ISSN: 0022-1198
CODEN: JFSCA
Page Count: 8

A Study to Investigate the Feasibility of Using X-Ray Fluorescence Microanalysis to Improve Discrimination Between Colorless Synthetic Fibers
Roux, C
University of Technology Sydney, NSW

Cartier, J
Institut de Police Scientifique et de Criminologie, University of Lausanne, UNIL-BCH,

Grieve, M
Textilkunde KT 33, Forensic Science Institute German Federal Police Office,

(Received 26 November 1996; accepted 16 April 1997)

Abstract

The use of X-ray fluorescence microanalysis was investigated to determine if it would allow further discrimination between samples of colorless acrylic and polyester fibers which were indistinguishable using brightfield, fluorescence and FTIR-microscopy. The aim was to determine if this technique could be successfully applied to single fibers of relatively fine titer and whether it would be beneficial to include it into the existing sequence of techniques used to compare colorless fibers. The extent of intra-garment variation and the possible effects of tape and mounting media residues on the elemental analysis were also investigated. The results confirmed the high value of fluorescence microscopy within the existing examination sequence and showed that single fiber analysis using X-ray fluorescence microanalysis is not only feasible, but improved the discriminating power between such colorless samples by about 50%.

Keywords:
forensic science, criminalistics, colorless fibers, acrylic, polyester, brightfield microscopy, fluorescence microscopy, fourier transform infrared microspectrometry, X-ray fluorescence microanalysis

Paper ID: JFS14254J
DOI: 10.1520/JFS14254J
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