NCJ Number
175288
Journal
Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 43 Issue: 3 Dated: May 1998 Pages: 493-501
Date Published
1998
Length
9 pages
Annotation
Twenty brands of ammunition were analyzed to compare the antimony concentration on the surface of the projectile versus the concentration in the bulk and to study the possibility of finding antimony and assessing its concentration in gunshot residue particles.
Abstract
The study was prompted by an investigation of a homicide. The results of this study prompted an examination of additional brands of bullets to study the possible effect of a high surface concentration of antimony in the projectiles on the composition of gunshot residue particles. The analysis was conducted by means of scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (SEM/EDX). In all the projectiles, antimony enrichment was found on the surface of the lead alloy as compared to the bulk. In some of the bullets the enrichment was as much as tens of times the bulk concentration. Concentration depth profiles in several of the projectiles were also studied by Auger electron spectroscopy; much higher concentrations of antimony occurred on the surface than on the bulk even where this effect could hardly be detected by SEM/EDX. The research also entailed shooting tests using ammunition with antimony-free primers and in which the highest content of antimony on the projectiles' surfaces was observed. A very small percentage of gunshot residue particles contained antimony. The concentration of antimony on the surface of the lead ally bullets was higher than in the bulk, and the extent of antimony enrichment on the surface varied for different bullets. Figures, tables, and 11 references (Author abstract modified)