Rapid Desorber Heating and Cooling for Trace Detection

Abstract

A desorber for a trace detection system. The desorber includes an inlet configured to receive a sample, a heating element configured to generate a vapor from the sample, and an active cooling element configured to cool the desorber.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A desorber, comprising:
 an inlet configured to receive a sample;   a heating element configured to generate a vapor from the sample; and   an active cooling element configured to cool the desorber.   
     
     
         2 . The desorber of  claim 1 , wherein the heating element is a flash heater. 
     
     
         3 . The desorber of  claim 1 , wherein the active cooling element is at least one of a fan, a high-volume pump, a thermal electric cooler, a compressed gas, a liquid coolant, a gas coolant, an active refrigeration cycle, a compression refrigeration cycle, and an absorption refrigeration cycle. 
     
     
         4 . The desorber of  claim 1 , wherein the active cooling element comprises at least one of an internal cooling element configured to cool an internal portion of the desorber and an external cooling element configured to cool an external portion of the desorber. 
     
     
         5 . The desorber of  claim 4 , wherein the active cooling element comprises both the internal cooling element and the external cooling element. 
     
     
         6 . The desorber of  claim 4 , wherein at least one of the internal cooling element and the external cooling element is a recirculating system. 
     
     
         7 . The desorber of  claim 1 , further comprising a heat exchanger coupled to the active cooling element and configured to transfer heat from the active cooling element. 
     
     
         8 . A method of operating a trace detection system for detecting a substance of interest within a sample, the method comprising:
 receiving a first sample at an inlet of a desorber;   heating, by a heating element, the desorber to a first temperature to release a vapor from the first sample;   transferring the vapor from the desorber to an analysis device configured to screen the vapor for the substance of interest;   actively cooling the desorber to at least a second temperature; and   receiving a second sample at the inlet of the desorber.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein actively cooling the desorber comprises cooling using forced convection. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein actively cooling the desorber comprises cooling an internal portion of the desorber using an internal cooling element. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein actively cooling the desorber comprises cooling an external portion of the desorber using an external cooling element. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein actively cooling the desorber comprises simultaneously cooling an internal portion of the desorber using an internal cooling element and cooling an external portion of the desorber using an external cooling element. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the first temperature is higher than the second temperature. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein heating the desorber to a first temperature comprises heating the desorber in a plurality of stages to reach the first temperature and vaporize the sample. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein actively cooling the desorber comprises cooling the desorber in a plurality of stages to reach the second temperature. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein a time between receiving the first sample and receiving the second sample is 30 seconds or less. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein a time between receiving the first sample and receiving the second sample is from 30-120 seconds. 
     
     
         18 . A system for detecting a substance of interest within a sample, the system comprising:
 a desorber configured to release a vapor from the sample, wherein the desorber comprises an inlet configured to receive the sample, a heating element configured to release the vapor from the sample, and an active cooling element configured to cool the desorber; and   an analysis device configured to screen the vapor for the substance of interest.   
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 18 , wherein the substance of interest includes at least one of an explosive, an energetic material, a taggant, a narcotic, a pharmaceutical product, a toxin, a chemical warfare agent, a biological warfare agent, a pollutant, a pesticide, a toxic industrial chemical, a toxic industrial material, a homemade explosive, a pharmaceutical trace contaminant, a biomarker for medical applications, a chemical marker for medical applications, a biomarker for clinical hygienic applications, a chemical marker for clinical hygienic applications, a precursor thereof, a byproduct thereof, a metabolite thereof, and combinations thereof. 
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 18 , wherein the analysis device includes at least one of an ion mobility spectrometer (IMS), an ion trap mobility spectrometer (ITMS), a drift spectrometer (DS), a non-linear drift spectrometer, a field ion spectrometer (FIS), a radio frequency ion mobility increment spectrometer (IMIS), a field asymmetric ion mobility spectrometer (FAIMS), an ultra-high-field FAIMS, a differential ion mobility spectrometer (DIMS) and a differential mobility spectrometer (DMS), a traveling wave ion mobility spectrometer, a semiconductor gas sensor, a raman spectrometer, a laser diode detector, a mass spectrometer (MS), an electron capture detector, a photoionization detector, a chemiluminescence-based detector, an electrochemical sensor, an infrared spectrometer, a lab-on-a-chip detector, and combinations thereof.