Detection of Landmines and Suspected Minefields Using Novel Amplifying Fluorescent Polymers

Abstract : This report describes continuing efforts to detect landmines by using novel fluorescent polymers that sense the ultra-trace concentrations of nitroaromatic compounds emanating from explosives contained in mines. Under this contract, scientific studies were made and several new generations of detectors were developed and tested in an effort to understand the chemical signature of landmines. It has been shown that the landmine chemical signature tends to be heterogeneous and can be dispersed in the environment near the mine location. This makes it difficult to pinpoint the exact location of the mine using trace chemical detection methods. However, evidence currently available indicates that it may be possible to isolate a mine location to within a small, well-defined area. Also discussed in this report is a promising method for standoff detection of suspected mines using small beads coated with the amplifying fluorescent polymer. Nomadics was able to demonstrate the detection of the quenching effect at a distance of 58 meters.