Paint not only helps protect your home, decorate your space, but is has aided victims of crimes, and the prosecution of criminal acts. Paint has been used a forensic evidence to help to solve crimes. Paints have unique components that can help differentiate from other paints. The creators of each paint, or manufacturer, can aid in identifying the kind of paint. Forensic Scientists use paint analysis to study the different layers of the pain under microscope. Many times paint is transferred onto victims or items in a crime scene and this can be used to find proof of the crime. Paint can be tested for its color, appearance, texture, and/or thickness.
Forensic Scientists perform test on paint to that breaks the sample into fragments to compare the color and chemical composition of the paint. They also run tests that create chemical reactions in the paint to see if it swells, if the color changes, if there is curling or softening of the sample. They also use tests that analyze how paint absorbs light to determine the type of paint. Investigators can use paint to find hit-and-role car accidents and locate the actors cars by identifying paint traces that could be left in each car.
As you see paint has other purposes that you may have not initially thought about. There is even a database in which paint manufactures report the chemical composition of their pain and then police can utilize the information in the database called Paint Data Query (PDQ) which is maintained by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). Here investigators will find the chemical compositions of paint from most domestic and foreign car manufacturers as well as the majority of vehicles marketed in North America after 1973.
Paint can turn out to be a very special tool for investigators and a very special tool for your home as well!
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