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Detecting Weapons of Mass Destruction

Objectives. Students should gain an understanding of:Different types of chemical warfare agentsPoint detection technologiesStandoff detectorsNuclear weaponsBiological weapons. Introduction. Weapons of mass destruction inflict massive casualties by means of chemical, biological, and radiological

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Detecting Weapons of Mass Destruction

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    1. Chapter 16 Detecting Weapons of Mass Destruction

    2. Objectives Students should gain an understanding of: Different types of chemical warfare agents Point detection technologies Standoff detectors Nuclear weapons Biological weapons

    3. Introduction Weapons of mass destruction inflict massive casualties by means of chemical, biological, and radiological or nuclear devices. Such an attack would overwhelm local and state emergency responses. Emergency personnel need to determine which weapon of mass destruction was used to bring appropriate emergency aid to victims.

    4. Chemical Warfare Agents (1 of 8) Have the greatest potential for terrorist use Are easy to obtain and make Might be used in only small amounts to immobilize an entire city

    5. Chemical Warfare Agents (2 of 8) Six types of CWA Choking Blister Blood Irritating Incapacitating Nerve

    6. Chemical Warfare Agents (3 of 8) Choking agents Stress the respiratory tract Lead to a buildup of fluid in the lungs May lead to asphyxiation (essentially drowning from your own bodily fluids) Include chlorine gas, the first chemical agent used in modern warfare

    7. Chemical Warfare Agents (4 of 8) Blister agents Burn and blister the skin or any other part of the body Lead to cell damage that begins immediately and becomes manifest 224 hours after exposure Two major groups: Sulfur mustard and nitrogen mustard Arsenical vesicants

    8. Chemical Warfare Agents (5 of 8) Blood agents Interfere with the ability of the blood to transfer oxygen, resulting in asphyxiation Can be fatal even in small doses Must be treated with antidotes (if available) immediately after the poison is ingested

    9. Chemical Warfare Agents (6 of 8) Irritating agents Include tear gas, Mace, pepper spray Riot-control agents

    10. Chemical Warfare Agents (7 of 8) Incapacitating agents Include LSD, 3-quinucildinyl benzilate, Agent 15 Designed to cause hallucinations, confusion, and motor coordination problems

    11. Chemical Warfare Agents (8 of 8) Nerve agents Include tabun, sarin, Soman, and Soviet nerve agent Disrupt nerve-impulse transmission or cause peripheral nervous system effects Victims lose muscle control and die within minutes from suffocation Nerve impulses are transmitted in quick succession, and nerves, muscles, and other organs become overstimulated

    12. Toxic Industrial Chemicals and Materials (1 of 2) Include gases, liquids, and solids Are used throughout the world for legitimate purposes May also be used by terrorists

    13. Toxic Industrial Chemicals and Materials (2 of 2) The more toxic a chemical, the smaller the amount required to cause harm. Some TIMs are only slightly less toxic than CWA and pose a serious threat to human health and surroundings.

    14. Detection of Chemical Warfare Agents and Toxic Industrial Materials (1 of 7) Point detection technologies Rely on a sensor that samples the environment around it Used to warn individuals about the presence of a chemical agent or to map the boundaries of a contaminated area Might potentially be used to indicate who has been contaminated and who has not Currently being used in subways of major cities

    15. Detection of Chemical Warfare Agents and Toxic Industrial Materials (2 of 7) Photo-ionization detector Uses an UV light as a source of energy to dislodge electrons from any molecules entering the detector Does not result in permanent change in the sample Offers high sensitivity (low ppm or even ppb levels) Cannot differentiate between chemicals

    16. Detection of Chemical Warfare Agents and Toxic Industrial Materials (3 of 7) Surface acoustic wave detectors Have superior selectivity for detecting specific chemical vapors Detect only certain kinds of molecules and hence identify the class to which a chemical agent belongs May include a chemical concentrator, which can more readily detect any chemical agents present in the sample

    17. Detection of Chemical Warfare Agents and Toxic Industrial Materials (4 of 7) Colorimetric tubes End of tube is broken off and air is sucked through the tube Material in tube changes color as the reaction proceeds More than 100 tubes are available

    18. Detection of Chemical Warfare Agents and Toxic Industrial Materials (5 of 7) Disadvantages of colorimetric tubes Responders must guess which agent was used so they can pick which tube to use for the test First responders have to be in the hot zone to sample the air

    19. Detection of Chemical Warfare Agents and Toxic Industrial Materials (6 of 7) Analytical instruments Instruments can confirm the presence of specific CWA or TIC at the ppm or ppb level Interpretation of data requires training in chemistry

    20. Detection of Chemical Warfare Agents and Toxic Industrial Materials (7 of 7) Standoff detectors React to distant events or hazards Can warn of approaching clouds of CWA or TIM Measure infrared radiation emitted or absorbed from the atmosphere Are less dependable and more difficult to operate than point detectors

    21. Nuclear Weapons (1 of 5) Threat is that nuclear weapons may fall into the hands of terrorists through theft or purchase Dirty bombs use conventional explosives to spread nuclear contamination Nuclear material and warheads from Russia were poorly protected following the Cold War

