds penetrated six crewed Abrams tanks. One Abrams tank crew member was killed, seven were wounded and the rest were unharmed (DoD, 1992; OASD, 1991). DU penetrators also hit 15 Bradley Fighting Vehicles. Twelve Bradley crew members were killed, 43 were wounded and the others were unharmed. In addition to friendly fire, the Army used multiple DU rounds to destroy three unoccupied Abrams tanks to prevent enemy capture. Five other Abrams tanks were contaminated during on-board fires involving their own DU rounds.

No.9