Time-Dependent Development of Latent Fingerprints on Stone Paper Evidence Collected from Crime Scenes


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YOLDAŞ C., GÜLEKÇİ Y., TOPCU Y.

International Journal of Chemistry and Technology (IJCT), cilt.0, sa.10, ss.1-12, 2026 (TRDizin)

Özet

Today, various types of paper are produced to meet different needs, including stone paper. Stone paper comprises both organic and inorganic components and has not been classified by surface type in the literature, nor has it been previously examined in fingerprint analysis. FTIR and TG–DTA analyses revealed that the paper used in this study was R-class RP stone paper, which has a hybrid structure that does not fully conform to the conventional porous–nonporous dichotomy. The analytical results were used to select fingerprint development methods that would not damage the paper. Five different methods were evaluated at different time intervals (1 day, 1 week, 1 month and 3 months) to simulate forensically relevant conditions. The highest proportion of comparable fingerprints (71.25%) was obtained using ninhydrin, followed by cyanoacrylate fuming combined with black magnetic fingerprint development powder (62.5%). This outcome can be attributed to the hybrid structure of the stone paper. This study provides a methodological basis for fingerprint examination on stone paper surfaces.