User talk:AlexGallon/Reagent testing

Reagent testing is the process of using one or more reagents to determine the various chemicals contained within a sample of a drug. While less discriminatory than other forms of drug checking (such as mass spectrometry), reagent testing is a useful harm reduction practice due to its relatively low cost and ease of use. Reagent testing is also suitable for use by law enforcement agents for preliminary identification of substances in the field.

(Image of my own reagents?)



Limitations
As a presumptive test, a single reagent test cannot provide detailed information on exactly what is in the sample in question. However, a reagent test can be used to rule out the presence of a particular substance, which can still be useful. For instance:


 * If a substance sold as MDMA tests negative for MDMA, the prospective user knows not to trust the identity of the drug, and may therefore choose not to ingest it.


 * If a substance sold as LSD tests negative for NBOMe compounds (which are occasionally sold in place of LSD ), and if the test results also suggest that LSD is present, the prospective user may make the informed choice to assume that the drug is unadulterated and therefore choose to ingest it.

In the second case, the user is still exposed to a level of risk from undetected adulterants, but the risk is reduced: they have successfully ruled out the presence of one class of harmful substances in the sample.

Reagent testing does not allow the tester to determine the potency or purity of the drug being tested. While pill scrapings, powders, tabs and most liquids can be tested directly, "geltabs" (small pieces of gelatine with the drug mixed in) are harder to test because the gelatine can interfere with the results. For some drugs, including LSD, it is possible to extract the drug from the gelatine before testing.

Procedure
The basic steps of a reagent test are as follows:

 Prepare a small amount sample of the substance to be tested. For a pill, the sample is just a small scraping; for liquids and powders, the sample is a small amount of the drug as-is; for blotter paper, a small cutting is sufficient.   Put a small amount of reagent on top of the sample.  Observe the colour change, if there is one. 

(etc.)

(Image of results of an RT that I've done?)