Detection and characterization of volatile organic compounds from burned human and animal remains in fire debris

Debris collected from various test sites where mammalian remains (human and porcine) had been burned in a variety of full-scale fire scenarios was evaluated for the presence of volatile residues that could be characteristic of those remains. Levels of volatiles were measured using the method commonly used for fire debris analysis: gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Homologous n-aldehydes (from n-pentanal to n-nonanal) proved to be a significant indicator of the presence of burned animal tissue as they were observed in nearly all of the samples. Such aldehydes are created by the combustion of animal fats. One aldehyde, n-hexanal, appeared more frequently than the other aldehydes, n-pentanal, n-heptanal, n-octanal, and n-nonanal. Ethanol was detected in two-thirds of the samples, while acetone appeared in about three-fourths of the samples, but both were detected at much lower concentrations than n-hexanal. These appear to have been combustion products of the substrates on which each body burned, rather than originating from the combustion of the body. There appeared to be no qualitative distinction between volatile products produced from burned porcine carcasses and those from human cadavers. Since a homologous series of C₅-C₉n-aldehydes is not produced as a dominant species by the pyrolysis or combustion of any normally encountered substrate (carpet, bedding, wood products or upholstery), their detection by normal fire debris methods appears to be a valid indicator of the presence of burned animal remains. These data will also provide guidance to fire debris analysts as to the nature of volatiles associated with the combustion of human bodies in real-world fires.