QUANTIFYING IGNITABLE LIQUIDS IN FIRE DEBRIS: POSSIBLE OR PROBLEMATIC?

摘要

Fire debris analysts are often asked how much ignitable liquid is present in samples collected from a firernscene. Investigators, lawyers, and juries may want to know the amount of ignitable liquid in order to determine itsrnsignificance to the case. However, fire debris analysts are currently only able to testify on the presence or absencernof an ignitable liquid in evidence. This research explored the possibility of quantifying ignitable liquids in firerndebris samples. Liquid standards of neat gasoline in various concentrations were analyzed on a gas chromatographmassrnspectrometer (GC-MS) and compared to the same concentrations of gasoline spiked onto different substratesrnand extracted using the passive headspace concentration method. Peak areas for an internal standard and 14rndifferent target compounds covering a range of light to heavy components were collected using the GC-MSrnsoftware, and ratios of the peak area responses were compared. The results indicated that accurately quantifying anrnignitable liquid is impossible due to factors such as displacement and saturation of the charcoal strip.