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Rozsypal T. Contaminated disposable rubber gloves as evidence samples after a chemical attack with nerve agents. Drug Test Anal 2023. [PMID: 36912582 DOI: 10.1002/dta.3468] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2022] [Revised: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 03/09/2023] [Indexed: 03/14/2023]
Abstract
Nerve agents have been used recently in the Syrian civil war. Collecting relevant samples for retrospective identification of an attack is often problematic. The article deals with the possibility of using contaminated gloves as an analytical sample for evidence of the chemical weapons use. There have not yet been published studies dealing with the identification of chemical warfare agents in this type of matrix, where the diversity of chemical properties of gloves and the lifetime of the contaminated sample would be considered. Sarin, soman, and cyclosarin were used as contaminants in the study. Nitrile, latex, and vinyl disposable gloves were chosen as matrices. The identification method was gas chromatography. Six solvents commonly used in military laboratories were tested as extractants. The extraction procedure was optimized in terms of the appropriate method (vortex) and the required extraction time (1 min) and resulted in significant reduction in sample preparation time. The chromatographic background of the extracts was also monitored in order to find a method with the least number of peaks interfering in the identification. Suitable solvents were hexane and acetonitrile. The lifetime of the sample was also investigated. The worst result was recorded for latex. For individual contaminants, the time varied depending on the volatility. The developed procedures were successfully validated within a sample handling effects scenario. The results demonstrate that in the event of an ongoing military risk at the site of an attack, even discarded disposable rubber glove type samples can be used as evidence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomas Rozsypal
- Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Defence Institute, University of Defence, Vyskov, Czech Republic
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Kittle JD, Grasdal EN, Kim SM, Levin NR, Davis PA, Kittle AL, Kittle IJ, Mulcahy JA, Keith BR. Vapor Sorption-Desorption Phenomena of HD and GB Simulants from Polyurethane Thin Films on Aluminum Oxide via a Quartz Crystal Microbalance. ACS OMEGA 2022; 7:22735-22742. [PMID: 35811928 PMCID: PMC9260914 DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.2c02257] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2022] [Accepted: 06/13/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Protection and decontamination of surfaces after exposure to chemical warfare agents (CWAs) are of considerable interest to the homeland defense and battlespace operation communities. In this work, polyurethane was spin-coated onto aluminum oxide quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) sensors. Polyurethane film thickness was varied by altering the concentration of the polymer/chloroform solution used for spin-coating. Atomic force microscopy confirmed the formation of smooth, homogeneous films on the QCM sensor surface. Aluminum oxide QCM sensors coated with polyurethane were exposed to saturated vapors of dichloropentane (DCP), a mustard gas (HD) simulant, and dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP), a sarin gas (GB) simulant, and the mass uptake, diffusion coefficient, volume fraction, and partition coefficient of the simulant in the film were determined from QCM data. Results showed that both DCP and DMMP readily sorbed into the films although the mass uptake of DCP was greater than that of DMMP owing to DCP's higher vapor pressure. Additionally, the CWA simulant uptake increased with polyurethane film thickness. Sorption diffusion coefficients were 1 × 10-13 cm2/s and 1 × 10-12 cm2/s for DCP and DMMP vapor, respectively. Simulant desorption was also measured and showed that some DMMP remained in the film/substrate system, while DCP sorption was fully reversible. Reversible desorption for both CWA simulants was relatively quick and independent over the range of film thicknesses studied, with average desorption diffusion coefficients of 2 × 10-9 cm2/s and 1 × 10-11 cm2/s for DCP and DMMP, respectively. Collectively, this study is expected to inform protection and decontamination strategies of equipment and structures upon exposure to CWAs.
