In forensic analysis, a small quantity of a particular material (hairs, fibers, soils, glasses, paints, among others) can be important to elucidate the sequence of events in a crime scene or to establish the relationship among subjects and facts. There are several examples of cosmetics used as forensic evidences, such as lipsticks and nail polishes. The composition of nail polishes varies according to brand, color and purpose of the product. In this work, the separation of Brazilian nail polishes according to their brand was evaluated using a portable energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometer (EDXRF) and principal component analysis (PCA). The nonsupervised classification of five brands indicates that the proposed methodology may be a quick, low cost and green alternative to discriminate brands and other characteristics related to a nail polish sample, as possible evidence in crime scenes.
X-ray fluorescence; portable XRF device; forensic chemistry; nail polish
