Sandia foams

Despite its efficacy, Sandia foam has a number of drawbacks for field use by the soldier. First, it must be stored as separate components, which would require a rapid, personal, on-site mixing chamber for combining the two solutions. Second, the presence of hydrogen peroxide, a strong oxidizing agent, precludes its use near the eye, and would create much discomfort if used in a wound (Watt et al., 2004). To partially address these concerns, Sandia developed the formulation DF-200, which in part contains less hydrogen peroxide and surfactant. 

Sandia Foam. In the late 1990s, Sandia National Laboratories (Albuquerque, New Mexico) sought to develop a decontaminating solution that used off the shelf technology and products. The basic concept was to use common household products already approved and marketed in the United States for easier FDA approval as a medical product. 

Clarkson, E.D., Schulz, SM., Railer, R.F., et al., 2012. Median lethal dose determination for percutaneous exposure to soman and VX in guinea pigs and the effectiveness of decontamination with M291 SDK or SANDIA foam. Toxicol. Lett 212, 282-287. 

Butcher, B.M., Dynamic Crushup of Foams, Sandia Corporation Research Report No. SC-RR-66-325, Albuquerque, NM, 67 pp., May 1967. 

Figure 16.4 Emergency responder in protective suit applying a decontaminating foam to a surface suspected of carrying a chemical or biological terror/warfare agent. From Sandia [973], Copyright 1999, Sandia National Laboratories.

Sandia National Laboratories decontaminating foam (licensed to Modec Inc., Denver, Colorado) is a solution (MDF-100) composed of two parts part a a solution of 6.6% V,VAUV"dV -penta-methyl,-V -tallow alkyl 1,3-prop-anamine diammonium 2.6% tallow pentamethyl propane quaternary ammonium compounds benzyl-C12-18 alkyl dimethyl 1% isopropyl alcohol, and part b a solution of 8% hydrogen peroxide. Mixing the two parts results in a foamlike product which lasts for up to 30 min (Figure 71.2). 

Foam-based Oxidant/Additive System (Tucker, Sandia National Laboratories)... 

An unusually stable foam that remains intact much longer than fire-fighting foams has been developed at Sandia National Laboratories. It results from a synergistic action caused when a water-soluble polymer and a fatty alcohol are blended with a solvent and a surfactant. A possible agricultural use would be in insecticide application. 

Sandia National Laboratory has developed two decontamination foams (1) MDF-100 and (2) DF-200 (Lukey et al. 2004). MDF-100 consists of two components that, when mixed, generate a foam that is used for decontamination. It has been reported that MDF-100 has the ability to neutralize anthrax spores. DF-200 is a faster acting foam than MDF-100 (Lukey et al. 2004). 

Though an ideal decontaminant may be difficult to attain, many alternatives exist that are readily available and meet many basic requirements, van Hooidonk et al. (1983) evaluated a variety of household products as decontaminants for VX, soman, and sulfur mustard. His paper provides an excellent comparison of these readily available decontaminants to include flour, soapy water, talcum powder, and tissue paper. We have selected several other candidate decontaminants that are under investigation, in advanced development, or currently fielded. These include the currently fielded U.S. Department of Defense skin decontaminants (M291 Skin Decontamination Kit [SDK], 0.5% hypochlorite, and 1% soapy water). Reactive Skin Decontaminant Lotion (RSDL), Diphoterine, Sandia Laboratory s Decontamination Foam, and the Decontamination Sponge. 

To counter this concern, Sandia labs developed another foam product that was faster acting and less corrosive, DF-200. DF-200 has a lower concentration of peroxide and surfactants and contains an activator to increase the speed with which it breaks down agents. 

In this investigation Sandia examined the use of aqueous foam for blast mitigation. The foam can be used with the shaped charge burster detonation method or to mitigate the blast from an explosive overcharge. 

Neilson, M.K., Morgan, H.S. and Krieg, R.D. (1987) A phenomenological constitutive model for low density polyurethane foams. Sandia Report SAND86-2927, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM. 

FIGURE 76.2 Sandia decontamination foam for mitigation and decontamination of CWA. 

Although the dummy in the photo looks like an alien of the most fearsome type, it actually has been sprayed with a sticky polymer foam developed at Sandia National Laboratories. The sticky foam was developed originally in the 1960s for classified nuclear security operations, but in the past few years the Justice Department has asked Sandia to develop a portable sprayer for the foam to use for law enforcement purposes. 

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