20 research outputs found
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Determination of small dialkyl organophosphonates at microgram/l concentrations in contaminated groundwaters using multiple extraction membrane disks
Di-isopropyl methylphosphonate (DIMP) and dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP) are byproducts and surrogates for Sarin (GB) and VX; they are readily quantitated at {mu}g/L concentrations in groundwaters. Liter aqueous samples are fortified with triethylphosphate, then passed through a sandwich of 3 preconditioned extraction disks: glass fiber filter to remove particulates, C{sub 18}-based extraction disk to collect DIMP, and carbon-based extraction disk to collect DMMP. The two extraction disks are dried and extracted with MeOH. After the extract is fortified with with diethyl ethylphosphonate internal standard, it is analyzed using a gas chromatograph with a nitrogen- phosphorus detector. When the pump and treat criterion is used, detection limits for DMMP and DIMP are 2 {mu}g/L. Method recovery is 40-50%, based on synthetic groundwaters containing 0.2-50 {mu}g/L of each analyte. DIMP and DMMP are cleanly resolved
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Determination of N-nitrosodimethylamine at part-per-trillion levels in drinking waters and contaminated groundwaters
N-nitrosodimethylamine is a high, carcinogenic manufacturing by-product of unsymmetrical dimethyl hydrazine a component of rocket fuel. Prior disposal practices resulted in the contamination of groundwater near certain military installations with both species. The current regulatory threshold promulgated by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for NDMA in surface waters designated for drinking is 0.7 ng NDMA/L (0.7 pptr)L. Existing procedures for determining NDMA in aqueous samples typically employ dichloromethane extraction followed by concentration to a final volume of 1 mL, and gas chromatographic analysis of a 2 {mu}L aliquot of concentrate using either a nitrogen-phosphorus detector (NPD), mass spectrometric detector, or chemiluminescent nitrogen detector (CLND). Such a protocol does not permit detection of NDMA at the desired health-based criterion unless high-resolution mass spectrometric (HRMS) detectors are employed. The analytical procedure described in this work employed an initial solid-phase extraction of groundwater samples with a preconditioned Empore C{sub 18} disk, used to remove interfering neutral species including di-isopropylmethane phosphonate (DIMP), prior to continuous overnight extraction
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The Hydrolysis of Di-Isopropyl Methylphosphonate in Ground Water
Di-isopropyl methylphosphonate (DIMP) is a byproduct from the manufacture of the nerve agent Sarin. The persistence of DIMP in the ground water is an important question in evaluating the potential environmental impacts of DIMP contamination. The half-life of DIMP in ground water at 10 deg C was estimated to be 500 years with a 95% confidence interval of 447 to 559 years from measurements of the hydrolysis rates at temperatures between 70 to 98 deg C.Extrapolation of the kinetics to 10 deg C used the Arrhenius equation, and calculation of the half-life assumed first-order kinetics. Inorganic phosphate was not detected
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Characterization of rocket propellant combustion products
The overall objective of the work described in this report is four-fold: to (a) develop a standardized and experimentally validated approach to the sampling and chemical and physical characterization of the exhaust products of scaled-down rocket launch motors fired under experimentally controlled conditions at the Army's Signature Characterization Facility (ASCF) at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama; (b) determine the composition of the exhaust produces; (c) assess the accuracy of a selected existing computer model for predicting the composition of major and minor chemical species; (d) recommended alternations to both the sampling and analysis strategy and the computer model in order to achieve greater congruence between chemical measurements and computer prediction. 34 refs., 2 figs., 35 tabs