Explosive residue analysis by capillary electrophoresis and ion chromatography

Capillary electrophoresis is investigated for application as a complementary technique to ion chromatography in the analysis of low-explosive residues. Detection limits, interference problems, and matrix effects are examined by comparing the use of ion chromatography and capillary electrophoresis in parallel analyses. The residue from several different types of explosive devices are examined, and the results show capillary electrophoresis to be a useful new technique in explosive analysis yielding good sensitivity, high resolution and short analysis times.