JRC explains | 11 April 2025 | Joint Research Centre
It is a sad reality of modern life, but transport hubs, especially airports, are prime targets for attacks by malicious groups and individuals.
Home-made explosives are often used in ‘suicide’ vests, bombs concealed in luggage, and packages sent as cargo. One commonly used explosive is a chemical compound nicknamed “Mother of Satan”: triacetone triperoxide (TATP) which was used in the terrorist attacks in Paris in 2015 and Brussels in 2016.
While relatively easy to produce with common household products, TATP is also very volatile and unstable, liable to explode without warning, making it very dangerous to handle. This makes TATP a security threat that is particularly challenging for the training of explosive detection dogs.
Sniffer dogs vs detection equipment?
Modern detection equipment is very effective at spotting explosives and other dangerous substances and is routinely used in airports to check passengers and luggage. Equally, explosives detection (sniffer) dogs can be used for checking airport cargo, or as a second line of defence for checking passengers and luggage alongside detection equipment.
In contrast to equipment, dogs are highly mobile and can easily be deployed in the field. They can also be quickly trained to detect new odours whereas detection equipment needs software or hardware updates to be able to identify new substances.
In these cases, we rely on dogs’ noses learning to recognise specific smells. Traditionally dogs are taught new smells by exposure to the real thing during training courses. However, the volatility of triacetone triperoxide makes it hazardous to handle, and not always accessible to trainers.
Moreover, for safety reasons triacetone triperoxide explosives cannot be used in real world environments, like a working airport where dogs can learn to spot the distinct odour of explosives while surrounded by other scents and distractions.
Teaching (young) dogs new tricks
So how can you teach a dog to recognise the smell of an explosive without putting our canine friends, their trainers, or the public, in harm’s way?
Scientists at the JRC Transport and Border Security unit have developed an elegant solution. Responding to the needs of national police forces and Europol following the 2015 Paris and 2016 Brussels attacks, they developed the triacetone triperoxide spray. This spray contains a small amount of triacetone triperoxide dissolved in an alcohol solvent.
When sprayed onto an object, the alcohol quickly evaporates, leaving behind a small trace amount of triacetone triperoxide. The amount of explosive that remains is too small to be dangerous, but enough for dog’s keen noses to detect. Crucially, the spray does not give off toxic vapours that could harm the dogs when they are exposed to it.
The spray bottle allows samples to be stored, handled and transported in a safe and easy way. This makes triacetone triperoxide more accessible to dog handlers who often do not have access to this dangerous explosive or have very limited opportunities to work with it.
Introducing the triacetone triperoxide spray in their training program, also helps validate the capabilities of explosive detection dogs in real world settings like working airports, to keep them at the top of their game.
Explore our work on security at borders, in public spaces and in aviation
The JRC initiative on Border Security Lab is designed to create a collaborative network of laboratories specialising in support to border control and customs operations. Some of the labs and activities include:
- Border Security Research Infrastructure
- Explosives Trace Detection Laboratory
- Performance requirements for threat detection equipment used in public spaces
- Aviation security
To support individual countries and improve the EU's ability to guarantee security for its citizens, the European Commission put forward ProtectEU: a European Internal Security Strategy.
What next?
The sprays are produced by the JRC and are made available to Europol as well as national police and aviation authorities across the EU, on request. Since 2017 more than 300 sprays have been provided to authorities in 13 EU countries.
Moreover, an agreement has been signed with the Italian State Police to test the performance of the spray as a primary training aid for explosive detection dogs, in different environments across Italy. This collaboration will help assess how environmental factors like different temperatures could impact the effectiveness of the spray as a dog training aid.
Cooperation is also ongoing with partners including the Belgian Federal Police and the Belgian Royal Military Academy to improve the triacetone triperoxide spray and develop and evaluate canine training aids for other explosives. The aim is always to work with national authorities to add value by responding to their needs, sharing expertise, and avoiding unnecessary duplication of work.
Looking to the future, the JRC is working on new tools to safely train dogs to detect other explosives and dangerous substances. We ask a lot from our working dogs, so it is vital that we always make sure that the technologies we use to help them work are effective, and above all else, safe.