What do spectroscopy, forensic sciences and data analysis have in common? A metrologist’s point of view

Reproducible science needs metrology and quality. Without harmonization in procedures and comparability in measurements scientific conclusions can be seriously flawed. Forensic sciences and the industry 4.0 may seem only loosely related at best, however, the need for reliable chemical measurements an unbreakable link between those two fields. Spectroscopic techniques, especially Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) provide a useful tool aiming at fast and reliable measurements for industry as well as methods of utmost importance both for on-site analysis for police forces and in the development of reference materials for forensic laboratories. With the advance in analytical methods and instruments such as NMR and mass spectrometers (MS), the amount of data generated grows each day and being capable of analyzing and mining all these data is what will ultimately make us go farther.
Our recent research at Inmetro has focused on basic metrology for forensic sciences through the production of drug reference materials with innovative synthetic processes, data analysis methods for reliable results in toxicology and fast measurement methods for forensic sciences and food industry. We’ll discuss how all of this is united by metrology in chemistry.