Degradation of the king of chemical warfare agent. 2 2' dichloro diethyl sulphide (HD), and its simulant 2 chloroethyl ethyl sulphide (CEES) were investigated on the surface of porous vanadium oxide nanotubes at room temperature (30 +/- 2 degrees C). Reaction kinetics was monitored by GC-FID technique and the reaction products were characterized by GC-MS. Data indicates that HD degraded faster relative to CEES inside the solid decontaminant compared to the reported liquid phase degradation of CEES and HD. Data explores the role of hydrolysis, elimination and oxidation reactions in the detoxification of HD and CEES and the first order rate constant and t(1/2) were calculated to be 0.026 h(-1), 26.6 h for CEES and 0.052 h(-1), 13.24 h for HD. In this report faster degradation of HD compared to CEES was explained on the basis of porous structure. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.