Capillary and Microchip Electrophoretic Analyses of Explosives and their Residues

For 20 years, the upsurge of terrorist threat on Western countries and the appearance of new environmental policies have been generating an important demand for the detection and identification of explosives. Sensitive, fast, and cheap analysis methods of explosives and their residues on the bombing site or in environmental samples (water, soil …) are necessary for the security of citizens or local residents. Within this context, electrophoresis, in capillary or in microchip format, displays attractive features. This article is an overview of the different applications of capillary and microchip electrophoresis for the analysis of organic- or inorganic-based explosives and their residues.