The decontamination and disposal of stored chemical weapon munitions and bulk containers respresents an important area of concern for many governments. Old munitions are found in populated areas, and must be decontaminated on-site, or carefully removed and transported. Mustard (bis(2-chloroethyl)sulfide) that has been stored over a period of decades, or has not been distilled, will often form a 'heel' that may be solid, semi-solid, or have the consistency of tar. This complex mixture of chemicals can be difficult to analyze by extraction techniques. Since most of the chemicals contain one or more sulfur atoms, sulfur-33 NMR represents a non-destructive method of analysis that can be performed on a sample of the heel without sample preparation steps that may modify the nature of the materials.  This research shows that Sulfur-33 NMR provides an important tool for the identification and structural analysis of complex mustard mixtures that may not be amenable to other analytical techniques.

Analysis and structural studies of complex sulfur-mustard mixtures by sulfur-33 NMR

248th National Meeting (2014)

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