Daily Pioneer News

PLATTEVILLE - Encouraged by the newest wave of popular crime solving TV shows, students around the nation are flocking to universities where they can study forensic science and forensic chemistry. With one of the biggest and best criminal justice programs and a rapidly developing chemistry-criminalistics program, this area of study is growing equally as fast in popularity at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville.

Dr. Charles R. Cornett, a UWP chemistry professor and department chair for chemistry and engineering physics, was recently awarded a grant totaling $56,822 from the Midwest Forensics Research Center. Located in the Ames laboratories on the Iowa State University campus, the research center provides access for professionals to university and laboratory resources for the use in casework, training and education. The research center is also a place for advanced research and development in forensic science including advancement of technology and management in crime laboratories.

Cornett worked in conjunction with Joseph Wermeling of the Wisconsin State Crime Laboratory in Madison on the grant proposal and project entitled, "Detection of Substituted Polyaromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) Residues by Solid Phase Microextraction (SPME) in Arson Debris Analysis."

"We are honored to have been selected for this funding. This is an excellent opportunity for UWP to make a significant contribution to the forensic science community and a great educational opportunity for the undergraduate research students," said Cornett.

The project objectives include developing a method to recover ignitable liquid residues from a variety of matrices outlined in the periodical, Forensic Sciences: Review of Status and Needs. Cornett and three UWP students involved in the research have developed a general protocol for assessing aromatic analogs of interest. In the past few months they have prepared standard reference materials and will analyze the standards to ensure that they meet quality control parameters.

After the standards are prepared, they will begin controlled burnings of materials primarily focusing on polyester carpet fibers. From the fibers they will test their hypothesis and decide whether their technique will allow for the extraction and detection of gasoline residue as it pertains to arson debris. All of the procedures and standards will be developed at UWP, but tests will be run on instruments at the Madison State Crime Lab. This partnership forges a bond between UWP and the state crime lab for future work together.

Commented Cornett, "We are excited about the growth in our department and encouraged by the internships and research experiences our students have had. In the past few years our interns have given us an excellent reputation and chance to develop more partnerships in the scientific community." There are currently 127 chemistry majors at UWP, two-thirds of which are female.

Contact: Charles Cornett, College of EMS, (608) 342-1658, cornettc@uwplatt.edu