ISSN: 0022-1198
CODEN: JFSCA
Page Count: 12

Ink Dating—The State of the Art
Brunelle, RL
Owner, Brunelle Forensic Laboratories, VA

(Received 11 March 1991; accepted 18 June 1991)

Abstract

Over the past 20 years, no other field of forensic science has had greater impact on the detection of fraudulent documents than the scientific examination of writing inks. This paper traces the development of ink dating techniques from the 1930s to 1990. Techniques used during this period are described and, when possible, illustrated. The emphasis is on ink dating techniques used today, with discussion of the value and limitations of these procedures.

Keywords:
questioned documents, inks, aging, chromatographic analysis, ink aging, relative age of inks, accelerated aging, thin-layer chromatography, densitometry, solvent extraction, Auger microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, gas chromatography, high-performance liquid chromatography, dye ratios

Paper ID: JFS13218J
DOI: 10.1520/JFS13218J
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