Eggshell Nanosheets: Synthesis, Properties, and Their Forensic Applications in Latent Friction Ridges Development

Abstract

AbstractSince waste materials are used to identify, individualize, and evaluate evidence like fingerprints, palmprints, footprints, etc. that are found at a crime scene, they have a substantial impact on the field of forensic science. Many waste powders have recently been employed in fingerprint recognition. Nanosheets made up of eggshells have been put forward as an application in friction ridge development. Eggshell is a biochemical substance made up of chemical compounds like calcium carbonate, which is considered as a waste product. For the formation of an eggshell nanosheet (ESN), shells are dried and crushed into a fine powder and to get this powder in the form of a nanosheet, the Ball milling technique is used. The synthesis of pure ESN is confirmed by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and X‐ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. The size of nanosheets ranged from 30 to 90 nm as shown in SEM images. Developed powder is then used for the application of fingerprint development and it provides excellent results on all porous, non‐porous, and semi‐porous surfaces. Thus, this newly synthesized ESN powder can be used as a significant powder method in latent fingerprint technology.