Integrating Two Highly Active Components into One for Decontaminating Sulfur Mustard and Sarin

A composite H5PV2Mo10O40@UiO-67(Zr) is synthesized via the one-step in situ encapsulation of Keggin-type H5PV2Mo10O40 (12 A) polyoxometalate molecules in the octahedral metal-organic framework UiO-67(Zr) (18-23 A). The effects of H5PV2Mo10O40 content in UiO- 67(Zr), reaction time, and decontaminant dosage on the decontamination of sulfur mustard (HD) and nerve agent sarin (GB) were evaluated to determine the optimal conditions. The results showed that the decontamination rates of HD (4 mu L) and GB (4 mu L) by the composite (40 mg) with 21.52 wt % H5PV2Mo10O40 content under ambient conditions were 95.61% (120 min) and 96.53% (30 min), respectively. The decomposition processes followed first-order reaction kinetics. The half-life and kinetic constant were 33.65 min and 0.0206 min(-1) for HD and 8.61 min and 0.08055 min(-1) for GB. The oxidation product sulfoxide 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfoxide and the hydrolysate pnitrophenol were detected in the decontamination products of the HD simulant 2-chloroethyl ethyl sulfide (CEES) and the GB simulant methyl paraoxon (DMNP), respectively. These results indicated that CEES and HD decontamination followed the catalytic-oxidative mechanism, whereas DMNP and GB decontamination followed the catalytic-hydrolytic mechanism. The composite is a highly active dual-functional heterogeneous catalyst that can perform both the catalytic oxidation of HD by H5PV2Mo10O40 and the catalytic hydrolysis of GB by UiO-67(Zr).

Automated summary

A composite H5PV2Mo10O40@UiO-67(Zr) was synthesized by encapsulating Keggin-type H5PV2Mo10O40 molecules in UiO-67(Zr) framework, showing high decontamination efficiency for sulfur mustard and nerve agent sarin. The composite exhibited catalytic oxidation for sulfur mustard and catalytic hydrolysis for sarin, making it a versatile heterogeneous catalyst for chemical warfare agent decontamination.