Fluorophobic enhanced decontamination of a mustard simulant by porous monolithic flow-through columns

Monolithic polymer columns have been prepared by the in situ copolymerization of divinylbenzene and chloromethylstyrene in stainless steel tubes followed by a derivatization treatment with ethylenediamine or diethylenetriamine. These columns function for the flow-through non-destructive removal of a “mustard gas” simulant - 2-chloroethyl phenyl sulfide (CEPS), from the fluorinated solvent HFE-7100 (a mixture of methyl nonafluorobutyl ether and methyl nonafluoroisobutyl ether). More polar solvents such as THF efficiently flush the adsorbed CEPS from the column. Two parameters, half-life time of decontamination and total percentage of removed CEPS, were used to characterize column activity, which depended on monomer composition, polymer functionalization, and temperature. Polyamine-modified columns had a high affinity for CEPS, with removal efficiencies of up to 97% from contaminated HFE-7100 (4 h) being observed. The effect of “poisoning” amino containing columns by purportedly inert HFE-7100 at high temperature was established.