Neurobehavioral and physiologic effects of trifluoromethane in humans

Prospective Symbiosis of Green Chemistry and Energetic Materials

A global increase in environmental pollution demands the development of new "cleaner" chemical processes. Among urgent improvements, the replacement of traditional hydrocarbon-derived toxic organic solvents with neoteric solvents less harmful for the environment is one of the most vital issues. As a result of the favorable combination of their unique properties, ionic liquids (ILs), dense gases, and supercritical fluids (SCFs) have gained considerable attention as suitable green chemistry media for the preparation and modification of important chemical compounds and materials. In particular, they have a significant potential in a specific and very important area of research associated with the manufacture and processing of high-energy materials (HEMs). These large-scale manufacturing processes, in which hazardous chemicals and extreme conditions are used, produce a huge amount of hard-to-dispose-of waste. Furthermore, they are risky to staff, and any improvements that would reduce the fire and explosion risks of the corresponding processes are highly desirable. In this Review, useful applications of almost nonflammable ILs, dense gases, and SCFs (first of all, CO₂ ) for nitration and other reactions used for manufacturing HEMs are considered. Recent advances in the field of energetic (oxygen-balanced and hypergolic) ILs are summarized. Significant attention is paid to the SCF-based micronization techniques, which improve the energetic performance of HEMs through an efficient control of the morphology and particle size distribution of the HEM fine particles, and to useful applications of SCFs in HEM processing that makes them less hazardous.

Neuropsychological dose effects of a freon, trifluoromethane (FC-23), compared to N2O

Animal studies show FC-23 to be a promising magnetic resonance imaging indicator of regional cerebral blood flow. In a Phase 1, dose ranging (investigative new drug) study, neuropsychological (NP) tests, subjective ratings, and intensive physiological monitoring were used to determine the maximum tolerated concentration of FC-23 for human application. Five normal healthy male volunteers were exposed to concentrations of FC-23 between 10% and 60% [randomly interleaved with exposures to both room air and 40% nitrous oxide (N2O)] in a within-subjects, double-blind design. Analyses of individual cases and ranked group data showed that individuals tolerated the 30% concentration of FC-23 according to established criteria. Planned comparisons indicated that inhalation of FC-23 produced smaller NP changes and fewer negative symptoms than 40% N2O but poorer NP performance and more negative symptoms than room air. This study indicated that FC-23 is not inert and that humans do not tolerate concentrations suitable for current MRI technology. NP and subjective data assisted in characterizing the sedative effect of FC-23.