Title

Hierarchical Cluster Analysis Of Ignitable Liquids Based On The Total Ion Spectrum

Keywords

Chemometrics; Forensic science; Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry; Hierarchical cluster analysis; Ignitable liquids; Total ion spectrum

Abstract

Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) data of ignitable liquids in the Ignitable Liquids Reference Collection (ILRC) database were processed to obtain 445 total ion spectra (TIS), that is, average mass spectra across the chromatographic profile. Hierarchical cluster analysis, an unsupervised learning technique, was applied to find features useful for classification of ignitable liquids. A combination of the correlation distance and average linkage was utilized for grouping ignitable liquids with similar chemical composition. This study evaluated whether hierarchical cluster analysis of the TIS would cluster together ignitable liquids of the same ASTM class assignment, as designated in the ILRC database. The ignitable liquids clustered based on their chemical composition, and the ignitable liquids within each cluster were predominantly from one ASTM E1618-11 class. These results reinforce use of the TIS as a tool to aid in forensic fire debris analysis.

Publication Date

1-1-2014

Publication Title

Journal of Forensic Sciences

Volume

59

Issue

5

Number of Pages

1198-1204

Document Type

Article

Personal Identifier

scopus

DOI Link

https://doi.org/10.1111/1556-4029.12517

Socpus ID

84908340941 (Scopus)

Source API URL

https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/84908340941

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