Chemometrics in forensic science: approaches and applications

Area of Science:

• Forensic Science
• Analytical Chemistry
• Data Science

Background:

• Forensic investigations heavily rely on physical evidence for event reconstruction.
• There is a need for more objective methods in evidential interpretation and validated procedures for evidence handling.
• Chemometrics is recognized for its potential to improve forensic analysis and interpretation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide an accessible overview of chemometric methods for forensic science.
• To review the application of chemometrics across various forensic disciplines.
• To discuss challenges and emerging trends in forensic chemometrics.

Main Methods:

• Overview of selected chemometric techniques.
• Review of studies demonstrating chemometric utility in forensic science.
• Discussion of sampling, validation, and study design considerations.

Main Results:

• Chemometrics provides powerful tools for optimizing analytical procedures in forensics.
• Demonstrated utility of chemometrics in diverse forensic applications.
• Identified key factors for successful implementation: sampling, validation, and study design.

Conclusions:

• Chemometrics offers a pathway to more objective and rigorous forensic evidence analysis.
• Further research and validation are crucial for advancing chemometric applications in forensic science.
• The field of forensic chemometrics is rapidly growing with emerging trends and challenges.