ASTM_E_1385_-_00.pdf

Designation:E 1385 00Standard Practice forSeparation and Concentration of Ignitable Liquid Residuesfrom Fire Debris Samples by Steam Distillation1This standard is issued under the fixed designation E 1385;the number immediately following the designation indicates the year oforiginal adoption or,in the case of revision,the year of last revision.A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval.Asuperscript epsilon(e)indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.1.Scope1.1 This practice covers the procedure for separating visiblequantities of water insoluble hydrocarbons from samples of firedebris.1.2 This practice is recommended only for samples whichhave a detectable odor of petroleum distillates when examinedat room temperature.1.3 This practice can yield useful extracts by the applicationof a solvent to the distillation trap in the event that only smallquantities of hydrocarbons are obtained.1.4 Alternate separation and concentration procedures arelisted in the referenced documents.1.5 This standard does not purport to address all of thesafety concerns,if any,associated with its use.It is theresponsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro-priate safety and health practices and determine the applica-bility of regulatory limitations prior to use.2.Referenced Documents2.1 ASTM Standards:D 1193 Specification for Reagent Water2E 752 Practice for Safety and Health Requirements Relatingto Occupational Exposure to Carbon Disulfide3E 1386 Practice for Separation and Concentration of Ignit-able Liquid Residues from Fire Debris Samples by SolventExtraction4E 1387 Test Method for Ignitable Liquid Residues in Ex-tracts from Samples of Fire Debris by Gas Chromatogra-phy4E 1412 Practice for Separation and Concentration of Ignit-able Liquid Residues from Fire Debris Samples by PassiveHeadspace Concentration4E 1413 Practice for Separation and Concentration of Ignit-able Liquid Residues from Fire Debris Samples by Dy-namic Headspace Concentration4E 1459 Guide for Physical Evidence Labeling and RelatedDocumentation4E 1492 Practice for Receiving,Documenting,Storing,andRetrieving Evidence in a Forensic Science Laboratory4E 1618 Guide for Ignitable Liquid Residues in Extractsfrom Fire Debris Samples by Gas Chromatography-MassSpectrometry43.Summary of Practice3.1 The sample of fire debris is introduced into a containerof appropriate size,and an appropriate amount of water isadded to the sample and brought to a boil.Vapors produced arecondensed in a volatile oil distillation apparatus.Petroleumdistillate residues float on top of a column of water and arecollected as visible liquids.4.Significance and Use4.1 Steam distillation is a classical separation technique,useful for preparing extracts for analysis by gas chromatogra-phy GC/MS or GC/IR.Distillates are suitable for analysisaccording to Test Method E 1387 or Guide E 1618.4.2 The visible oily liquid extract can be used as a court-room exhibit,unlike extracts produced by other separationprocedures which are solutions rather than a neat liquid.4.3 This practice is not useful for the separation of watersoluble ignitable liquids such as alcohols or ketones.4.4 Alternate separation and concentration methods aresuggested if the concentration of flammable or combustibleliquid residues is not detectable by odor.4.5 This is a destructive technique that should only be usedwhen a representative portion of the sample can be reserved forreanalysis.Those portions of the sample subjected to thisprocedure may not be suitable for resampling.Consider usingpassive headspace concentration as described in PracticeE 1412.5.Apparatus5.1 Distillation Apparatus-A Flask,or container of appro-priate size,which allows the sample to be introduced into theflask through the mouth,and a volatile oil distillation trap fittedwith a condensing column or a cold finger.6.Reagents and Materials6.1 Purity of ReagentsReagent grade chemicals shall beused in all tests.Unless otherwise indicated,it is intended thatall reagents conform to the specifications of the Committee on1This practice is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee E30 on ForensicSciences and is the direct responsibility of E30.01 on Criminalistics.Current edition approved Dec.10,2000.Published March 2001.Originallypublished as E 1385 90.Last previous edition E 1385 95.2Annual Book of ASTM Standards,Vol 11.013Discontinued.See 1995 Annual Book of ASTM Standards,Vol 11.03.4Annual Book of ASTM Standards,Vol 14.02.1Copyright ASTM,100 Barr Harbor Drive,West Conshohocken,PA 19428-2959,United States.Analytical Reagents of the American Chemical Society wheresuch specifications are available.5Other grades may be used,provided it is first ascertained that the regent is of sufficientlyhigh purity to permit its use without lessening the accuracy ofthe determination.6.1.1 Purity of WaterUnless otherwise indicated,refer-ences to water shall be understood to mean reagent water asdefined by Type IV of Specification D 1