Elemental Profiling of Car Paint Residues for Forensic Discrimination Using XRF and EDX

DOI

10.2991/978-94-6239-610-4_58How to use a DOI?

Keywords

X-Ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy; Car Paint Residue; Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectrometry; Elemental analysis

Abstract

Automotive paint chips represent one of the most frequently encountered forms of trace evidence in vehicular collisions, particularly in hit-and-run cases. Their multilayered structure, distinctive colour formulations and manufacturer-specific compositions make them valuable indicators for associating a suspect vehicle with a crime. The present work focuses on the systematic examination of paint samples collected from the Maruti Suzuki Swift Dzire model car, a vehicle that dominates the Indian automotive market and are therefore commonly implicated in road-traffic incidents. The primary objective is to evaluate the physical appearance of the collected paint samples, investigate the relationship between colour characteristics and elemental composition, analyse the multilayer architecture of the coatings, and estimate the distribution of major inorganic constituents across different layers.

A multi-analytical forensic approach is employed for systematic examination of paint samples. Visual and microscopic observations provided preliminary differentiation of colour, texture and layer thickness. X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy enabled rapid, non-destructive elemental profiling, allowing comparison of inorganic pigments and extenders associated with different layers. Scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX) offered high-resolution cross-sectional imaging and precise elemental mapping of each coating layer, including electrocoat, primer surfacer, basecoat and clearcoat.

Integration of the spectral and structural data revealed significant variations in elemental markers such as Ti, Fe, Zn, Al, Si and Ba, which aided in discriminating between models and even similar colour shades. The results demonstrate the strong evidentiary value of combined physical, microscopic and spectroscopic analyses in characterising automotive paints. The methodology enhances the ability to match questioned paint fragments with known vehicle samples, thereby strengthening forensic reconstruction in hit-and-run investigations. The study reinforces that multi-modal analytical protocols provide robust, reproducible and legally defensible conclusions in forensic paint examinations.

Copyright

© 2026 The Author(s)

Open Access

Open Access This chapter is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits any noncommercial use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license and indicate if changes were made.

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TY  - CONF
AU  - Jumisree Sarmah Pathak
AU  - Arvind Kumar Saxena
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/05/05
TI  - Elemental Profiling of Car Paint Residues for Forensic Discrimination Using XRF and EDX
BT  - Proceedings of the First International Conference on Advances in Forensics and Cyber Technologies (ICFACT 2025)
PB  - Atlantis Press
SP  - 719
EP  - 733
SN  - 2352-538X
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/978-94-6239-610-4_58
DO  - 10.2991/978-94-6239-610-4_58
ID  - Pathak2026
ER  -