Since identification methods for single textile fibers are in demand for forensic applications, and nondestructive methods with minimal pretreatment have the greatest potential for utility, this article describes how excitation–emission luminescence data provide a three-dimensional matrix for comparison of single-fiber dyes, and these data are enhanced by principal component analysis and comparison of fibers using a statistical figure of merit.
No dye extraction methods are required to sample the spectra from a single fiber. In the current project, this approach was applied to the analysis of single fibers to compare closely matched dye pairs, acid blue (AB) 25 and 41 and direct blue (DB) 1 and 53. In all cases, the accuracy of fiber identification was high and no false positive identifications were made. (publisher abstract modified)