Airborne metal nanoparticles released by azides detonation: determination and potential public exposure

Airborne metal nanoparticles released by azides detonation: determination and potential public exposure | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Airborne metal nanoparticles released by azides detonation: determination and potential public exposure Andrea Testino, Tianyu Cen, Christian Ludwig, Elisabeth Mueller, and 2 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-4350423/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 27 Jul, 2024 Read the published version in Scientific Reports → Version 1 posted 16 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Metal azides are highly energetic materials that release a large amount of gas upon detonation. They also release metal particles, generating an aerosol. The most common azide is sodium azide (NaN3), which is used nowadays in car airbags. If the decomposition is not complete, harmful azide particles might be inhaled. Heavy metal azides find application as a primary explosive (primer) in ammunition. Public health officials have raised concerns about heavy metal particles released during training in shooting ranges. We identify a lack of knowledge on airborne metal particles properties released from azide detonation and on the analytical methods applied to characterize them. As a case study, we detonate milligram amount of silver azide, copper azide, and a mixture of them in a glove box. We then analyze the airborne particles with a hyphenated analytical setup, able to measure real-time their particle size distribution and chemical composition. We detect spherical metal nanoparticles in the range of 2-500 nm. These findings and the developed analytical tools may allow identifying airborne nanoparticles in car passengers compartment after airbag activation as well as in indoor shooting ranges, contributing to the evaluation of public health risks. Earth and environmental sciences/Environmental sciences/Environmental chemistry Health sciences/Health occupations Physical sciences/Materials science Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files Supportinginformation.pdf Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 27 Jul, 2024 Read the published version in Scientific Reports → Version 1 posted Reviewers agreed at journal 08 May, 2024 Reviewers agreed at journal 07 May, 2024 Reviewers agreed at journal 06 May, 2024 Reviewers agreed at journal 06 May, 2024 Reviewers agreed at journal 06 May, 2024 Reviewers agreed at journal 06 May, 2024 Reviewers agreed at journal 05 May, 2024 Reviewers agreed at journal 04 May, 2024 Reviews received at journal 03 May, 2024 Reviewers agreed at journal 03 May, 2024 Reviewers agreed at journal 03 May, 2024 Reviewers invited by journal 03 May, 2024 Editor assigned by journal 03 May, 2024 Editor invited by journal 03 May, 2024 Submission checks completed at journal 03 May, 2024 First submitted to journal 30 Apr, 2024 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-4350423","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":300266359,"identity":"03f53817-c678-4369-a067-8f6c34bf1d71","order_by":0,"name":"Andrea Testino","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA7klEQVRIiWNgGAWjYHACAzjrAAODDQMDMxgR1iIBUgfUkkaiFiA4DBbCq4V/dvO2Dx9qGOr4+c8fPFxQcT5Pvp2B8XMBHi0Sd44Vz5xxjEFCckYyw+EZZ24XGxxmYJaegc+aGznGzDxsDBIGN5gZDvO23U7cwMzAxsyDR4c8SMuffwwS9ucPg7ScS5zfTECLAUgLYxvQFoZkkJYDiQ2HCWgxvJFWzNjbB/TKjWSDwzxnkoF+YWyWxqdF7kbyZoYf32z4+fsPPv7MU2GXJ99/+OBnfFqgQALOSmBgYGwgrAEZJJCmfBSMglEwCkYCAADdukXnzORNggAAAABJRU5ErkJggg==","orcid":"","institution":"Paul Scherrer Institute","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Andrea","middleName":"","lastName":"Testino","suffix":""},{"id":300266360,"identity":"098350f0-1c33-4689-b67a-dbf0a1a9498c","order_by":1,"name":"Tianyu Cen","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Paul Scherrer Institute","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Tianyu","middleName":"","lastName":"Cen","suffix":""},{"id":300266361,"identity":"446b02a6-c400-4605-a54f-4b068fe19bb6","order_by":2,"name":"Christian Ludwig","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Paul Scherrer Institute","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Christian","middleName":"","lastName":"Ludwig","suffix":""},{"id":300266362,"identity":"707d9d16-91f1-4d13-aa92-6751e2c8e4c3","order_by":3,"name":"Elisabeth Mueller","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Paul Scherrer Institute","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Elisabeth","middleName":"","lastName":"Mueller","suffix":""},{"id":300266363,"identity":"0805f495-1267-4462-9802-7754998d7de3","order_by":4,"name":"Torrent Laura","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Paul Scherrer Institute","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Torrent","middleName":"","lastName":"Laura","suffix":""},{"id":300266364,"identity":"284bd288-dc38-43f3-aaf8-390e48cb3b95","order_by":5,"name":"Zheyu Zhang","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Paul Scherrer Institute","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Zheyu","middleName":"","lastName":"Zhang","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2024-04-30 16:21:32","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-4350423/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-4350423/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[{"content":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-67540-6","type":"published","date":"2024-07-27T16:15:47+00:00"}],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":61596317,"identity":"0de7f96d-e479-4b68-81cc-af313d00ffe7","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2024-08-01 17:26:36","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":1189855,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-4350423/v1_covered_d544ab2b-ce25-46af-b710-4f36fbbff21e.pdf"},{"id":56131885,"identity":"853e22d9-2362-4793-83a2-a73fde31d5fc","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2024-05-09 02:10:39","extension":"pdf","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"supplement","size":1181976,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Supportinginformation.