    22. Nuclear Weapons (2 of 5) Types of nuclear radiation Alpha particle: mass of 4 mass units, 2+ charge, identical to helium nucleus Beta particle: identical to electron, negligible mass, 1- charge Gamma ray: not made up of particles, no mass All have sufficient energy to break chemical bonds and disrupt living and nonliving materials upon contact

    23. Nuclear Weapons (3 of 5) Alpha, beta, and gamma rays are emitted from radioactive nuclei at different speeds and have different penetrating powers Alpha particles: slowest, travel at 1/10 the speed of light Beta particles: travel at almost the speed of light Gamma rays: travel at the speed of light, are more penetrating than X-rays

    24. Nuclear Weapons (4 of 5) Nuclear reactions Nuclear reactions occur when a radioactive isotope of an element emits an alpha or beta particle. Uranium has several radioactive isotopes that spontaneously emit alpha particles. Spontaneous emission of an alpha particle from a uranium atom results in a different element (transmutation).

    25. Nuclear Weapons (5 of 5) Radioisotope half-life The more unstable an isotope, the more rapidly it will emit alpha or beta particles. The rate of decay is expressed in terms of half-life: the time required for one-half of any quantity of the isotope to decay. Many radioisotopes of radioactive wastes have long half-lives.

    26. The Harmful Effects of Radiation on Humans (1 of 5) Why is radiation harmful? The energy can knock electrons from atoms, forming positively charged ions. By disrupting the normal workings of cells in living tissues, these ions can produce abnormalities in the genetic material DNA and increase a persons risk of cancer. Cells that undergo rapid replication are readily damaged by radiation, which disrupts the mechanism by which they are reproduced.

    27. The Harmful Effects of Radiation on Humans (2 of 5) Factors influencing radiation damage Type and penetrating power of the radiation Location of the radiation (inside or outside of the body) Type of tissue exposed to the radiation Amount and frequency of exposure

    28. The Harmful Effects of Radiation on Humans (3 of 5) Ability to enter the body from the outside environment: alpha < beta < X-rays < gamma Amount of damage produced internally by radiation: gamma < X-rays < beta < alpha

    29. The Harmful Effects of Radiation on Humans (4 of 5) Damage caused by radiation depends on three characteristics of the radiation: The number of disintegrations per second The radiations energy The radiations penetrating power

    30. The Harmful Effects of Radiation on Humans (5 of 5) Units of radiation Curie: measures nuclear disintegrations; represents a very high dose of radiation Rad (radiation absorbed dose): measures the amount of energy released in tissue when it is struck by radiation Rem: takes into account the potential damage to living tissues caused by ionizing radiation

    31. Detection of Radiation Geiger counter Modified cathode-ray tube Gamma spectrometer Detects radioisotopes that are gamma emitters Quantifies the amount of gamma radiation present Identifies which radioisotopes are present

    32. Biological Weapons (1 of 10) Biological weapons were banned in 1975 Biological terrorism: dispersal of disease-producing biological agents within the civilian population Bioterrorism: intentional or threatened use of viruses, bacteria, fungi, or toxins from living organisms to produce death or disease in humans, animals, or plants

    33. Biological Weapons (2 of 10) Challenges for law enforcement BWs are odorless, colorless, and tasteless. They are readily acquired. They are easily transported. Small amounts produce major damage. BWs can be released in a variety of ways.

    34. Biological Weapons (3 of 10) Challenges for terrorists It is difficult to control the direction of dispersal. BWs could infect the terrorists themselves. Massive quantities may be needed depending on the target (e.g., a water supply). It might be difficult to avoid detection. Particles transmitted through the air must be small enough to be absorbed into the respiratory system.

    35. Biological Weapons (4 of 10) Government efforts to thwart bioterrorism CDC has fine-tuned its reporting system for suspicious events DOD has placed a high priority on research and development to detect credible threats Credible threat: the presence of a biowarfare agent in sufficient quantity to kill people who come in contact with it Airborne pulsed laser system can scan lower altitudes upwind from a target area Military is developing a detection unit to be mounted on a vehicle

    36. Biological Weapons (5 of 10) Detection of biological agents Finding the agent in the environment Making a medical diagnosis of the agents effects on victims

    37. Biological Weapons (6 of 10) Challenges in BW detection Current BW-detection systems are not as reliable as CWA-detection systems BW detectors are slow to recognize the presence of a pathogen Detectors have difficulty discriminating between pathogenic and nonpathogenic organisms Detectors lack adequate sensitivity

    38. Biological Weapons (7 of 10) Immunoassays Antibodies can be used to detect the organism of interest. When a person comes in contact with an antigen or a certain biological agent, the body reacts by developing antibodies.

    39. Biological Weapons (8 of 10) Anthrax Quick ELISA test Was first point test approved for detecting antibodies to anthrax Gives quick, easy-to-interpret results

    40. Biological Weapons (9 of 10) DNA PCR-based technologies Can be used to amplify a biological agents DNA Includes the Ruggedized Advanced Pathogen Identification Device (RAPID

    41. Biological Weapons (10 of 10) RAPID components Thermal cycler to amplify DNA probes Highly sensitive fluorescence detector to determine whether the sample contains a BW RAPID capabilities Uses hydrolysis with fluorescent dyes attached to test for the presence of specific organisms Includes a carousel that can take 32 samples Offers probe kits for 10 different BWs, though all 10 tests cannot be carried out simultaneously

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