Non-contact spectroscopic determination of large blood volume fractions in turbid media

We report on a non-contact method to quantitatively determine blood volume fractions in turbid media by reflectance spectroscopy in the VIS/NIR spectral wavelength range. This method will be used for spectral analysis of tissue with large absorption coefficients and assist in age determination of bruises and bloodstains. First, a phantom set was constructed to determine the effective photon path length as a function of μ(a) and μ(s)′ on phantoms with an albedo range: 0.02-0.99. Based on these measurements, an empirical model of the path length was established for phantoms with an albedo > 0.1. Next, this model was validated on whole blood mimicking phantoms, to determine the blood volume fractions ρ = 0.12-0.84 within the phantoms (r = 0.993; error < 10%). Finally, the model was proved applicable on cotton fabric phantoms.