Antimony forensic detection

Cone, R. D. "Detection of Barium, Antimony and Lead in Gunshot Residue by Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry" presented at the Spring Meeting of the Southern Association of Forensic Sciences, (1973)... 

I shall describe the useful properties of photoluminescence and the current application of these properties in forensic science. New applications of photoluminescence developed or being investigated in our laboratory are also described. We have used photoluminescence techniques to (a) locate and identify seminal stains, (b) detect lead and antimony gunshot residue at the nanogram level, and (c) discriminate between different glass and human (head) hair samples. All of these techniques can be carried out rapidly in the crime laboratory. 

ICP-MS has also been used to measure trace elements in archaeological native silver artifacts [345] in order to identify their geographical origins. The low detection limits provided by ICP-MS allowed analysis of trace elements on 3 to 15 mg of sample. The passivation of alloy steels using acid solutions has been studied by XPS measurements of the solid in combination of ICP-MS analysis of the passivation solutions [346,347]. When bullets are crushed on impact, striations cannot be used for identification. The percentage of antimony, trace element composition, and lead isotope ratios in bullets was measured for forensic evidence [348]. The lead isotope ratios were found to be the most useful evidence. 

Atomic absorption remains a staple of forensic chemistry, given its low cost, simple operation, and easy maintenance. The limitations are related to versatility. Unless multielement lamps are used, only one element can be tested for at a time, and each element requires a separate lamp and instrument optimization. For small target lists such as a list of barium, antimony, and lead for GSR, this is not onerous, but still is inconvenient. Limits of detection are in the low-ppm to high-ppb range for most elements, As a result, a few forensic laboratories have turned to inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES) for additional elemental analysis capability. 

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