Issue 11, 2008

Fabric analysis by ambient mass spectrometry for explosives and drugs

Abstract

Desorption electrospray ionization (DESI) is applied to the rapid, in-situ, direct qualitative and quantitative analysis of mixtures of explosives and drugs from a variety of fabrics, including cotton, silk, denim, polyester, rayon, spandex, leather and their blends. The compounds analyzed were explosives: trinitrohexahydro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX), octahydro-1,3,5,7-tetranitro-1,3,5,7-tetrazocine (HMX), 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT), pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN) and the drugs of abuse: heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine. Limits of detection are in the picogram range. DESI analyses were performed without sample preparation and carried out in the presence of common interfering chemical matrices, such as insect repellant, urine, and topical lotions. Spatial and depth profiling was investigated to examine the depth of penetration and lateral resolution. DESI was also used to examine cotton transfer swabs used for travel security sample collection in the screening process. High throughput quantitative analysis of fabric surfaces for targeted analytes is also reported.

Graphical abstract: Fabric analysis by ambient mass spectrometry for explosives and drugs

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
12 May 2008
Accepted
26 Jun 2008
First published
08 Aug 2008

Analyst, 2008,133, 1532-1540

Fabric analysis by ambient mass spectrometry for explosives and drugs

N. Talaty, C. C. Mulligan, D. R. Justes, A. U. Jackson, R. J. Noll and R. G. Cooks, Analyst, 2008, 133, 1532 DOI: 10.1039/B807934J

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements