US Defense Department funds chemical capacity building

The US has tense relationships with the countries that supply many of the chemical raw materials needed by its military. The US Department of Defense (DOD) is now deploying $192.5 million to address this weakness in its supply chain. The money will go to seven US companies and will result in the domestic production of military grade chemicals by establishing, expanding, and modernizing the manufacturing capacity of 22 critical chemicals used in defense systems, including nonenergetic chemicals and precursors for both energetic and non-energetic chemicals, Laura Taylor-Kale, assistant secretary of defense for industrial base policy, says in a press release announcing the funding . Energetic materials is an industry term that primarily refers to explosives but can also include propellants and fuels. The specialty chemical maker Lacamas Laboratories received the largest award, $86.2 million, to set up production of 4-nitroanisole, 1,3,5-trichlorobenzene, diphenylamine, ethyl centralite, and methyl centralite—chemicals used to make © 2024 Chemical & Engineering News.