Ignitable liquids are flammable or combustible compounds which are readily available and are often used to start fires in cases of arson. In the lab, fire debris analysis involves identifying the presence of ignitable liquid residues and classification of the residues based on presence and absence of diagnostic chemical compounds. Identification of the type of liquid used may help arson investigators to narrow down a list of suspects and potentially find the person responsible. The technique used by investigators to identify the ignitable liquid is Gas Chromatography - Mass Spectrometry, which has become the “gold standard” in fire debris analysis labs all over the world. After a mixture of volatile compounds from the ignitable liquids is separated, the resulting data is analyzed using extracted ion chromatograms and profiles as well as mass spectral data. While the most common ignitable liquids are well characterized, new environmentally friendly “green” flammable and combustible liquids have entered the market and are not as well known to the fire debris analyst. In addition, over time the volatile, low boiling point compounds will evaporate out of the liquid and change the patterns observed in the chromatograms and information in the mass spectra. This is referred to as weathering, which can complicate analysis of the ignitable liquids. In this research, samples of “green” ignitable liquids will be weathered over a six month period to examine the differences from fresh samples. This analysis will be performed on both neat samples and on samples used to burn common household materials, including wood, carpet, and cotton. The goal is to determine if there are significant differences between “green” ignitable fluids that are weathered compared to those that are not, which would provide useful information to the field of fire debris analysis.

Weathering patterns of alternative “green” ignitable liquids

2019 Spring National Meeting

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