Gas-Phase Nitroaromatic Detection Based on Sulfonated Tetrafluoroethylene and Its Field Application

Abstract

We report on the use of sulfonated tetrafluoroethylene (ST) for explosive sensing and its feasibility for field application. The sensing performance of ST is verified with a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) setup and a certified standard gas generator. ST can directly capture 2,4-dinitrotoluene (DNT), an indicator molecule of explosives, from the gas. Unlike other newly developed technologies for explosive detection, the use of ST does not need a humid or aqueous environment, which is difficult to maintain in field application. A handheld explosive detector is developed on the basis of ST and a miniaturized QCM system. Its sensitivity is −33.52 Hz/ppb and its limit of detection (LOD) is 1.19 ppb. Furthermore, a semifield test is performed with the device and a field-reproducing setup. This work successively demonstrates the explosive detection capability in an uncontrolled field environment.