How Are Hazardous Chemical Threats Detected?

Hazardous materials

Substances found in homes and businesses have the potential of creating a hazardous environment if not disposed of properly, especially when their containers break or leak. Because these substances can vary from common household chemicals—such as cleaning products or pesticides—to illegal drugs—such as fentanyl—first responders face the challenge of the unknown when entering a scene.

First responders must have easy access to as much equipment providing chemical identification as possible. Because the categories of what hazmat teams face range so widely, it’s important they have access to a tool that can quickly identify such a wide substance range—drugs, narcotics, explosives, toxic industrial chemicals (TICS), as well as common household items that act as precursors or cutting agents.

When faced with unknown, suspicious chemicals, first responders and CBRNe defense teams often need to look at the whole picture to determine the complexity of a potential threat. Rigaku provides a family of rugged chemical identification solutions based on 1064 nm Raman spectroscopy that are ideal for analyzing potentially hazardous samples—especially those that are “dirty” or colored. In addition, Raman analysis can often take place through packaging material, without disturbing the sample, which minimizes exposure to the operator—keeping the first responder and community safer.

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