Can the Activated Carbon that is Currently Used in the NBC Protective Wear Be Replaced |
| Journal |
Solid State Phenomena (Volume 136) |
| Volume |
Advanced Structural and Functional Materials for Protection |
| Edited by |
William Lau, Shang Huai Min, Lee Nam Sua, Ma Jan and Alfred Tok |
| Pages |
1-22 |
| DOI |
10.4028/www.scientific.net/SSP.136.1 |
| Online since |
February, 2008 |
| Authors |
Ramaseshan Ramakrishnan,
Ying Jun Liu,
Sundarrajan Subramanian,
Ramakrishna Seeram
|
| Keywords |
Chemical Warfare Agents, Detoxification, Electrospinning, Nanofiber |
| Abstract |
For ages, activated carbon has been unarguably the most preferred material for chemical
warfare protective clothing by armies across the globe. Although the morphology in which
it is used has changed from granular form to fiber form, there has not been much change in
the chemical composition or functionality (ASZM-TEDA grade). In this paper we
investigate to find out if there is a possibility of replacement of the activated carbon by
other materials. Before we find the answer to this question, it is important to reason out
why replacement is thought of in the first place.
Activated carbon is a versatile material that brings with it several good qualities like large
surface area, adsorptive nature, fire-resistant, robustness and availability of aplenty. Some
of its disadvantages include heavy weight and low breathability (moist activated carbon
will adsorb oxygen from the environment causing breathing difficulties). One other
disadvantage which is often overlooked by the user is the disposal of the suits after usage.
Activated carbon merely adsorbs the nerve and mustard agents and once they become
saturated, they are classified as hazardous materials necessitating safe disposal. The used
wear is normally sent back to the supplier of manufacturer where it would be essentially
decontaminated by bleaching and then disposed by incineration or landfill. Thus, if there
is a material that can ensure breathability is of light weight and has the capacity to
decontaminate the adsorbed warfare agents in situ, it would be ideal for use in the
protective clothing.
In this paper novel electrospun ceramic nanostructures are introduced which are capable
of reactive decontamination of nerve and mustard agents. The decontamination
efficiencies of the ceramic nanofibers are presented as tested against simulants of nerve
and mustard agents. Electrospinning was chosen as the fabrication method because it is a
simple traditional technique that is capable of manufacturing nano sized structures in a
large scale. Moreover, electrospun materials possess more activity due to their surface
charge density. The contribution of nano-size scale to the reactivity of the fibers is
shown. All these project the electrospun nanostructured ceramics as the best possible
substitutes to activated carbon. |
| Full Paper |
Get the full paper by clicking here
|
| Preview |
Free first page example |
