Characteristics of triacetone triperoxide formed in 2-propanol

Upon standing in the presence of air, it is known that 2-propanol under certain circumstances is inclined to form TATP, however few studies have been done to determine its properties. Following a recent explosion in Norway involving 2-propanol, a noticeably large amount of a substance with a crystalline structure was discovered at the site of the accident. This substance was identified as TATP. The substance was analysed using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), Fourier transformation infrared light (FT-IR), and Liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC–MS), and its sensitivity to friction was studied using the standardised BAM friction test and a modernised version of the Brueston up-and-down methodology. In addition to point estimates, the uncertainty of the results was quantified by means of confidence intervals. The study shows that TATP can be formed naturally in 2-propanol in the presence of air, and that its characteristics are similar to that of the traditionally laboratory-synthesized substance.

Methods
On the 7th of February 2024, at 1:35 PM, an explosion occured at a Norwegian Defence laboratory. The following investigation of the accident site revealed a relatively large amount (>100 pieces) of an unknown white translucent substance of a crystalline structure, each measuring from about 1 mm to 36 mm (see Figure 3). The isubstance was identified as TATP. The recovered TAPT particles were placed in airtight containers filled with distilled water, placed in certified explosives storage containers, and kept refrigerated (temperature ~4oC) until further analysis.

This dataset contains suppelmentary information needed to recreate our analysis and conlutions, including complete friction sensitivity datasets, NMR spectrums, FT-IR spectrums, and LC-MS chromatograms.