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Denis EH, Fraga CG, Huggett NL, Weaver WC, Rush LA, Dockendorff BP, Breton-Vega AS, Carman AJ. Physicochemical Gas-Solid Sorption Properties of Geologic Materials Using Inverse Gas Chromatography. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2021; 37:6887-6897. [PMID: 34081468 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.0c03676] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
The goal of this study was to determine the physicochemical properties of a variety of geologic materials using inverse gas chromatography (IGC) by varying probe gas selection, temperature, carrier gas flow rate, and humidity. This is accomplished by measuring the level of interaction between the materials of interest and known probe gases. Identifying a material's physicochemical characteristics can help provide a better understanding of the transport of gaseous compounds in different geologic materials or between different geological layers under various conditions. Our research focused on measuring the enthalpy (heat) of adsorption, Henry's constant, and diffusion coefficients of a suite of geologic materials, including two soil types (sandy clay-loam and loam), quartz sand, salt, and bentonite clay, with various particle sizes. The reproducibility of IGC measurements for geologic materials, which are inherently heterogeneous, was also assessed in comparison to the reproducibility for more homogeneous synthetic materials. This involved determining the variability of physicochemical measurements obtained from different IGC approaches, instruments, and researchers. For the investigated IGC-determined parameters, the need for standardization became apparent, including the need for application-relevant reference materials. The inherent physical and chemical heterogeneities of soil and many geologic materials can make the prediction of sorption properties difficult. Characterizing the properties of individual organic and inorganic components can help elucidate the primary factors influencing sorption interactions in more complex mixtures. This research examined the capabilities and potential challenges of characterizing the gas sorption properties of geologic materials using IGC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth H Denis
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, 902 Battelle Boulevard, Richland, Washington 99354, United States
| | - Carlos G Fraga
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, 902 Battelle Boulevard, Richland, Washington 99354, United States
| | - Nicholas L Huggett
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, 902 Battelle Boulevard, Richland, Washington 99354, United States
| | - William C Weaver
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, 902 Battelle Boulevard, Richland, Washington 99354, United States
| | - Lydia A Rush
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, 902 Battelle Boulevard, Richland, Washington 99354, United States
| | - Brian P Dockendorff
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, 902 Battelle Boulevard, Richland, Washington 99354, United States
| | - Angel S Breton-Vega
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, 902 Battelle Boulevard, Richland, Washington 99354, United States
| | - April J Carman
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, 902 Battelle Boulevard, Richland, Washington 99354, United States
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Brown HM, McDaniel TJ, Doppalapudi KR, Mulligan CC, Fedick PW. Rapid, in situ detection of chemical warfare agent simulants and hydrolysis products in bulk soils by low-cost 3D-printed cone spray ionization mass spectrometry. Analyst 2021; 146:3127-3136. [PMID: 33999086 DOI: 10.1039/d1an00255d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Chemical warfare agents (CWAs) are toxic chemicals that have been used as disabling or lethal weapons in war, terrorist attacks, and assasinations. The Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) has prohibited the use, development, production, and stockpiling of CWAs since its initiation in 1997, however, the threat of deployment still looms. Detection of trace CWAs post-deployment or post-remediation, in bulk matrices such as soil, often requires lengthy sample preparation steps or extensive chromatographic separation times. 3D-printed cone spray ionization (3D-PCSI), an ambient ionization mass spectrometric (MS) technique, provides a rapid, simple, and low-cost method for trace CWA analysis in soil matrices for both in-laboratory and in-field detection. Described here is the utilization of conductive 3D-printed cones to perform both rapid sampling and ionization for CWA simulants and hydrolysis products in eight solid matrices. The analysis of trace quantities of CWA simulants and hydrolysis products by 3D-PCSI-MS coupled to both a commercial benchtop system and a field-portable MS system is detailed. Empirical limits of detection (LOD) for CWA simulants on the benchtop MS ranged from 100 ppt to 750 ppb and were highly dependant on solid matrix composition, with the portable system yielding similar spectral data from alike matrices, albeit with lower sensitivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hilary M Brown
- Chemistry Division, Research Department, Naval Air Warfare Center, Weapons Division (NAWCWD), United States Navy Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), China Lake, California 93555, USA.
| | - Trevor J McDaniel
- Department of Chemistry, Illinois State University, Normal, Illinois 61790, USA.
| | - Karan R Doppalapudi
- Chemistry Division, Research Department, Naval Air Warfare Center, Weapons Division (NAWCWD), United States Navy Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), China Lake, California 93555, USA.
| | | | - Patrick W Fedick
- Chemistry Division, Research Department, Naval Air Warfare Center, Weapons Division (NAWCWD), United States Navy Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), China Lake, California 93555, USA.
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