CHAPTER 38 FORENSIC USE OF HEAVY MINERALS IN CIVIL AND CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS

Abstract

Extensive historic use has been made of heavy minerals in sedimentological and stratigraphic studies. More recently, heavy minerals have been utilised in a wide variety of forensic applications. Five examples are presented to show how heavy minerals have been used in a murder investigation, identify the source of groundwater contamination, quantify the volume of sediment deposited in a wetland area as a result of improper erosion control in an adjacent subdivision, identify the source and cause of the premature aircraft engine failure and in a case involving industrial sabotage. These examples illustrate well how a mineral component, which often comprises less than 1% of a typical sample, can provide the geoscientist with information that is critical in a wide variety of forensic investigations. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.