Development and Applications of Portable Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry for Emergency Responders,the Military,and Law-Enforcement Organizations

Abstract

Portable gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) systems are being deployed for field use, and are designed with this goal in mind. Performance characteristics of instruments that are successful in the field are different from those of equivalent technologies that are successful in a laboratory setting. These field-portable systems are extending the capabilities of the field user, providing investigative leads and confirmatory identifications in real time. Many different types of users benefit from the availability of this technology including emergency responders, the military, and law-enforcement organizations. This manuscript describes performance characteristics that are important for field-portable instruments, especially field-portable GC-MS systems, and demonstrates the value of this equipment to the disciplines of explosives investigations, fire investigations, and counterfeit-drug detection. This paper describes the current state of portable GC-MS technology, including a review of the development of portable GC-MS, as well as a demonstration of the value of this capability using different examples.

Keywords

Portable analysis GC-MS explosives fire debris counterfeit drugs

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Parmeter

J.E.

Murray

D.W.

Hannum

D.W.

. Guide for the Selection of Drug Detectors for Law Enforcement Applications, Rockville, MD: National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center, 2000.

Elias

. Airport Passenger Screening: Background and Issues for Congress, Darby, PA: Diane Publishing Company, 2009, pp. 29.

Diehl

Chen

C.S.

Grout

Hernandez

O’Neill

McSweeney

Alvarado

J.M.

Smith

. “An Implementation Perspective on Handheld Raman Spectrometers for the Verification of Material Identity”. Eur. Pharm. Rev 2012; 17(5): 3–8.

Scientific Working Group for the Analysis of Seized Drugs (SWGDRUG) Recommendations, Version 7.0. August 14, 2014.

P. Foley. “Explosion Kills One, Injures Three at Lapeer Industries”. The Country Press. November 2, 2014.

L.K. Altman. “Terror in Tokyo: THE POISON: Nerve Gas that Felled Tokyo Subway Riders Said to be One of Most Lethal Known”. The New York Times. March 21, 1995.

Lammert

S.A.

Rockwood

A.A.

Wang

M.L.

Lee

M.L.

. “Miniature Toroidal Radio Frequency Ion Trap Mass Analyzer”. J. Am. Soc. Mass Spectrom 2006; 17(7): 916–922.

Eckenrode

B.A.

. “Environmental and Forensic Applications of Field-Portable GC-MS: An Overview”. J. Am. Soc. Mass Spectrom 2001; 12(6): 683–693.

T.C. Wirth, J.B. Later, J.L. Oliphant, E.D. Lee, D.W. Later. “Person-Portable GC-MS for Rapid On-Site Environmental Screening of Contaminants in Drinking Water”. Am. Lab. (South San Francisco, CA, U.S.). August 2012. 44(7). http://www.americanlaboratory.com/914-Application-Notes/118159-Person-Portable-GC-MS-for-Rapid-On-Site-Environmental-Screening-of-Contaminants-in-Drinking-Water/ [accessed Aug 10 2015].

10.

Hopler

R.B.

“The History, Development and Characterization of Explosives and Propellants”. In: Beveridge

(ed). Forensic Investigations of Explosives, 2nd ed. Boca Raton, FL: Taylor & Francis Group, LLC, 2012, pp. 1–17.

11.

The 38-Year Connection between Irish Republicans and Gaddafi. BBC, Northern Ireland (online). February 23, 2011. http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-12539372 [accessed Aug 2 2015].

12.

G. Dobson, E. Kissel, M. Mark, N. Chung, E. Diken. “Method Development for Fast, Automated Home-Made Explosives Identification Following Sample Introduction on a Man Portable GC/MS”. Paper presented at: ASMS, 2013. Minneapolis, MN; June 9–13 2013.

13.

Buxbaum

. “Field Forensics”. Spec. Oper. Technol 2015; 13(1): 24–26. http://www.specops-dhp.com/interesting-post/field-forensics/ [accessed Feb 15 2015].

14.

Institute of Makers of Explosives. Taggant History and Background. https://www.ime.org/content/66 [accessed Aug 10 2015].

15.

National Fire Protection Association. NFPA 921: Guide for Fire and Explosion Investigations. 2008. http://www.nfpa.org/codes-and-standards/document-information-pages?mode=code&code=921 [accessed Jul 28 2015].

16.

National Fire Protection Association. NFPA 921: Guide for Fire and Explosion Investigations. 2014.

17.

ASTM International. Designation E1618-06 – Standard Test Method for Ignitable Liquid Residues in Extracts from Fire Debris Samples by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry. 2006. [accessed June 8 2013].

18.

Barnes

A.T.

Dolan

J.A.

Kuk

R.J.

Siegel

J.A.

. “Comparison of Gasolines Using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry and Target Ion Response”. J. Forensic Sci 2004; 49(5): 1018–1023.

19.

Stauffer

Dolan

J.A.

Newman

. Fire Debris Analysis, Boston, MA: Academic Press, 2008.

20.

Lentini

J.J.

. Scientific Protocols for Fire Investigation, 2nd ed. Boca Raton, FL: Taylor & Francis, 2013.

21.

DeHaan

J.D.

Icove

D.J.

. Kirk’s Fire Investigation, 7th ed. Boston, MA: Pearson, 2012.

22.

Shakoor

Taylor

R.B.

Behrens

R.H.

. “Assessment of the Incidence of Substandard Drugs in Developing Countries”. Trop. Med. Int. Health 1997; 2(9): 839–845.

23.

Leary

P.E.

. Counterfeiting: A Challenge to Forensic Science, the Criminal Justice System, and Its Impact on Pharmaceutical Innovation. [Ph.D. Dissertation], New York, NY: Graduate Center of the City of New York, 2014.

24.

Pawliszyn

. Solid Phase Microextraction Theory and Practice, New York, NY: Wiley-VCH, Inc, 1997.