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-4350423/v1/2055213b891ee6e68b9a5be9.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Airborne metal nanoparticles released by azides detonation: determination and potential public exposure","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":true,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"scientific-reports","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"scirep","sideBox":"Learn more about [Scientific Reports](http://www.nature.com/srep/)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"","title":"Scientific Reports","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Scientific Reports","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-4350423/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-4350423/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"Metal azides are highly energetic materials that release a large amount of gas upon detonation. They also release metal particles, generating an aerosol. The most common azide is sodium azide (NaN3), which is used nowadays in car airbags. If the decomposition is not complete, harmful azide particles might be inhaled. Heavy metal azides find application as a primary explosive (primer) in ammunition. Public health officials have raised concerns about heavy metal particles released during training in shooting ranges. We identify a lack of knowledge on airborne metal particles properties released from azide detonation and on the analytical methods applied to characterize them. As a case study, we detonate milligram amount of silver azide, copper azide, and a mixture of them in a glove box. We then analyze the airborne particles with a hyphenated analytical setup, able to measure real-time their particle size distribution and chemical composition. We detect spherical metal nanoparticles in the range of 2-500 nm. These findings and the developed analytical tools may allow identifying airborne nanoparticles in car passengers compartment after airbag activation as well as in indoor shooting ranges, contributing to the evaluation of public health risks.","manuscriptTitle":"Airborne metal nanoparticles released by azides detonation: determination and potential public exposure","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2024-05-09 02:10:32","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-4350423/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"d07588bf-c363-422b-bcc9-4d0a0ec4c26a","date":"2024-05-08T15:21:18+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"d396cb17-0d5b-4605-973d-36ac1d72e804","date":"2024-05-07T18:04:59+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"d699a278-e7d4-4c49-bba2-e7bd0a9ecbf3","date":"2024-05-07T00:49:08+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"4265ca31-5de2-48dd-a6b3-aa915a8a3438","date":"2024-05-06T17:10:24+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"dd464b79-582a-4f7d-92c3-a60e51a03382","date":"2024-05-06T15:43:46+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"d6fbb1c8-ae8d-4a6f-8029-994494311daa","date":"2024-05-06T13:13:26+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"15e4888e-b3c9-42ab-9b8c-6d984f33e6f3","date":"2024-05-05T16:25:15+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"26801c51-04c7-417e-baa2-fca10c34cb6b","date":"2024-05-04T13:30:55+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvitedReview","content":"","date":"2024-05-03T17:30:27+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"6d93d4c6-dc42-4bb6-afb3-c45104be795a","date":"2024-05-03T15:49:49+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewerAgreed","content":"c53ef352-b6e4-4bdc-9eb0-34004ebaf50b","date":"2024-05-03T15:14:42+00:00","index":"hide","fulltext":""},{"type":"reviewersInvited","content":"","date":"2024-05-03T15:09:31+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorAssigned","content":"","date":"2024-05-03T15:03:51+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"editorInvited","content":"","date":"2024-05-03T12:57:14+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"checksComplete","content":"","date":"2024-05-03T12:55:52+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""},{"type":"submitted","content":"Scientific Reports","date":"2024-04-30T16:17:37+00:00","index":"","fulltext":""}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"scientific-reports","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"scirep","sideBox":"Learn more about [Scientific Reports](http://www.nature.com/srep/)","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"","title":"Scientific Reports","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":true,"editorialSystem":"stoa","reportingPortfolio":"Scientific Reports","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"201bf0d8-cfb3-4fc0-b859-b405bd8c7374","owner":[],"postedDate":"May 9th, 2024","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"published-in-journal","subjectAreas":[{"id":31682509,"name":"Earth and environmental sciences/Environmental sciences/Environmental chemistry"},{"id":31682510,"name":"Health sciences/Health occupations"},{"id":31682511,"name":"Physical sciences/Materials science"}],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2024-08-01T17:09:29+00:00","versionOfRecord":{"articleIdentity":"rs-4350423","link":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-67540-6","journal":{"identity":"scientific-reports","isVorOnly":false,"title":"Scientific Reports"},"publishedOn":"2024-07-27 16:15:47","publishedOnDateReadable":"July 27th, 2024"},"versionCreatedAt":"2024-05-09 02:10:32","video":"","vorDoi":"10.1038/s41598-024-67540-6","vorDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-67540-6","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-4350423","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-4350423","identity":"rs-4350423","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}