Detection of Improvised Explosive Devices Using Nanotechnology

Abstract

Security is the key factor of world’s peace. Terrorists are using Improvised Explosive Devices (IED) for their attacks. Identification of IED is not simple, the only way to identify IED is by using chemical sensors but using a chemo sensor is quiet complex, low sensitivity & not strong potential. Using nano sensors is much efficient & highly sensitive at the single molecule level. Nano materials provide a strong potential to create sensors for detecting explosives. Electronic noses – nano wire, nano tube and nano material devices are nano sensor concepts, to form detecting devices and also to detect the conventional bombs, plastic explosives and grenades. Generally IED can be identified by trained dogs but it is quiet difficult to maintain and using in sensational places. Electronic nose is mainly composed of chemical sensor system, sampling system and a pattern recognition system as a neural network. This composited detector can sense the odour difference caused by explosives and converts it to signals. For instance electrical conductivity in a nanotube changes due to interacting with molecules of an explosive analyze, as a result of highly selective adsorption. Nanomechanical effects induced by molecular adsorption offer unprecedented opportunities for trace explosive detection. Though nano is implied in some screening techonologies, really developed sensors are nanosensors as it have advanced sensitivity and selectivity of explosive detection systems. There are some challenges in detecting explosives such as fabrication of sensors, providing stability, sampling and reliable calibration and identification of pattern in complex changing backgrounds. Overcoming the difficulties nano sensors combined with advances in conventional detection platforms have high efficiency and stability to detect by advanced solution.