Was the Driver Drunk? An Instrumental Methods Experiment for the Determination of Blood Alcohol Content

Second-Year Undergraduates Learn Advanced Quantification and Standardization Methods—Internal Standards and Standard Additions—for GC Analysis Techniques with Real World Applications

“…3 Previously, Lillard et al reported that internal standardization was more dependable than external standardization for quantitative BAC analysis in a method optimally performed on serum which requires centrifugation. 4 We adapted a similar instrumental protocol but analyzed whole blood samples based on an established real-world method used in forensic toxicology. For routine BAC casework, the Hillsborough County Medical Examiner's office utilizes a dual-capillary column GC-flame ionization detector (FID) with an automated headspace analyzer.…”

“…Compared to breath analysis methods, BAC headspace gas chromatography–mass spectroscopy (GC–MS) analysis is more accurate and defensible in court proceedings . Previously, Lillard et al reported that internal standardization was more dependable than external standardization for quantitative BAC analysis in a method optimally performed on serum which requires centrifugation . We adapted a similar instrumental protocol but analyzed whole blood samples based on an established real-world method used in forensic toxicology.…”

Analysis of Ethanol in Beer Using Gas Chromatography: A Side-by-Side Comparison of Calibration Methods

“…In an effort to provide such an experience, I have previously aimed to introduce students to the advantages and disadvantages of the various calibration methods using a small group active learning exercise, 6 but this activity was not designed for the laboratory and focuses on a different analyte for each calibration method, making quantitative and statistical comparisons impossible. While laboratory experiments described by Barrows, 7 Zabzdyr and Lillard, 8 and Vuppala et al 9 are excellent examples of activities designed to have students evaluate the effectiveness of different calibration methods using real-world samples, they rely on more expensive gas chromatography (GC) instrumentation and autosamplers and, thus, may be out of reach for institutions with more limited access to instrumentation. The experiment described herein aims to guide students to directly assess the suitability of different calibration methods for determining the concentration of a single analyte in an unknown.…”

Was the Suspect in Contact with the Victim? An Instrumental Methods Experiment for the Analysis of Single Fibers Using FT-IR Microscopy

“…Forensic-based experiments can be easy to implement into existing laboratory formats using available instruments and usually require only minor modifications. For example, we have incorporated a new experiment into our instrumental methods course in which blood alcohol content was measured with headspace GC and the students were asked to determine whether the "suspect" had been driving under the influence (4). In addition, these experiments can be performed at all levels, as demonstrated by Elderd et al in an introductory experiment for general chemistry students in which arson accelerants were identified using GC (5).…”