Molecules: You'd better learn to live with them.
Yesterday, I mentioned naphthoresorcinol as a reagent for aldehyde testing. Did you know: at one point during the Cold War, the Soviets used to put a certain aldehyde on American operatives in the USSR as a tracer?
That aldehyde, NPPD, caused a kerfuffle in the 80's. There was outrage that Americans were being "tagged," and speculation as to whether it might be dangerous. Some analytical chemists leaned back, scratched their beards, and said "sounds kind of neat." And even recently, the compound was re-examined.
Anyone have any NPPD stories?
Physical Science
Medicine & Health
Comments
How was this a "tag" of American operatives? It is undoubtedly UV active but how would that be helpful? It could definitely be toxic - nitro group & multiple likely sites of alkylation.
Posted by: Sam | April 9, 2009 2:23 PM
Love your blog! Sorry, no NPPD stories (That I know of...) BTW, what app do you use to draw your chemical formulae? I just discovered ChemSketch the other day and it seems to work good.
Posted by: mob | April 9, 2009 3:30 PM
Wow, how interesting. This would make a great science fair project topic. Could molecular tags be effectively developed and traced? And if so, how would it be done?
Posted by: Super Science Fair Projects | April 18, 2009 11:24 AM
I was stationed at the American Embassy in Moscow where it was known that NPPD was being used 1986-1987. It was known agents were being exposed to it but as usual the ambassador remained diplomatic in his outrage.
Posted by: echogreen | April 21, 2009 3:38 AM
I was one of the diplomats at the US Embassy who was tagged with NPPD. My vehicles and residence were tested by the EPA for NPPD in the fall of 1985. Only two years later did I get a letter from the State Department Medical Office confirming that I had indeed been tagged with NPPD, but I was assured that the substance was detected in such a small dosage that it was not considered harmful to my health!
Posted by: Bob | July 17, 2009 11:07 AM
I am not a scientist, but literature says that the substance is properly 5-(4-nitrophenyl)-2,4-pentadienal.
Posted by: Julian | May 16, 2010 8:10 PM