An Evaluation of the Environmental Fate and Behavior of Munitions Materiel (Tetryl and Polar Metabolites of TNT) in Soil and Plant Systems. Environmental Fate and Behavior of Tetryl

Abstract

The objective of the present studies was to elucidate the environmental behavior and fate of 2,4,6trinitrophenylmethylnitramine (tetryl) in the soil/plant system in three different types of soils incubated for 60 days, no tetryl was detectable after 11 days, most of the radiolabel was associated with non-extractable soil components (43 to 58%), and tour transformation products appeared rapidly, of which two were identified as N- methyl-2,4,6trinitroaniline and N-methyl-aminodinitroaniline isomer. Short-term hydroponic studies indicated no significant difference in uptake rates for the three plant species employed. Kinetic studies indicated that plants have a high affinity and capacity for absorbing tetryl. Partitioning patterns indicated that the root is the major accumulation site for tetryl. Chemical fractionation and analyses of tissues showed rapid metabolism of tetryl in tissues of all species; which proceeded toward more polar metabolic products. Plant maturity studies indicated a significant (P<0.01) differences in the total relative uptake of tetryl by all three plant species based on soil type. Fractionation and analysis showed no activity in the F1 fraction of the mature plant. The absence of metabolites in traction F1 indicates that tetryl has undergone extensive metabolism to compounds that differ dramatically in their polarity.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Mar 01, 1992
Accession Number
ADA266548

Entities

People

  • Dominic A. Cataldo
  • Robert J. Fellows
  • Scott D. Harvey

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Biomedical Research
  • Chemical Analysis
  • Chemical Synthesis
  • Chemistry
  • Chromatographs
  • Environment
  • Gas Chromatography
  • Hydroxides
  • Laboratory Animals
  • Liquid Chromatography
  • Mass Spectra
  • Materials Science
  • Organic Chemistry
  • Plant Roots
  • Spectra
  • Spectrometry
  • Spectroscopy

Fields of Study

  • Agricultural and Food sciences
  • Environmental science

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