Analysis decorative art adhesives with ATR-FTIR

Thesis (M.S.) California State University, Los Angeles, 2012Committee members: Katherine Roberts, Donald Johnson, Joseph PetersonAdhesives, ATR-FTIR, Decorative Art, Forensic Science, Glitter, GlueThe analysis of 78 decorative art adhesive samples was performed by attenuated total reflectance infrared spectrometry (ATR-FTIR) for the purpose of determining variation between and within decorative art adhesives across various manufacturers. Decorative art adhesives were allowed to cure at ambient temperature prior to sampling. Adhesives that included glitter were separated from each other prior to analysis. Analysis was conducted with an infrared spectrometer using a diamond crystal ATR accessory with minimal sample preparation. The IR spectra show a pattern of vibrational frequencies in the 1500cm<super>-1</super> and 600cm<super>-1</super> range, and at 1700cm<super>-1</super>, and 3000cm<super>-1</super> for all decorative art adhesives. The results indicate variations occur between and within the ten adhesives classes evaluated across several manufacturers. The similarity between manufacturers was only apparent for the glitter paint adhesives. The spectral data presented for each adhesive allows for pattern recognition in criminal cases in addition to providing applications in other scientific fields.Criminal Justice and Criminalistic