Chemical / Biological / Radiological / Nuclear / Explosives (CBRNE)

News and Updates

NIST Develops Yeast Material for Training First Responders on Biothreats

January 4, 2023

Researchers based the material on baker’s yeast because it is harmless and a living biological material.

The Journey to Commercialize Cutting-Edge Sensor Technology

May 17, 2022

In the early 2000’s, Abhishek Motayed found his way to the NIST campus as a contractor, working in what became the Material Measurement Laboratory (MML). Within

K9 Chemistry: A Safer Way to Train Detection Dogs

December 2, 2020

Trained dogs are incredible chemical sensors, far better at detecting explosives, narcotics and other substances than even the most advanced technological

Projects and Programs

DARPA Friend or Foe (FoF) -- Independent Verification and Validation (IV&V)

Ongoing

The development of new platforms for characterization of complex microbial samples are hampered by lack of reproducibility and comparability across different

Security (archive): X-ray Systems for Cargo and Vehicle Inspection Systems

Completed

The Dosimetry Group provides support to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in their evaluation of cargo and vehicle inspection systems. Our support for

Nanocalorimetry Measurements

Ongoing

Nanocalorimetry provides a capability to measure the thermal properties of very small samples and at very fast rates. Materials and interfaces of interest

Trace Contraband Detection

Ongoing

Screening of people and their belongings including luggage, vehicles, and packages for the presence of trace residues of explosives and narcotics (trace

Publications

Field-Deployable Devices

January 1, 2023

Author(s)

Thomas P. Forbes, Raychelle Burks

Reductions in instrument size, weight, and power continue to facilitate the development and application of field-deployable devices for investigative purposes

USING SMART PHONES TO SELECT HOUSEHOLD FABRIC FOR MAKING FACE COVERINGS: A CASE STUDY BY FDA, NIST AND HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

June 23, 2022

Author(s)

Matthew E. Staymates

Face coverings are a critical tool in the fight against the spread of airborne pathogens such as SARS-CoV-2, the virus behind the COVID-19 pandemic [1]. These

Open port sampling interface mass spectrometry of wipe-based explosives, oxidizers, and narcotics for trace contraband detection

July 19, 2021

Author(s)

Thomas P. Forbes, Jeffrey Lawrence, Changtong Hao, J Greg Gillen

Rapid screening for chemical traces of explosives and narcotics is widely used to support homeland security and law enforcement. These target compounds span a

Validating the quality of millimeter-wave images input to deep-learning-based threat detection systems

April 12, 2021

Author(s)

Jack L. Glover, Praful Gupta, Marius B. Facktor, Alan C. Bovik

Deep-learning-based automatic image decision systems are increasingly being relied on to interpret imagery that was previously only viewed and analyzed by

Tools and Instruments

Cabinet x-ray system

The Smiths Detection 6046si cabinet x-ray system was designed for security screening of bags, parcels and other objects of similar size. The system runs at 160

X-ray Backscatter Systems

X-ray backscatter systems are used for the screening of personnel for hidden weapons and other contraband. Unlike conventional radiographic x-ray systems