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Gsr Research Papers

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GSR or gunshot residue is the unburnt and burnt portions of the explosive primer and propellant as well as the components of the bullet, the cartridge case and fire arm used. The GSR is discharged when a gun is fired and the initial gunshot plume is produced. This happens as when the gun is fired a large amount of incandescent gaseous material is produced the material is mainly the combustion products from the propellant and consists of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, water in the form of steam and oxides of nitrogen. The unburnt particles in the plume tend to be from the priming compound. When expelled from the firearm, “the metallic components in the residue are volatized and emerge from the primer pocked at vapour. This cloud of vaporized …show more content…

Where as in rifles and shotguns the situation is a little different if the weapon is of the self-loading variety then the gasses escape the ejection port, in this case it is likely that the GSR will be deposited on both hands of the firer. What makes GSR so useful in a forensic context is its uniqueness in structure and morphology this means that different brands of bullets have different chemical compositions which are unique so they can be differentiated between and linked back to a specific gun and person. What makes the GSR so unique is the three main classification types these are, Regular spheroids, irregular particles and Particles that form as a layer of lead surrounding an inner core. These particles tend to have a wide range in particle size and distribution. Due to this GSR samples are collected with adhesive lifters, the adhesive contains carbon, which colors it black and makes it able to conduct electrons in the SEM. Analysts also can use clear adhesive lifters; however, these require an extra step of carbon coating to prevent charging from the electron beam hitting the sample during analysis.(the current status of

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