Citation

Keutenius E, O'Keeffe P, Allen K. Sci. Justice 2013; 53(2): 171-177.

Affiliation

University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, United Kingdom. Electronic address: emma.keutenius@met.police.uk.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2013, Forensic Science Society, Publisher Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.scijus.2012.10.003

PMID

23601725

Abstract

This study investigated a new method of fibre recovery from non-textile items using polystyrene rods which have a static charge. A range of natural and man-made fibres were used on a number of substrates, including weapons, paper and plastic bags. The average recovery rate from all substrates was 99.1%. The effect of humidity on fibre recovery was also studied and it was found to reduce the ability of the rods to recover fibres. However this is unlikely to be an issue if recovery takes place in a forensic laboratory. It was concluded that the rods would prove a beneficial addition to the forensic laboratory as a relatively quick method of fibre recovery from non textile items where the standard method of recovery using tape lifts cannot be used.

Language: en