Universal Oxidation for CBW Decontamination: L-Gel System Development and Deployment

摘要

The optimum goal of this study is to develop a single decontamination system for chemical and biological agents which is non-toxic, non-corrosive, and easily deployable. The specific objective of this work was to evaluate oxidizer systems as reagents for detoxification and/or degradation to non-toxic environmentally acceptable components rather than necessitate complete destruction. Detoxification requires less reagent material than total oxidation, thereby reducing the logistic burden for a decontamination team. One of the goals is to develop decontamination systems for use by first responders as well as more complete systems to be used by specialized decontamination teams. Therefore, the overall project goal is to develop better decontamination methods that can be quickly implemented by these organizations. This includes early demonstrations and field work with companies or other government agencies who can identify implementation concerns and needs. The approach taken in this work is somewhat different than the standard military approach to decontamination. In a battlefield scenario, it is critical to decontaminate to a useful level in a very short time so the soldiers can continue their mission. In a domestic, urban scenario, time is of less consequence but collateral damage and re-certification (public perception and stakeholder acceptance) are of much greater importance. Since we wanted to maximize the contact time between the decontaminating reagent and the contaminant agent, we selected gelled reagents as the primary carrier material. Gels have the additional advantage of adhering to vertical or horizontal surfaces such as walls and ceilings. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, over a period of twenty years from the late 1960s to the late 1980s, developed a series of extrudable high explosives based on the gelling of polar energetic liquids. While never going into production, this development served as an experience base for formulation, characterization and dispersal system design and fabrication. It was a logical step, therefore, to adapt this work to the gelling of aqueous oxidizers for candidate BW/CW decontaminants. During this last year LLNL has focused on the development of the L-Gel oxidizer system and has primarily been involved in CW and BW laboratory and field testing which has helped to refine and improve the previous formulation. Additionally, we have evaluated the feasibility of developing an aerosolized system based on the L-Gel formulation. The results of these studies will be discussed.