Chinese and Americans team up on flourescent explosives detection material

Published 30 May 2007

Manufactured from nanofibrils, the material repeatedly recovered its ability to fluoresce after exposure to explosives

Details are sketchy, but that has never stopped us before. A team of Chinese and American scientists this week announced that they had succeeded in developing a new type of fluorescent explosives detection material. Fluorescent-based sensors, readers will recall, signal the presence of explosives by losing their glow. The main problem with this approach, however, has been that the sensors are sensitive to sunlight and so make less than ideal for field use. The researchers’ flouresecent film, manufactured from nanofibrils, overcomes this problem. During tests, the material repeatedly recovered its ability to fluoresce after exposure to explosives — a clear sign that it could handle exposure to the sun, the scientists said. Readers interested in learning more should consult the 20 June issue of the Journal of the American Chemical Society, in which they should find much more detail.