Detection of Trace Amounts of Explosives in the Presence of Lactic Acid by Ion Mobility Spectrometry

• Published in: Journal of analytical chemistry (New York, N.Y.) N.Y.), 2022, Vol.77 (1), p.43-52
• Main Authors: Buryakov, T. I., Buryakov, I. A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acids; Adducts; Analytical Chemistry; Chemistry; Chemistry and Materials Science; Efficiency; Explosives; Explosives detection; Fingerprints; Ionic mobility; Ionization; Ions; Lactic acid; Negative ions; PETN; Polyols; RDX; Scientific imaging; Spectrometry; Spectroscopy; Spectrum analysis; Sweat; Tetryl; Trinitrotoluene
• ISSN: 1061-9348; 1608-3199
• DOI: 10.1134/S1061934821120030

The effect of fingerprint sweat deposits on the detection efficiency of trace amounts of RDX, dinitronaphthalene, 2,4-dinitrotoluene, pentaerythritol tetranitrate, tetryl, 1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, trinitroresorcinol, 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, and 2,4,6-trinitrophenol is studied by atmospheric pressure chemical ionization ion mobility spectrometry in the negative ion mode in air. Lactic (2-hydroxypropanoic) acid is the main component of the fingerprint that can possess this effect. The presence of lactic acid or a fingerprint in the sample does not significantly affect the efficiency of tetryl detection; although it changes the qualitative composition of pentaerythritol tetranitrate and RDX ions, causing the appearance of intense peaks in the spectrum, presumably, adducts of ions of these substances with lactic acid molecules, and dramatically impairs the efficiency of the formation of ions of other explosives. The limits of detection for trace amounts of RDX, dinitronaphthalene, 2,4-dinitrotoluene, pentaerythritol tetranitrate, tetryl, 1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, trinitroresorcinol, and 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene are 1, 2.5, 3, 4, 0.7, 5, 20, and 0.5 ng, and in the presence of a fingerprint with abundant sweat deposits, their values are 0.5, 2000, 1 × 10 5 , 2, 0.7, 5000, 300, and 100 ng, respectively. The limit of detection for 2,4,6-trinitrophenol is 30 ng; in the presence of a fingerprint, its value has not been determined.