Reply #15: Portable explosive identification system

[ruperupe]

"GE Ion Track, a leading provider of explosives and narcotics detection and identification equipment to law enforcement, military and security professionals, recently introduced StreetLab - a portable explosives and narcotics identification system that offers an entirely new solution to the problem of analysing unknown seized substances in the field.
While GE Ion Track's EntryScan3, Itemiser3 and VaporTracer2 are trace detection systems for analysing invisible particles and vapors, StreetLab is a bulk identification system for identifying visible powders, pills and liquids.
Utilising Raman spectroscopy - a technology already widely accepted in the forensic community - StreetLab identifies substances based on their molecular structure. Raman spectroscopy permits samples to be analysed non-destructively and can identify a wide range of substances from narcotics to solvents to liquid explosives. Unlike chemical tests, results are clear, repeatable and completed in a single operation.
Equipped with a near-infrared laser, StreetLab analyses frequency shifts in the light scattered off a sample to recognise the 'spectral fingerprint' of a substance, even if it is dissolved in water or other liquids. StreetLab can also analyse samples through transparent glass and plastic containers, thereby eliminating the need to remove packaging prior to analysis."
http://securitysa.com/news.asp?pklNewsID=12022&pklIssueID=351&pklCategoryID=111

i'm not expert but this doesn't sound like an analysis would require several weeks.