Explosives materials are stable in soil and recalcitrant to biodegradation. Different authors report that TNT (2,4,6-trinitrotoluene), RDX (hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine) and HMX (octahydro-1,3,5,7-tetranitro-1,3,5,7-tetrazocine) are toxic, but most investigations have been performed in artificial soil with individual substances. The aim of the presented research was to assess the tox...

The upsurge in terrorist activity has generated tremendous demand for innovative tools capable of detecting major industrial, military, and home-made (improvised) explosives. Fast, sensitive, and reliable detection of explosives in the field is a very important issue in nowadays. CE, especially in its miniaturized format (lab-on-a-chip), offers great possibilities to create portable, field depl...

A polyethylenimine polymer derivatized with pyrene moieties suitable for the fluorescence-based detection of nitroaromatic explosives (NAC) in aqueous systems is described. The system exhibits an exceptionally wide dynamic sensing range of 7 orders of magnitude (from 33 ppt to 225 ppm TNT or Tetryl). This broad range was achieved by the combination of FRET and PET sensing mechanisms in a single...

The mass spectral detection of low vapor pressure, inorganic-based explosive signatures including ammonium nitrate, chlorate, perchlorate, sugar, and the constituents contained within black powder are reported using laser electrospray mass spectrometry. The ambient pressure mass spectrometry technique combining nonresonant, femtosecond laser vaporization with electrospray postionization reveale...

In order to identify various explosives and their precursors, technicians worldwide rely on chemical analysis instruments for rapid specific identification results help ensure a safe remediation. This is one of the central tasks homeland security public safety personnel, especially since recent proliferation improvised explosive devices (IEDs). These that are being used in field, extremely impo...

Detection of trace explosives is of great concern for homeland security, battlefield protection, and industrial and environmental safety control. Fluorescence quenching based sensing has proven to be one of the most promising approaches for trace explosives detection, for which various conjugated polymers, molecular imprinted polymers, dye doped silica and metal–organic frameworks have been fab...