Reliable, rapid and simple voltammetric detection of urea nitrate explosive

Cagan, Avi; Lu, Donglai; Čížek, Karel; Belle, Jeff La; Wang, Joseph

doi:10.1039/b800858b

Cited by 10 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…Ion chromatography and capillary electrophoresis have been used to detect cationic ammonium and anionic nitrate residues coming from explosives; however, they do not detect UN and AN as ion pairs and thus may produce false positives when challenged by environmental interferences. Other laboratory techniques such as voltammetric detection and real‐time neutron radiography have been examined. Furthermore, remote technologies such as photodissociation and coherent anti‐Stokes Raman scattering detection have been developed.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Rapid and specific detection of urea nitrate and ammonium nitrate by electrospray ionization time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry using infusion with crown ethers

Perre

Prado

McCord

2011

Rapid Comm Mass Spectrometry

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Urea nitrate (UN) and ammonium nitrate (AN) are fertilizer-based explosives that are commonly used in improvised munitions and can have highly destructive effects. Because they are in the form of salts, their relatively low volatility makes them difficult to detect at trace levels. In addition, these salts readily undergo metathetic reactions in water to form urea, ammonium and nitrate, which are ubiquitous in the environment. Thus, selective methods are needed for their detection. In this study, a procedure was developed to detect UN and AN in non-aqueous environments by positive ion electrospray ionization mass spectrometry through the addition of 18-crown-6. The method is sensitive, with detection limits under 2 μM, and selective. The procedure is capable of differentiating urea from uronium ions (protonated urea) and a mixture of urea and AN did not interfere with the UN signal. The procedure is quite versatile and the addition of crown ethers to the sample matrix does not interfere with the detection of high explosives in the negative ionization mode. Experimental results are presented on the utilization of the method in the detection of UN and AN on various surfaces. Semi-quantitative studies showed that AN and UN can be detected at trace levels following finger transfer and a series of studies were performed to demonstrate the effect of various interferences. The results show the method to be a quick and robust procedure for trace detection.

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mentioning

confidence: 99%

Rapid and specific detection of urea nitrate and ammonium nitrate by electrospray ionization time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry using infusion with crown ethers

Perre

Prado

McCord

2011

Rapid Comm Mass Spectrometry

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“…Lately it started appearing in terrorist incidents in other countries as well [1]. Urea nitrate is a colorless, crystalline substance that looks very much like sugar [2,3]. A sensitive color test for UN was developed recently.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Colorimetric detection of urea nitrate: The missing link

Rozin

Almog

2011

Forensic Science International

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“…Nitroaromatics are electroactive and can be detected by EC methods having high sensitivity and selectivity directly or after CE separation 1,5 . The presence of the nitro group allows its cathodic reduction to form alkylhydroxyamines 5 , 7 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

HME powder detection using space sampling and electrochemical sensors

et al. 2009

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A new concept for effective sampling and detecting HME powder traces is described. The collection is based on the particles mobility under rotation into an accumulation collector unit, followed by sequential transfer to the electrochemical detection system where surface washing yields a higher concentration at room temperature. The electrochemical detection of the peroxide explosives is based on photochemical degradation or acid treatment resulting in hydrogen peroxide which is sensed by a Prussian-blue (PB) modified strip electrode at a low potential. Nitrates such as Urea Nitrate are detected using unique reactions which generate one product which has a specific electrochemical signature. Nitroaromatics, nitramines and nitroesters are detected. The new "Add and Detect" procedure is operator independent and is the safest as the operator

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Reliable, rapid and simple voltammetric detection of urea nitrate explosive

Cited by 10 publications

References 11 publications

Rapid and specific detection of urea nitrate and ammonium nitrate by electrospray ionization time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry using infusion with crown ethers

Rapid and specific detection of urea nitrate and ammonium nitrate by electrospray ionization time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry using infusion with crown ethers

Colorimetric detection of urea nitrate: The missing link

HME powder detection using space sampling and electrochemical sensors

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