Ex-situ, near-real-time exPlosive compound deTection in seawater

ended

Context & overall objectives Offshore resource development and environmental protection are challenged by the presence of unexploded ordnance (UXO) and relic munitions on the seafloor. These munitions represent intrinsic explosion and security risks, and also contain cytotoxic, genotoxic, and carcinogenic chemicals associated with conventional explosives, chemical warfare agents, and munition structural components. There is a critical need to clear undersea munitions due to the hazards associated with accidental detonation and leakage of toxic chemicals. Currently available and mature geophysical technologies remain unable to universally identify munitions on the seafloor, hampering clearance operations. In contrast, direct chemical sensing of explosive material provides an unequivocal signature for objects requiring clearance and chemical contamination release from munitions. Despite the clear need for real-time chemical detection technology, existing methods cannot detect multiple chemical compounds simultaneously, and they are all subject to interference from non-target compounds. The ExPloTect project addresses this fundamental need for an innovative approach to sensitively and specifically detect dissolved explosive compounds and chemical warfare agents in seawater, and thereby strongly enhancing efficiency of clearance operations. Work planned & main achievements ExPloTect will develop a prototype system for shipboard, near-real-time detection of dissolved explosive compounds and chemical warfare agents in seawater. The underlying concept of ExPloTect is a flexible platform that is adaptable to explosive compounds such as trinitrotoluene (TNT), as well as chemical warfare agents. The technology will be based on an analytical methodology demonstrated extensively by GEOMAR in the Baltic Sea during the German science ministry (BMBF) funded UDEMM project (“Environmental monitoring for the delaboration of munitions in the sea”). This system will be the first to achieve high sensitivity and unequivocal identification of a suite of munitions compounds in seawater, and represents a major step change in field-deployable technology for chemical detection of munitions. Simultaneous sensing of chemical warfare agents (CWA) and munition compounds (MC) has a wide range of benefits, including detection of munitions, providing safety for individuals who potentially come into contact with underwater munitions, and environmental monitoring of chemical release and ecological exposure. The instrument will be demonstrated on vessels during clearance operations at sea by our project partner. Results & impacts The proposal has been developed in collaboration industrial partners, and addresses the needs of marine EOD operators. The expertise and commercial reach of ExPloTect project partners will ensure that this innovative technology will reach the targeted end-users (specifically, commercial Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) operators, and marine environmental entities). The advisory board provides a further mechanism for interaction with commercial EOD operators, stakeholders in governmental policy, NGOs, and the fishing industry. ExPloTect addresses the challenge of munition chemical detection and identification faced by offshore maritime industry actors and environmental protection advocates. The technologies developed in ExPloTect will allow measurements of CWA and MC at levels observed in UXO contaminated regions (1-100 ng/L). This represents a step change in UXO sensing capability, and will trigger innovation in in situ search and detection of munition chemical signatures, in addition to improving the safety of underwater operators by sensing release of chemical toxins and preventing exposure. We expect that the project will achieve a Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of 6-7, and the developed device will ready for use by project partners, as well as at a pre-commercial stage for broader marketing. The proposed work will enhance