Pocket-Sized Card Detects Explosives

Developed by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and licensed to Field Forensics, Inc. in 2006, the Easy Livermore Inspection Test Explosives (E.L.I.T.E. ™), is a detection tool that can quickly and accurately locate small amounts of explosives. It is easy to use, small enough to carry in a shirt pocket, and requires minimal training for deployment. Designed for use by emergency response, law enforcement, and military personnel, E.L.I.T.E. cards are particularly useful for screening vehicles, containers, and people for explosives residue. The 5- by 7.5centimer card weighs a fraction of an ounce. Due to the simplicity of design, test results are almost immediate. After a card has been used, it can be discarded in a trash container without special handling.

To collect a sample, a user removes the swipe from the card, rubs it on a suspect area–a shoe, car door, or suitcase–and slides it back into the card. The user then ruptures two sealed ampoules that contain the developing chemicals. Within a minute, an explosive trace, if present, will be highlighted as a brightly colored spot on the white swipe. Explosives generally show up as bright red or bright pink, so they are easy to distinguish from direct and other stray substances. The chemical formulation used in E.L.I.T.E. cards can detect military and commercial explosives, such as C-4, Semtex, TNT, and derivatives, as well as inorganic explosives and propellants, such as ammonium nitrate and black powder.

E.L.I.T.E. cards are inexpensive over their lifecycle relative to other commercially available screening systems. Similar screening products have an average shelf life of one year or less.
E.L.I.T.E. reagents have an indefinite shelf life and do not have to be replaced. The E.L.I.T.E. card also has lower detection limits than other similar types of screening products and can detect more than 30 types of explosives and propellants. In addition, reagents are self-contained in each card, so users are never exposed to these chemicals.

In 2006, the E.L.I.T.E. technology won an R&D 100 Award from R&D Magazine as one of the 100 most technologically significant products introduced into the marketplace that year; and also an Award for Excellence in Technology Transfer from the Federal Laboratory Consortium for the outstanding work in the process of transferring a technology developed by a federal laboratory to the commercial marketplace.

Successive generation design leading from the first prototype to the current configuration	The current commercially available card produced by Field Forencisc, Inc.