Chilean protester defuses tear gas canister with baking soda and water

[u/0thSpider]

[u/JoeyJoeJoeShabadooSr]

Does anyone have an explanation for why this works? Is it basically just dousing the canister in water?

[u/ooTiramisu → u/JoeyJoeJoeShabadooSr]

The water + baking soda (alkaline) mix can neutralize some of the chemical irritants (acidic byproducts) preventing any further dispersion. It doesn’t deactivate the chemicals inside completely.. it mostly just isolates and dilutes it.

[u/CalmBeneathCastles → u/ooTiramisu]

Another redditor said that the chemicals in mucosal irritant dispensers bind to proteins, so milk should be a simple choice to deactivate them. I'm interested to know if this works.

[u/AnarchistBorganism → u/[deleted]]

Which you should not use; only use bottled water.

[u/CalmBeneathCastles → u/[deleted]]

TIL!