Evaluation of spectroscopic techniques for on-site drug testing of festival seizures.
Drug testing and analysis June 1, 2025 N Meert, J Eliaerts, F Van Durme et al. 8 citations
At a dance festival, 166 drug samples—90 tablets, 53 powders, 16 crystals, and 7 liquids—were tested on-site using Raman and Fourier transform-infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. Raman identified powders and crystals with high sensitivity (100% and 81%), but performed poorly on liquids (67%) and ecstasy-like tablets (41%). FT-IR achieved sensitivities above 95% across all forms. On-site MDMA doses in tablets ranged from 52 mg to 336 mg hydrochloride. Combining both techniques is recommended for rapid on-site drug identification, but optimized settings, in-house libraries, and trained operators are essential for accurate results.