Frequently referred to as a unit crest or DUI for short, the Distinctive Unit Insignia of the 453rd Chemical Battalion was approved for wear with an effective date of 16 September 2011. It consists of a gold shield with a red scroll attached at the bottom and a dragon rendered in green and gold grasping the shield with its forelegs and tail. The dragon has long been used for Chemical Corps heraldry because of its destructive power. On the shield reversed (point down) wavy chevrons of blue and red that allude to the blending of different substances as in a chemical mixture. A reversed chevron is also the Roman number for five (“V”), the number of battle campaigns the unit had officially taken part in when the insignia was approved. Above the chevrons are two blue stars (AKA “mullets” in heraldry) that represent the two Meritorious Unit Commendations the organization received during the Korean War.
INVICTUS SCUTUM, the Battalion motto, is Latin for “Invincible Shield.”
The Distinctive Unit Insignia is worn by all Soldiers (except General Officers) in units that have been authorized to be issued the device. It is worn centered on the shoulder loops of the Army Green Service Uniform (AGSU) and the blue Army Service Uniform (ASU, Enlisted only) with the base of the insignia toward the outside shoulder seam. DUIs are not worn on the Dress variations of either uniform, however.
Full guidance on wear of the DUI is found in DA Pamphlet 670-1,
Section 21-22, "Distinctive unit insignia" and 21–3(d) and (e),
"Beret" and
"Garrison Cap," respectively.
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The 453rd Chemical Battalion was originally constituted in the Army of the United States as HQ and HQ Detachment (HHD), 24th Chemical Smoke Generator Battalion on 30 May 1944. It was redesignated as HHD, 453rd Chemical Smoke Generator Battalion and allotted to the Organized Reserve Corps (later called the Army Reserve) on 16 September 1948. It was ordered in to active military service on 19 August 1950 and fought in two Korean War campaigns, earning two Meritorious Unit Commendations.
Following the Korean War, it was reorganized and redesignated HHD, 453rd Chemical Battalion on 15 March 1954 and released from active service on 27 September 1954. Since that time it has been inactivated/activated on several occasions, the most recent being its activation on 16 September 2011—the same date as its DUI was effectively approved.