Talk:VR (nerve agent)

Confusion around the name

There seems to be confusion around the naming. Is VR a "Novichok" agent?

Substance 33 is - like A230 and A-232 - a unitary nerve agent, while those agents called "Novichok" in Western media are binary ones. That's a fundamental difference. VR/Substance 33 is very similar to VX, also a unitary agent.

According to chemical weapons expert Jonathan Tucker, the first binary formulation developed under the Soviet Foliant program was used to make Substance 33, differing only from VX in the alkyl substituents on its nitrogen and oxygen atoms. "This weapon was given the code name Novichok

Why is Tucker calling VR/Substance 33 a 'Novichok' agent?

Back in the 1970s, the Soviets established the FOLIANT program to develop nerve agents of a "new type" or "new class". You also can call these agents "Newcomers" (Novichoks), but this name has never been used as an official designation. Based on organophosphates, the first agents of this "new type" or "new generation" were the unitary agents Substance 33, A230 and A232. Later on, based on these new unitary agents, the Soviets developed binary nerve agents which are called "Novichok" by Vil Mirzayanov in his book.

So, using Mirzayanov's definition User:Neil_S_Walker states that:

Substance 33 is not a Novichok agent - it is VR! 
The reason they are called "novichok" is because they are the new generation after the V agents!

(see here for more [1])

This means, there are two different definitions in use, of what Novichok actually is.

I hope, this will clarify a bit the confusion around the name Novichok.--91.61.116.3 (talk) 14:48, 13 April 2018 (UTC)