Time-Tested VpCI® Paper Helps Ammunition Manufacturers Fight Corrosion

August 31, 2026

Corroded ammunition is no joke—either for the manufacturer who wants to sell like-new shells or the end user who wants to fire them safely without damaging firearms. However, tropical environments or even fluctuating humidity in shipping and storage conditions around the globe can attack even brass plated shells in sheltered environments. Fortunately, some ordnance manufacturers and users have discovered the secret weapon of protecting entire boxes of shells with a simple piece of VpCI® anticorrosion paper.

How VpCI® Paper Prevents Corrosion on Ammunition
CorShield® VpCI®-146 Paper, a USDA Certified Biobased Product made from 100% recycled content paper, works by emitting Vapor phase Corrosion Inhibitors that adsorb on metal surfaces within a box or enclosure. This molecular protective layer inhibits the interaction of metal surfaces with corrosive elements, hindering the start of a corrosion cell, yet evaporating when the shell is taken out of the box. One piece of paper protects multiple metal types:
• Carbon steel
• Brass
• Copper
• Aluminum alloys
• Solder

How One Ammunition Manufacturer Stopped Corrosion on Shotgun Shells
More than 10 years ago, an ammunition manufacturer in Southeast Asia noticed that the brass plates on their 12-gauge shotgun shells were oxidizing over long months of storage. From past experience, they knew that Cortec’s CorShield® VpCI®-146 Paper had helped with corrosion concerns in their mortar division and decided to add the paper to their ammunition packaging boxes. All they had to do was to cut small pieces of CorShield® VpCI®-146 Paper to the right size and place them inside the boxes as liners before closing the packages. This cost-effective solution provided the protection needed and was easy to use. A decade later, the manufacturer continues to use the same method of packaging protection.1

How Proper Corrosion Protection Can Save Thousands of Dollars on Military Ammunition
The time-tested success of CorShield® VpCI®-146 Paper for ammunition protection goes back even farther to 1998, when the same Cortec® distributor provided a similar solution to a defense research agency in Asia. The harsh tropical environment had taken a toll on charge bags and 105 mm cartridge cases undergoing two years of storage. Corrosion led to deterioration and the risk of spontaneous explosion. To avoid further problems like this, the agency began wrapping the 105 mm ammunition in CorShield® VpCI®-146 Paper and absorbent material. Considering the high value of munitions, it was estimated that this strategy would save the military hundreds of thousands of dollars annually by preventing corrosion-compromised ammunition.2

Take Advantage of an Easy Way to Solve Ammunition Corrosion
Corrosion on ammunition can be serious enough to threaten an explosion yet simple enough to solve by adding a piece of recyclable, biobased CorShield® VpCI®-146 Paper to the box. Ammunition manufacturers and users with corrosion concerns can still take advantage of this easy fix that has been solving ammunition corrosion problems over the decades. Contact Cortec® for further information and support in developing the right corrosion protection strategy for your ammunition storage and shipping needs: https://www.cortecvci.com/contact-us/.

1 See Cortec® Case History #879 (login required): http://www.corteccasehistories.com/.
2 See Cortec® Case History #105 (login required): http://www.corteccasehistories.com/.

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