Chemical agents such as sarin gas are extremely potent, with exposed victims succumbing to repiratory paralysis within minutes of inhaling a lethal dose. Although sarin gas was outlawed by the Chemical Weapons Convention and is classified as a Schedule 1 substance, its use by the Syrian government in 2011 and subsequent uses of chemical weapons by Russia in Ukraine have increased the awareness and risk of exposure for military personnel and security contractors. Extremely sensitive detection of chemical agents is imperitive for providing personnel with the information necessary to avoid dangerous levels of exposure while confirming the presence or use of these agents.
Existing techniques for detecting nerve agents such as sarin are slow and have difficulty detecting levels below one part per billion, or ppb. This inability to identify trace levels makes it difficult to control or confirm exposure to this dangerous substance. Professor Paul Braun has developed a postage-stamp-sized device that is deployable in the field and is capable of detecting sarin at levels below 1 ppb.
Benefits
- Extremely sensitive (part per billion) detection of sarin gas or other chemical agents
- Field deployable
Publication
Amplified Detection of Chemical Warfare Agents Using Two-Dimensional Chemical Potential Gradients. Mohammad A. Ali, Tsung-Han Tsai, and Paul V. Braun. ACS Omega 2018 3 (11), 14665-14670