Law enforcement has long relied on canines to sniff out dangerous explosives, but large discrepancies exist between individual dogs’ performances that are at least partially attributable to training differences. Now, analytical chemistry may help give the dogs’ powerful sense of smell a keener edge. Researchers have developed a device that could improve dogs’ training by analyzing odors from explosives in real time (Anal. Chem. 2017, DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.7b00451).
Handlers typically present bomb-sniffing dogs with training materials containing 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT), triacetone triperoxide(TATP), and other explosives to teach them to recognize the vapor plumes the materials emit. The handlers then hide the materials and evaluate the dogs’ ability to find them. Problem is, handlers often use multiple training materials during a session, which can lead to cross-contamination of one material with another. Without a way to measure the molecular composition of the vapors coming off the materials, such contamination can go undetected, muddling the results of dogs’ performance evaluations.
Source: Chemical & Engineering News.