PAVA spray is an incapacitant spray similar to pepper spray. It is dispensed from a handheld canister, in a liquid stream. It contains a 0.3% solution of pelargonic acid vanillylamide (PAVA), also called nonivamide, a synthetic capsaicinoid, in a solvent of aqueous ethanol. The propellant is nitrogen. This solution has been selected because this is the minimum concentration which will fulfill the purpose of the equipment: namely, to minimise a person's capacity for resistance, without unnecessarily prolonging their discomfort.