PolyCyano UV: an investigation into a one-step luminescent cyanoacrylate fuming process

PolyCyano UV (Foster + Freeman Ltd) is a new one-step process for developing luminescent fingermarks using cyanoacrylate (CA) fuming without the need for further chemical treatment. In this study, conditions including the amount of PolyCyano UV powder, the humidity level of the fuming chamber, and the time and temperature of the fuming process were optimised. A variety of different surfaces were tested and aged fingermark samples were also examined. The PolyCyano-UV-developed fingermarks were compared with conventional CA-developed fingermarks and subsequently stained with rhodamine 6G. PolyCyano UV was able to develop high-quality fingermarks on the surfaces tested. However, when examined under UV light, the luminescence of PolyCyano-UV-developed fingermarks was found to be weaker than conventional CA-developed fingermarks that were stained with rhodamine 6G. When used in sequence with rhodamine 6G, PolyCyano UV was found to give significantly improved contrast compared with conventional CA-developed fingermarks stained with rhodamine 6G.