NCJ Number
228236
Journal
Journal of Forensic Identification Volume: 59 Issue: 5 Dated: September/October 2009 Pages: 545-568
Date Published
October 2009
Length
24 pages
Annotation
Results are presented from an analysis of the dimethylaminocinnemaldehyde (DMAC) development processes and its application to fingerprint development on thermal papers.
Abstract
Results indicate that the DMAC contact transfer process primarily targeted amino acids in the fingerprint; however, these might be less persistent than the constituents targeted by ninhydrin and diazafluoren-9-one (DFO). Consequently, the effectiveness decreases more rapidly as the fingerprints age. Overall, pre-dipping thermal receipts in ethanol prior to processing with ninhydrin or DFO was the most effective process for thermal papers. The use of DMAC as a fingerprint development reagent was first proposed in the 1970s as a solution-dipping technique to target the urea constituent of fingerprints. However, the quality of developed fingerprints was poor. Recently, the use of DMAC fuming and the use of sheets impregnated with DMAC solution have been proposed as alternative fingerprint development processes for porous surfaces, particularly thermal papers. This study was conducted to establish the effectiveness of the DMAC contact transfer technique for the development of fingerprints on thermal papers. Figures, tables, and references