title: A model study into the effects of light and temperature on the degradation of fingerprint constituents.
abstract: Determining the order of events in a criminal investigation can be crucial in many ways. Although the use of fingermarks is one of the most important forensic tools as a modality of individualisation, placing them in time is a long lasting difficulty. In the study presented in this paper we describe the effects of light and the temperature on depositions of standard solutions containing squalene and cholesterol on paper. The results obtained give a clear view on what type of processes take place during a temperature and a light influenced degradation of the two materials in this study. Using well known methods for the determination of reaction constants it was determined that the degradation mechanism of cholesterol is following a radical route, where the decay of squalene is more affected by temperature.
authors.affiliation: Netherlands Forensic Institute, Laan van Ypenburg 6, 2497 GB, The Hague, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Belén
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: González Amorós
authors.affiliation: Netherlands Forensic Institute, Laan van Ypenburg 6, 2497 GB, The Hague, The Netherlands. Electronic address: m.de.puit@nfi.minvenj.nl.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: de Puit
keywords: Age determination; Fingerprint