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Attribution of Explosives: A platform for infrastructure development for NSD/EMSL collaborations


EMSL Project ID
46008

Abstract

Pacific Northwest National Laboratories, National Security Directorate (NSD) is charged with the prediction, prevention and mitigation of acts of terrorism, in as timely a manner as possible. As such, NSD would greatly benefit from the application of EMSL's unique suite of surface analytical tools for use as forensics tools during critical government investigations. As a seed project, we have proposed to establish feasibility for a suite of advanced mass spectral imaging techniques for the characterization and attribution of plastic explosives and other complex explosive mixtures from around the world. This work represents an obvious and necessary next step, which will allow for a dramatic expansion in our arsenal of forensic tools. With the development of these very powerful 'chemical signature microscopes' it is expected that significant advancements will be made in the field of forensics, both on the home front, and abroad. Finally, it provides an excellent platform for future collaborative efforts between EMSL and NSD, allowing for state-of-the-art instrumentation to be applied to real-world problems.

Project Details

Start Date
2011-10-03
End Date
2012-10-07
Status
Closed

Team

Principal Investigator

Christine Mahoney Fahey
Institution
Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory

Team Members

Lizabeth Alexander
Institution
Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory