Abstract

Glass is frequently encountered as types of materials that are submitted to forensic science laboratories as a result of trace evidence transfers. The repeatability and the reproducibility of trace element analysis were presented. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed on laser ablation inductively coupled plasma spectrometric analyses of the fragments to identify the source. Pairwise comparisons were completed for all samples. In a pairwise comparison, each sample was compared to each other for a possible [n(n-1)/2] (n : numbers of the samples) total comparison to associate/discriminate samples using Tukey's HSD method. The aim of this study was to determine the utility of LA-ICP-MS for multi-element analysis of forensic samples. The 12 glass fragments from two manufacturers were collected and analyzed to identify the source. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed on 31 elements in NIST 612 Trace elements in Glass. Elements were classified into four categories defined by the combination of precision and variation of inter-samples. We selected 11 elements, 209Bi, 90Zr, 121Sb, 178Hf, 59Co, 238U, 208Pb, 140Ce, 118Sn, 49Ti and 137Ba. 6 pairs out of 66 possible pairs were not distinguished when compared by 137Ba (p<0.05). However, all samples were distinguished using both 49Ti and 137Ba (p<0.05). In conclusion, multi-elemental analysis with LA-ICP-MS is a potential tecnique for the discrimination of forensic samples.