Four-Channel Monitoring System with Surface Acoustic Wave Sensors for Detection of Chemical Warfare Agents

Recently, efforts have been made to adapt surface acoustic waves (SAWs) for use in chemical sensors for detection of chemical warfare agents (CWAs). In this study, a four-channel real-time CWA detection system was constructed using four 250-MHz SAW sensors. Each system consists of three different chemical sensors and one reference sensor. The reference sensor compensates for frequency variations according to humidity and temperature conditions. Signals from the SAW sensors can be checked on a PC-based graphical user interface without additional measuring equipment. To measure dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP), a simulant of sarin gas, polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) and thiourea (TU)-based synthetic polymers were used as sensing materials. The reference sensor was not coated, whereas the three different chemical sensors were coated with POSS, TU-1, and TU-2. The maximum frequencies of POSS, TU-1, and TU-2 were shifted 15.86, 13.85, and 0.944 kHz, showing significant values. We also found a relatively good linear relation between the frequency shift and the concentration of DMMP. The three sensing materials selected-POSS, TU-1, and TU-2-responded significantly to DMMP and triethylphosphate in the selectivity tests. This response is due to the chemical bonding of the sensing materials with the phosphonate in the nerve-agent simulants. These results indicate that the four-channel SAW monitoring system described in this paper shows potential as a portable real-time monitoring system to detect a variety of toxic vapors simultaneously, without using complex measuring equipment. In addition, this approach has demonstrated potential for developing excellent portable sensors to detect different types of CWAs.