Degradation and Decontamination of VX in Concrete
Abstract
Reactions of VX in concrete have been studied in situ using solid state 31P NMR. The size of VX drops deposited on concrete affected the natural degradation rate, with 4- L drops reacting faster than 0.2- L drops. The half-life observed for VX on the approximately 1- year-old concrete was on the order of 1 week, significantly faster than the rate observed on much older concrete. Water added to concrete samples containing sorbed VX to mimic precipitation and/or a potential decontamination strategy resulted in the desorption of copious amounts of VX into the water along with the expected non-toxic hydrolysis product ethyl methylphosphonate (EMPA), and although a significant amount of the EA-2192 hydrolysis product was also observed, this toxic byproduct of VX was not persistent, slowly undergoing secondary hydrolysis to non-toxic methylphosphonate (MPA). The rate of VX degradation in the presence of external water was only slightly enhanced relative to the background degradation rate. Decontamination of VX sorbed in concrete using the new Decon Green(exp TM) decontaminant resulted in the nearly complete reaction of VX to non-toxic EMPA within a few hours and avoided the formation of toxic EA-2192.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 2004
- Accession Number
- ADA433144
Entities
People
- Carol A. Brevett
- G. W. Wagner
- Jennifer L. Edwards
- Richard J. O'connor
Organizations
- Edgewood Chemical Biological Center