Faculty of Science, University of Ontario Institute of Technology, 2000 Simcoe Street North, Oshawa, Ontario L1H 7K4, Canada.
Forensic Sci Int. 2013 Sep 10;231(1-3):331-9. doi: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2013.05.037. Epub 2013 Jul 10.
There are many factors which affect the rate of decomposition in a grave site including; the depth of burial, climatic conditions, physical conditions of the soil (e.g. texture, pH, moisture), and method of burial (e.g. clothing, wrappings). Clothing is often studied as a factor that can slow the rate of soft tissue decomposition. In contrast, the effect of soft tissue decomposition on the rate of textile degradation is usually reported as anecdotal evidence rather than being studied under controlled conditions. The majority of studies in this area have focused on the degradation of textiles buried directly in soil. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of soil texture on the degradation and/or preservation of textile materials associated with buried bodies. The study involved the burial of clothed domestic pig carcasses and control clothing in contrasting soil textures (silty clay loam, fine sand and fine sandy loam) at three field sites in southern Ontario, Canada. Graves were exhumed after 2, 12 and 14 months burial to observe the degree of degradation for both natural and synthetic textiles. Recovered textile samples were chemically analyzed using infrared (IR) spectroscopy and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to investigate the lipid decomposition by-products retained in the textiles. The findings of this study demonstrate that natural textile in contact with a buried decomposing body will be preserved for longer periods of time when compared to the same textile buried directly in soil and not in contact with a body. The soil texture did not visually impact the degree of degradation or preservation. Furthermore, the natural-synthetic textile blend was resistant to degradation, regardless of soil texture, contact with the body or time since deposition. Chemical analysis of the textiles using GC-MS correctly identified a lipid degradation profile consistent with the degree of soft tissue decomposition. Such information may be important for estimating time since deposition in instances where only grave goods and associated materials are recovered from a burial site.
有许多因素会影响墓地的分解率，包括：埋葬深度、气候条件、土壤的物理条件（例如质地、pH 值、湿度）以及埋葬方式（例如衣物、包裹）。衣物通常被认为是可以减缓软组织分解速度的因素之一。相比之下，软组织分解对纺织品降解速度的影响通常被视为轶事证据，而不是在受控条件下进行研究。该领域的大多数研究都集中在直接埋在土壤中的纺织品降解上。本研究旨在研究土壤质地对与埋藏尸体相关的纺织材料的降解和/或保存的影响。该研究涉及在加拿大安大略省南部的三个野外地点埋葬穿着衣服的家养猪尸体和对照衣物，土壤质地分别为粉质粘壤土、细砂和细砂壤土。埋葬 2、12 和 14 个月后挖掘坟墓，观察天然和合成纺织品的降解程度。回收的纺织样品使用红外（IR）光谱和气相色谱-质谱（GC-MS）进行化学分析，以研究保留在纺织品中的脂质分解副产物。这项研究的结果表明，与直接埋在土壤中且不与尸体接触的相同纺织品相比，与正在分解的尸体接触的天然纺织品将保存更长时间。土壤质地不会对降解或保存程度产生视觉影响。此外，无论土壤质地、与尸体接触与否以及沉积后的时间长短，天然-合成纺织品混合物都具有抗降解能力。使用 GC-MS 对纺织品进行化学分析可以正确识别与软组织分解程度一致的脂质降解图谱。在仅从墓地回收随葬品和相关材料的情况下，此类信息对于估计沉积时间可能很重要。
