From Our Partners
Saturday, June 25, 2022
News on Pathogens and Preparedness
Global Biodefense
  • Featured
  • COVID-19
  • Funding
  • Directory
  • Jobs
  • Events
  • Subscribe
No Result
View All Result
  • Featured
  • COVID-19
  • Funding
  • Directory
  • Jobs
  • Events
  • Subscribe
No Result
View All Result
Global Biodefense
No Result
View All Result
Home CBRNE

Suspending Threats in Mid-Air: Army Laser Beam Capable of Detecting Chem-Bio Warfare Agents

by Global Biodefense Staff
January 14, 2020
Suspending Threats in Mid-Air: Army Laser Beam Capable of Detecting Chem-Bio Warfare Agents

Using a single laser beam, Army researchers recently developed a technique capable of detecting and characterizing any type of airborne particles, whether naturally occurring or those harmful and deliberately disseminated. Dr. Aimable Kalume, researcher at the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command's Army Research Laboratory, conducts experiments in the lab's aerosol research laboratory. Credit: U.S. Army

Using a single laser beam, Army researchers recently developed a technique capable of detecting and characterizing any type of airborne particles, whether naturally occurring or those harmful and deliberately disseminated.

Scientists from the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command’s Army Research Laboratory (CCDC ARL) along with collaborators from the University of Queensland, Australia, conducted the modeling and optical simulations of the design technique.

“We developed an advanced analytical technique that is capable of detecting and characterizing any type of airborne particles; naturally occurring (dust, smoke, pollen, ash, etc.) or those harmful and deliberately disseminated such as chemical and biological warfare agents,” said Dr. Yong-le Pan, CCDC ARL researcher. “In this design, a single laser beam is used to capture a single particle and immobilize it — suspended in air.”

Army researchers demonstrate trapped particles in a laser beam .

The approach provides a contactless particle manipulation and allows a rapid and precise physico-chemical characterization. The innovative aspect in this study is the use of two small parabolic mirrors, or reflectors, to shape up a hollow laser beam and create highly efficient trapping forces — instead of using expensive microscope objectives and complex optical setup.

In comparison with current trapping techniques, this method offers several advantages such as low cost, simplicity in design, higher efficiency and improved robustness, Pan said. As the particle is trapped far away from any optical surface, it minimizes instrument contamination and allows integration with other laser-based analytical techniques such as Raman, fluorescence, etc.

“The ultimate goal of this study is aligned with Soldier lethality,” said Dr. Aimable Kalume, CCDC ARL researcher. “By focusing on the Soldier survivability in presence of aerosol particles, especially chemical and biological warfare agents, we proposed a new technique that can help lower false positives, increase precision and minimize human exposure and instrumental contamination.”

The researchers hope to develop an on-line instrument that is able to capture fine airborne particles, rapidly characterize them with high precision and monitor their temporal evolution in various environmental conditions.

“While this invention can have direct application in various areas (biology, chemistry, pharmaceutical, air monitoring and atmospheric sciences), the DOD and Department of Homeland Security are specifically interested in early warning and real time detection and characterization of chemical/biological agents,” Kalume said. “The DOD is also interested in monitoring a wide range of aerosol particles affecting the mission (reduced visibility, communication, Soldier’s exposure to smoke from burn-pits, or to diesel exhaust, etc.).”

The proposed approach is based on the interaction with electromagnetic radiation: a single laser beam is used to trap, hold an aerosol particle and provide information of its chemical and physical properties.

“This study aligns well with the essential research area of discovery, by tackling the problem of detecting and characterizing warfare agents from a fundamental physics principle,” Pan said. “After our recent successful demonstration in a laboratory setup, the next steps will focus on engineering and developing this technique into a compact and lightweight instrument that can be deployed on the battlefield.”

From Our Partners
Tags: Chemical DetectionChemical WeaponsECBCEditor PickInnovationMagazine Edition 16 Jan 2020

Related Posts

Send in the Blow Flies: Using Insects to Sample Areas for Chemical Warfare Agents
CBRNE

Send in the Blow Flies: Using Insects to Sample Areas for Chemical Warfare Agents

April 11, 2022
State Department: Reducing Revisionist State Biological and Chemical Weapons Threats
CBRNE

CounterACT: U.S. Funding Early Stage Drug Discovery of Countermeasures Against Chemical Threats

March 21, 2022
DHS S&T Commercialization Accelerator Program 2022 Call for Proposals
CBRNE

DHS S&T Commercialization Accelerator Program 2022 Call for Proposals

March 15, 2022
Emergency Response Missions for Recovered Chemical Warfare Material
CBRNE

Emergency Response Missions for Recovered Chemical Warfare Material

March 13, 2022
Load More

Latest News

Poliovirus Detected in London Sewage: Response Measures Emphasize Wastewater Surveillance and Vaccination Gaps

Poliovirus Detected in London Sewage: Response Measures Emphasize Wastewater Surveillance and Vaccination Gaps

June 22, 2022
Monkeypox Diagnostics: CDC Authorizes Five Commercial Lab Companies

Monkeypox Diagnostics: CDC Authorizes Five Commercial Lab Companies

June 22, 2022
UK Health Security Agency Widens Monkeypox Vaccine Umbrella for Outbreak Control

UK Health Security Agency Widens Monkeypox Vaccine Umbrella for Outbreak Control

June 21, 2022
Influenza Research

New Way to Identify Influenza A Virus Lights Up When Specific Virus Targets are Present

June 20, 2022

Subscribe

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Subscribe

© 2022 Stemar Media Group LLC

No Result
View All Result
  • Featured
  • COVID-19
  • Funding
  • Directory
  • Jobs
  • Events
  • Subscribe

© 2022 Stemar Media Group LLC