Pepper spray
non-lethal chemical weapon
Pepper spray, oleoresin capsicum spray, OC spray, capsaicin spray, mace, or capsicum spray is a lachrymator (tear gas) product containing as its active ingredient the chemical compound capsaicin, which irritates the eyes with burning and pain sensations and so causes them to close, bringing temporary blindness. This blindness allows officers to more easily restrain subjects and permits people in danger to use pepper spray in self-defense for an opportunity to escape. It also causes temporary discomfort and burning of the lungs which causes shortness of breath. Pepper spray is used as a non-lethal weapon in policing, riot control, crowd control, and self-defense, including defense against violent or threatening animals.
Components
The active ingredient in pepper spray is capsaicin, which is derived from the fruit of plants in the genus Capsicum, including chilis in the form of oleoresin capsicum (OC). Extraction of OC from peppers requires capsicum to be finely ground, from which capsaicin is then extracted using an organic solvent such as ethanol. The solvent is then evaporated, and the remaining waxlike resin is the oleoresin capsaicin.
An emulsifier such as propylene glycol is used to suspend OC in water, and the suspension is then pressurized to make an aerosol pepper spray. Other sprays may use an alcohol (such as isopropyl alcohol) base for a more penetrating product, but a risk of fire is present if they are used in combination with a taser.
The strength of pepper sprays can vary:
The US federal government uses CRC (capsaicin and related capsaicinoids) content for regulation.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “Pepper spray” is non-lethal chemical weapon. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Pepper, spray and non-lethal, not as a finished interpretation.
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The date and method of observation matter as much as the stated conclusion, especially where classification or consensus has changed. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 3, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q622653. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference.
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This entry incorporates text from “Pepper spray” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.