Aerosol bomb

Lore & Background

The aerosol bomb was a hand-sized steel can charged with a liquefied gas under 75 pounds of pressure and a product to be expelled as a mist or a foam. It was designed as a refillable spray can, and a public-service patent was issued on the invention and assigned to the Secretary of Agriculture for the free use of the people of the United States. Pressurized by liquefied gas, the small, portable can enabled soldiers to defend themselves against malaria-carrying mosquitoes by spraying inside tents and airplanes in the Pacific during World War II.

Reader's Guide

The aerosol bomb represents a pivotal development in the history of aerosol technology. While earlier patents existed—such as Erik Rotheim's 1927 patent in Oslo and Julian S. Kahn's 1939 patent for a disposable spray can—Goodhue and Sullivan's 1941 design was the first to be put to effective use. Their work directly led to the widespread commercial adoption of aerosol sprays after World War II. In recognition of their early patents and subsequent pioneering work, Goodhue and Sullivan received the first Erik Rotheim Gold Medal from the Federation of European Aerosol Associations on August 28, 1970, in Oslo, Norway. The aerosol bomb's legacy includes the subsequent development of the crimp-on valve in 1949 by Robert H. Abplanalp and the eventual regulation of chlorofluorocarbon propellants following the 1974 discovery of their role in ozone depletion.

Did You Know?

• The aerosol bomb was developed in 1941 by Lyle Goodhue and William Sullivan of the United States Bureau of Entomology and Plant Quarantine.
• It was a hand-sized steel can charged with a liquefied gas under 75 pounds of pressure.
• A public-service patent was issued for the invention and assigned to the Secretary of Agriculture for free use by the people of the United States.
• Goodhue and Sullivan received the first Erik Rotheim Gold Medal on August 28, 1970, in Oslo, Norway.