A Study On Chemical Arsenal Plant During The Anti-japanese War

After the introduction of the modern chemical industry into China,the initial development was slow due to the country’s political turmoil and the lack of a stable and unified environment for chemical research.After the establishment of the National Government,with the support of the unified government and finances,China’s modern chemical industry entered a period of relatively rapid development.After the chemical seminar was held in 1932,with the help of Germany,China’s defense chemical industry developed rapidly,which provided conditions for the establishment of military chemical plants.In April 1932,chemical expert Wu Qinlie went to Europe and the United States to inspect and order chemical arsenal machinery and Luo Zhi technical experts.In February1936,the Gongxian(Henan)Ordnance Branch was formally established,and the research and trial production of various military chemicals was gradually carried out.In 1937,the Lugou Bridge Incident broke out.In order to preserve its strength,the factory persisted in the long-term resistance and was ordered to move to Sichuan.In January 1938,Luohanchang in Luxian County was selected as the factory site,and work began to resume one after another.In April 1938,the factory names of the Ordnance Industry Administration were restructured,and the Gongxian Ordnance Industry Branch was renamed as the 23 rd Factory of the Military Industry Administration.During the relocation and construction of the 23 rd factory of the Ordnance Industry Department,the scale has been continuously expanded and 15 production departments have been formed.Its products are mainly divided into five categories: chemical warfare agents,gunpowder explosives,chemical military products,anti-virus equipment,and industrial raw materials.The development of the ordnance industry is inseparable from the support of technical talents.At that time,my country lacked military chemistry talents.The factory adopted three measures to build a team of senior technical personnel by hiring foreign military chemistry experts,recruiting military chemistry students to return to China,and appointing military chemistry professionals from domestic universities.At the same time,trainee training classes are set up to train elementary chemical engineering.This diversified chemistry talent introduction and training system will help promote mutual exchanges between talents at different levels and promote the progress of the factory’s production technology and management.Due to the particularity of the ordnance industry and the large demand for weapons in wartime,the factory implemented institutionalized management of workers for the sake of confidentiality and guaranteeing production,and used high welfare to mobilize the enthusiasm of skilled workers to ensure wartime production.With the continuous expansion of chemical warfare by the Japanese army,the ammunition and anti-virus equipment required on the front line increased sharply.After the breakdown of Sino-German relations,the 23 rd Arsenal did its best to develop military chemicals and anti-virus equipment.The plant used existing equipment and domestically available raw materials to successfully develop chemical military products and anti-virus equipment such as potassium chlorate explosives,yellow phosphorus,and two-seven gas masks.To a certain extent,it provided the ammunition needed for the front and made a certain contribution to the victory of the War of Resistance Against Japan.Contributions promoted the development of wartime ordnance technology.But at the same time,due to the immature production technology of chemical defense weapons in the plant and the shortage of raw materials,some of the chemical defense equipment is defective and the plant is under-operated.In short,the 23 rd Arsenal was the largest military chemical plant in China at that time.Its establishment had a significant impact in the history of China’s military chemical industry.It also played a role in training military chemical talents,ensuring the production and promotion of wartime military chemicals and anti-virus equipment.During the war,advances in science and technology of the ordnance industry played a role.