Analysis of dental materials as an aid to identification in aircraft accidents

The failure to achieve positive identification of aircrew following an aircraft accident need not prevent a full autopsy and toxicological examination to ascertain possible medical factors involved in the accident. Energy-dispersive electron microprobe analysis provides morphological, qualitative, and accurate quantitative analysis of the composition of dental amalgam. Wet chemical analysis can be used to determine the elemental composition of crowns, bridges and partial dentures. Unfilled resin can be analyzed by infrared spectroscopy. Detailed analysis of filled composite restorative resins has not yet been achieved in the "as-set" condition to permit discrimination between manufacturers' products. Future work will involve filler studies and pyrolysis of the composite resins by thermogravimetric analysis to determine percentage weight loss when the sample examined is subjected to a controlled heating regime. With these available techniques, corroborative evidence achieved from the scientific study of materials can augment standard forensic dental results to obtain a positive identification.