This chapter presents a novel hand-held instrument capable of real-time in situ detection and identification of heavy metals, along with the potential use of novel taggants in environmental forensic investigations. The proposed system provides the facilities found in a traditional laboratory-based instrument but in a hand held design, without the need for an associated computer. The electrochemical instrument uses anodic stripping voltammetry, which is a precise and sensitive analytical method with excellent limits of detection. The sensors comprise a small disposable plastic strip of screen-printed electrodes rather than the more common glassy carbon disc and gold electrodes. The system is designed for use by a surveyor on site, allowing them to locate hotspots, thus avoiding the expense and time delay of prior laboratory analysis. This is particularly important in environmental forensic analysis when a site may have been released back to the owner and samples could be compromised on return visits. The system can be used in a variety of situations in environmental assessments, the data acquired from which provide a metals fingerprint suitable for input to a database. The proposed novel taggant tracers, based on narrow-band atomic fluorescence, are under development for potential deployment as forensic environmental tracers. The use of discrete fluorescent species in an environmentally stable host has been investigated to replace existing toxic, broadband molecular dye tracers. The narrow band emission signals offer the potential for tracing a large number of signals in the same environment. This will give increased data accuracy and allow multiple source environmental monitoring of environmental parameters.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Bahlman C (2006). Directional features in online handwriting recognition. Pattern Recognition 39:115–125.
Bersier PM, Howell J and Brunlett C (1994). Tutorial review. Advanced electroanalytical techniques versus atomic absorption spectrometry, inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry in environmental analysis. Analyst 119:219–232.
Christidis K, Pollard P, Gow K and Robertson PKJ (2006). On-site monitoring and cartographical mapping of heavy metals. Instrumental Science and Technology 34:489–499.
Christidis K, Robertson P, Gow K and Pollard P (2007). Voltammetric in situ measurements of heavy metals in soil using a portable electrochemical instrument. Measurement 40:960–967.
Cukrowska E, Trnková L, Kizek R and Havel J (2001). Use of artificial neural networks for the evaluation of electrochemical signals of adenine and cytosine in mixtures interfered with hydrogen evolution. Journal of Electroanalytical Chemistry 503:117–124.
De Carvalho RM, Mello C and Kubota LT (2000). Simultaneous determination of phenol isomers in binary mixtures by differential pulse voltammetry using carbon fibre electrode and neural network with pruning as a multivariate calibration tool. Analytica Chimica Acta 420:109–121.
Field MS, Wilhelm RG, Quinlan JF and Aley TJ (1995). An assessment of the potential adverse properties of fluorescent tracer dyes used for groundwater tracing. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 38:75–96.
Gow K, Robertson PKJ, Pollard P and Christidis K (2008). Measurement method and apparatus for analysing the metal or metal ion content of a sample. European Patent: EP1904838.
Gunarathne GPP and Christidis K (2002). Material characterisation in situ using ultrasound measurements. IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement 50:368–373.
ICRCL (1987). Inter-departmental Committee on the Redevelopment of Contaminated Land (ICRCL), 59/83 Guidance on the Assessment and Redevelopment of Contaminated Land. 2nd Edition. Available from: http://www.ContaminatedLAND.co.uk/std-guid/icrcl-l.htm. Accessed 21-07-2008.
Innovxsys (2007). Detection Limits for Innov-x Classic Field Portable XRF Instrument in Low Density Soil Types. http://www.innovxsys.com/products/detect. Accessed 21-07-08.
Pollard P, Adams M, Prabhu GR, Officer S and Hunter C (2007). Sensitive Novel Fluorescent Tracers for Environmental Monitoring. OCEANS 2007 — Europe, 18–21 June 2007:1–6.
Prutton M, Gomati MME and Kenny PG (1990). Scatter diagrams and hotelling transforms: application to surface analytical microscopy. Journal of Electron Spectroscopy and Related Phenomena 52:197–219.
Ramkumar J, Sudarsan V, Chandramouleeswaran S, Shrikhande VK, Kothiyal GP, Ravindran PV, Kulshreshtha SK and Mukherjee T (2008). Structural studies on boroaluminosilicate glasses. Journal of Non-Crystalline Solids 354:1591–1597.
Rossmeisl J and Nørskov JK (2008). Electrochemistry on the computer: Understanding how to tailor the metal overlayers for the oxygen reduction reaction. Surface Science, 602(14):2337–2338.
Stanley LT (1973). Practical Statistics for Petroleum Engineers. The Petroleum Publishing, USA:15–20.
Wada N and Kojima K (2007). Glass composition dependence of Eu3 + polarization in oxide glasses. Journal of Luminescence 126:53–62.
Wang J (1985). Stripping Analysis: Principles, Instrumentation, and Applications. VCH Publishers Deerfield Beach, FA: 119.
Zhoutang Li PW, Xueyin J, Zhilin Z and Shaodong X (1988). The synthesis of rare earth borosilicate glasses and their luminescence properties. Journal of Luminescence 40&41:135–136.
Zhu D, Zhou W, Day DE and Ray CS (2007). Preparation of fluorescent glasses with variable compositions. Ceramics International 33:563–568.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2009 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Pollard, P. et al. (2009). Environmental Forensic Investigations: The Potential Use of a Novel Heavy Metal Sensor and Novel Taggants. In: Ritz, K., Dawson, L., Miller, D. (eds) Criminal and Environmental Soil Forensics. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-9204-6_30
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-9204-6_30
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-1-4020-9203-9
Online ISBN: 978-1-4020-9204-6
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesBiomedical and Life Sciences (R0)