Rugged nanoparticle tracers for mass tracking in explosive events

Hubbard, Lance R.; Sumner, Ryan I.; Liezers, Martin; Cell, Trevor H.; Reed, Clara; Uhnak, Nicolas E.; Allen, Caleb J.; Berry, Brittney C.; Currah, Hugh M.; Fuller, Erin S.; Kinney, Erin K.; Smith, Nathaniel P.; Foxe, Michael P.; Carman, April J.

doi:10.1557/mrc.2020.70

DOE OSTI · 1773414

Rugged nanoparticle tracers for mass tracking in explosive events

Hubbard, Lance R.·Sumner, Ryan I.·Liezers, Martin·Cell, Trevor H.·Reed, Clara·Uhnak, Nicolas E.·Allen, Caleb J.·Berry, Brittney C.·Currah, Hugh M.·Fuller, Erin S.·Kinney, Erin K.·Smith, Nathaniel P.·Foxe, Michael P.·Carman, April J.

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Abstract

Tracing the flow of solid matter during an explosion requires a rugged tag that can be measured by a unique identifiable signature. Silica-covered semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) provide a unique and tunable photoluminescent signature that emits from within a sacrificial outer layer. Five types of silica-covered zinc sulfide QDs were synthesized and covalently bound to commercial luminescent powders. The combination of five dots and five powders enables a matrix of 25 unique tags. The tracers are shown to be tolerant of environments associated with chemical explosives and provides a unique tag to evaluate debris fields.

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45 MILITARY TECHNOLOGY, WEAPONRY, AND NATIONAL DEFENSE debris identification explosions mass tracking photoluminescence quantum dots semiconductor nanoparticles

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Hubbard, Lance R., Sumner, Ryan I., Liezers, Martin, Cell, Trevor H., Reed, Clara, Uhnak, Nicolas E., Allen, Caleb J., Berry, Brittney C., Currah, Hugh M., Fuller, Erin S., Kinney, Erin K., Smith, Nathaniel P., Foxe, Michael P., Carman, April J.. 2020-12-24. Rugged nanoparticle tracers for mass tracking in explosive events. https://doi.org/10.1557/mrc.2020.70

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