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FRSC 1011: Drugs II - Laboratory Analysis

Canadian Drug Laws

  • Canadian drug laws regulate the control and distribution of controlled substances under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act.
    • Illicit Drug: A controlled substance whose import, export, production, sale, or possession is prohibited or restricted.
    • Illicit Drug Use: Unlawful importation, exportation, production, sale, or possession of such substances.

Drug Classes

  • Opiates: Morphine, heroin, fentanyl.
  • Hallucinogens: THC, LSD, mescaline, PCP, psilocybin, MDMA (Ecstasy).
  • Depressants: Alcohol, barbiturates, tranquilizers.
  • Stimulants: Amphetamines, cocaine.
  • Club Drugs: MDMA, GHB, ketamine.
  • Anabolic Steroids.

Criminal Offence Penalty Chart

  • Overview of penalties associated with drug offenses under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act:
    • Unauthorized possession of over 30 gm of cannabis: Summary offence, 6 months or $5,000 fine; Indictable: 5 years less a day.
    • Possession of illicit cannabis: Summary offence, 6 months or $5,000 fine; Indictable: 5 years less a day.
    • Possession of certain psychedelics (e.g., LSD): Hybrid offence, 6 months/$1,000 (1st offence), up to 3 years for subsequent offences.

Collection and Preservation of Drug Evidence

  • Field investigators must package and label drug evidence carefully to prevent contamination:
    • Use of original containers when possible.
    • Clearly mark all packages for future identification and establish a chain of custody.
  • Provide relevant background information to aid analysis.

Drug Identification

  • Analytical Procedures: Include screening (nonspecific) and confirmation tests (specific).
    • Screening tests reduce possibilities of drug identification.
    • Confirmation tests definitively identify a substance.

Preliminary Analysis

  • Initial analysis allows reduction of unknown substances to manageable candidates through:
    • Color tests producing characteristic colors for common drugs.
    • Microcrystalline tests observing size/shape of crystals formed.

Confirmational Determination

  • After preliminary analysis, specific tests are used to identify substances distinctively:
    • Common techniques: Infrared spectrophotometry, gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS).

Qualitative vs. Quantitative Analysis

  • Qualitative Determinations: Establish the identity of a material.
  • Quantitative Determinations: Assess the proportion of components in a mixture.

Chromatography

  • Chromatography: A method for separation of mixture components based on movement phase preference:
    • Gas carried as moving phase, solid/liquid as stationary.
    • Results recorded as a chromatogram; retention time is the key metric for each component.

Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC)

  • Involves solid stationary phase (glass plate) and a liquid moving phase.
    • Components are visualized under UV light or with chemical reagents.
    • Rf (rate of flow) value measures the distance travelled by components.

Gas Chromatography (GC)

  • Moving phase is gas (carrier gas), stationary phase is liquid in the column:
    • After passing through a column, components separate based on interactions.
    • Chromatograms illustrate separation visually.

The Theory of Light and Spectrophotometry

  • Light is a continuous wave characterized by:
    • Wavelength: Distance between wave crests.
    • Frequency: Number of crests passing a point in time.
  • Spectrophotometry: Analyzes radiation absorbed by materials and dependent on wavelength and frequency.

Spectrophotometer Components

  • Essential parts include:
    • Radiation source
    • Monochromator
    • Sample holder
    • Detector
    • Recorder
  • Capable of recording absorption across UV and infrared spectra.

UV and IR Spectrophotometry

  • Commonly utilized in forensic labs to identify materials:
    • UV spectrum: Helps propose probable identities; non-definitive results.
    • IR spectrum: Unique patterns providing a 'fingerprint' of substances.

Mass Spectrometry

  • Generates ions by colliding molecules with high-energy electrons:
    • Provides unique fragmentation patterns for substances that help identify them.

GC and Mass Spectrometry Connection

  • Integration allows direct transfer of components from GC to mass spectrometer for enhanced analysis:
    • GC separates components.
    • Mass spectrometer applies fragmentation to produce identifiable patterns.