Napalm Napalm Napalm is an incendiary mixture of a gelling agent and a volatile petrochemical (usually gasoline (petrol) or diesel fuel). The title is a portmanteau of the names of two of the constituents of the original thickening and gelling agents: co-precipitated aluminium salts of naphthenic and palmitic acids. Napalm B is the more modern version of napalm (utilizing styrene derivatives) and, although distinctly different in its chemical composition, is often referred to simply as "napalm". Napalm was originally developed in 1942 in a secret laboratory at Harvard University, by a team led by chemist Louis Fieser under the United States
Naphthenic acid The nature, occurrence, recovery and commercial uses of naphthenic acid have been reviewed. Crude oils from fields in Romania, Russia, Venezuela, the North Sea, China, and West Africa are known to be high in acidic compounds as compared to most American crude oils. The carboxylic acid content of certain California crude oils is particularly high (up to 4%) where the most abundant classes of carboxylic acids are reported to be cycloaliphatic and aromatic acids. The composition varies with the crude oil composition and the conditions during refining and oxidation. Fractions that are rich in naphthenic acids can cause corrosion damage