Dealkylation of chemical weapon agents and pesticides with group
13 salen compounds
Issue title: Sensing and Destroying Chemical Weapons and
Pesticides Based on the Symposium at the 238th American Chemical Society
Meeting Washington DC, USA, August 18–19, 2009
Abstract: Group 13 chelates incorporating boron and aluminum deactivated the
chemical warfare agents (CWAs) VX, sarin (GB), soman (GD), and the pesticide,
diazinon, under mild conditions. The deactivation occured through elimination
of alkyl bromide resulting in solid products containing a robust Al-O-P or
B-O-P linkage. The Group 13 chelate deactivation methodology produces
non-toxic, easily disposable solid proudcts after combination with CWAs. In
previous studies the group 13 chelates were found to be active for a wide range
of organophosphates, organophosphonates, and organophosphinates (OPs). Thus,
the compounds could be used as a deactivating agent for a wide range of
problematic compounds possessing P-O-C linkages, including, CWAs, pesticides,
and plasticizers. The majority of the chelate compounds are of the general
formula: LBX, L(BX_{2})_{2} and LAlX where L
= an inexpensive, easily prepared Schiff base chelate and X
= Cl and Br. This article will describe the range of
compounds that can be used in the dealkylation reaction. The primary focus will
be on chelates of the Salen class (Salen=N,N'- alkylene(or arylene)bis(salicylideneimine)), but a
wider of range of chelates could be used for the reaction as this review will
demonstrate.
