War sand is sand contaminated by remains of projectiles used in war. This kind of sand has been found in Normandy, since the invasion of Normandy, among other places.^[1] In 1988, the sand on Omaha Beach was discovered to contain man-made metal and glass particles deriving from shrapnel; 4% of the sand in the sample was composed of shrapnel particles ranging in size between 0.06 millimetres (0.0024 in) and 1 mm (0.039 in).^[2] Researchers also discovered trace amounts of iron and glass beads in the sand, originating from the intense heat unleashed by munitions explosions in the air and sand.^[2][3]

Composition identification

In 2013, Dr. Earle McBride, a researcher studying sandstone diagenesis and the textual and compositional maturation of sand during transportation,^[4] mixed samples collected from Omaha Beach in 1988 with a blue epoxy, creating an "artificial sandstone", before slicing it into thin sections.^[3] Utilising an optical microscope and an external light source, shiny, opaque grains could be identified. Although wave action had elicited rounding on the edges of some coarser grains, the shard-like angularity and corrosion of both coarse and fine grains suggested these grains were man-made.^[3][2] It is believed that the roughness of said grains was imparted by microporous surfaces produced during production and corrosion products post-explosion.^[2]

This inspection, alongside tests revealing that the grains were magnetic, led McBride to conclude these grains were pieces of shrapnel.^[3][2]

References