The procedures currently used by the U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine (USACHPPM) for the analysis of energetics and related compounds in water and soils are presented. These procedures are based on the use of isoamyl acetate to extract the analytes of interest from their environmental matrices with subsequent analysis using gas chromatography with electron capture detection. The suite of compounds included are those that have been of environmental significance for years (such as 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine, and dinitrotoluenes) and are the subject of several U.S. Environmental Protection Agency SW-846 methods. The procedures presented in this study are the product of years of development and refinement of methods used for the analysis of many real-world samples by the USACHPPM explosives analysis laboratory. The development, performance, advantages, and details of these procedures are described. The extension of these methods to the analysis of other media is also briefly discussed.

A procedure for the sampling and analysis of energetics and related compounds in the atmosphere is described. The basic procedure consists of the collection of air samples using sampling cartridges containing XAD-2 resin, extraction of the resin with isoamyl acetate, and an analysis of the extract using gas chromatography with electron capture detection. Modifications and additions to this procedure are discussed, such as the use of a prefilter before the resin sampler to collect particulates and the use of a mass selective detector to analyze for some propellant compounds of interest or for quantitative confirmation purposes. Two differing sizes of samplers are evaluated according to the air volumes required for collection. The procedure is tested through the analysis of spiked resin samples, which had air pulled through them for periods of time corresponding with the required sampling volumes. This procedure has application toward the measurement of energetic residues in atmospheres resulting from weapons testing and operations during training exercises involving munitions.