Use of a gold microelectrode for discrimination of gunshot residues

作者：Salles Maiara O; Bertotti Mauro; Paixao Thiago R L C^*

来源：Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical , 2012, 166: 848-852.

DOI：10.1016/j.snb.2012.02.097

• Weapon discrimination
• Chemometrics
• Voltammetry
• Firearm
• Electronic tongue
• Pattern recognition

Gunshot residues (GSR) can be used in forensic evaluations to obtain information about the type of gun and ammunition used in a crime. In this work, we present our efforts to develop a promising new method to discriminate the type of gun [four different guns were used: two handguns (0.38 revolver and 0.380 pistol) and two long-barrelled guns (12-calibre pump-action shotgun and 0.38 repeating rifle)] and ammunition (five different types: normal, semi-jacketed, full-jacketed, green, and 3T) used by a suspect. The proposed approach is based on information obtained from cyclic voltammograms recorded in solutions containing GSR collected from the hands of the shooters, using a gold microelectrode; the information was further analysed by non-supervised pattern-recognition methods [(Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA)]. In all cases (gun and ammunition discrimination), good separation among different samples in the score plots and dendrograms was achieved.

• 出版日期2012-5-20