2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) detection by laser photofragmentation-laser induced fluorescence (PF-LIF)

The photofragmentation (PF) and subsequent nitric oxide NO laser induced fluorescence (LEF) is being developed to measure the concentration of energetic materials (EMs) in soil and other media. Laser radiation near 226 nm will photodissociate the EM to NO2, which predissociates into NO that gives an intense luminescence. The NO fluorescence intensity is related to the concentration of TNT present in the sample. The EM concentration is inferred from the intensity of the NO fluorescence. In our experiment, the PF-LIF signal was monitored at various TNT vapor pressures. The effect of foreign gas, such as N2, on the PF-LIF signal was studied at different foreign gas pressures