Application of Capillary Electromigration Methods in the Analysis of Textile Dyes—Review

Abstract

Fiber traces are one of (micro)traces that can be found at a crime scene. They are easily transferable and, like other forms of evidence, can provide a link between a suspect and a victim. The main purpose of this review is to present methods developed to examine textile dyes extracted for forensic purposes using different capillary electromigration methods (CEMs). Scientific papers, mainly from the 20th century, provide reliable methods for the separation of water-soluble dyes. However, dyes insoluble in aqueous solutions have been and still are a challenge. Another problem is the sensitivity of the developed methods, which is, in most cases, insufficient for forensic examination of dyes extracted from a single fiber preserved at the crime scene. Although the methodologies already developed and presented in this review have the potential to be applied in a comparative analysis of textile dye traces, there seems to be a lot of work to be conducted. Some ideas on how to resolve these problems are presented and discussed in the article.

Development of the Microemulsion Electrokinetic Capillary Chromatography Method for the Analysis of Disperse Dyes Extracted from Polyester Fibers

“…One direction is to adapt the method to analyze and differentiate fibers similar in size to those that are secured in practice at the scene of a crime. However, it should be noted that to the authors’ knowledge, no method using capillary electrophoresis has yet been developed for the analysis of extracts from polyester fibers of such small sizes [ 33 ].…”

“…Although capillary electrophoresis is destructive as it requires the extraction of dyes, it seems to be a highly promising method which can significantly increase the degree of discrimination against similar fibers. Benefits and problems related to the use of various CEMs for different dye groups have been extensively and discussed in-depth in the review [ 33 ].…”

Isolation and Molecular Identification of Direct Red 80 Synthetic Dye Degradation Bacteria from Palembang Indonesia Jumputan Cloth Industrial Waste

“…Synthetic dye are commonly used in the textile industry because they offer several benefits compared to natural dye, such as color stability, which increases the ability to withstand exposure to light and chemicals (Sałdan et al, 2022) . They are also more readily available, cheaper, and come in a wider range of colors (Manna et al, 2017) .…”