Keep it together: an evaluation of the tensile strengths of three select adhesives used in fossil preparation (original) (raw)
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Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Anthropology, 2022
An adhesive is any substance that bonds different materials together. This broad definition includes materials used in everything from hafted stone tools to monumental architecture. In addition, the combination of bonding, plasticity, and insolubility meant that some adhesives were exploited for waterproofing and sealing of materials, as self-adhering inlays and putties, and as paints, varnishes, and inks. Adhesives have a history of at least 200,000 years. Throughout (pre)history and around the world, people used materials, including bitumen/asphalt, carbohydrate polymers such as starches and gums, natural rubbers, mortars, proteins (from casein, soy, blood, and animal connective tissue), insect and plant resins, and tars made from various barks and woods. Adhesives thus are very diverse and have widely varying properties: they can be tacky, pliable, elastic, brittle, water-resistant, fluid, viscous, clear, dark, and much more. They are a plastic avant la lettre. These properties c...
Understanding preservation and identification biases of ancient adhesives through experimentation
Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences, 2020
Adhesive production is one of the earliest forms of transformative technology, predating ceramics and metallurgy by over 150,000 years. The study of the adhesives used by Neandertals and early modern humans currently plays a significant role in debates about human technological and cognitive evolution. Depending on the type of adhesive used, different production sequences were required. These can vary in complexity and would have needed different knowledge, expertise, and resources to manufacture. However, our knowledge of this important technological development is severely hampered by poorly understood taphonomic processes, which affects the preservation and identification of adhesive materials and leads to a research bias. Here we present the results from a 3-year field preservation experiment. Flint flakes hafted and non-hafted with replica adhesives were left to weather naturally on and below the surface at two locations with different soils and climatic conditions. Differentia...
Polyester or epoxy: assessing embedding product efficacy in paleohistological methods
PeerJ
Histological examination of bone microstructure provides insight into extant and extinct vertebrate physiology. Fossil specimens sampled for histological examination are typically first embedded in an inexpensive polyester resin and then cut into thin sections, mounted on slides, and polished for viewing. Modern undecalcified bone is chemically processed prior to embedding in plastic resin, sectioning, mounting, and polishing. Conversely, small fossil material and modern undecalcified bone are typically embedded in higher priced epoxy resin because these specimen types require final sections near or below 100 µm thick. Anecdotal evidence suggests thin sections made of polyester resin embedded material polished thinner than 100 µm increases likelihood of sample peeling, material loss, and is unsuitable for modern tissue and small fossil material. To test this assertion, a sample of modern bones and fossil bones, teeth, and scales were embedded in either polyester resin or epoxy resin...
Microscopy and Microanalysis
Bone in archaeological or paleontological sites is often prone to degradation during the taphonomic phases (before and after the burial process until its discovery) which significantly weakens the bone’s mechanical properties. To preserve the material, consolidation treatments are commonly applied during ̶excavations to improve the cohesion of friable material. Studies on the effectiveness of bone consolidation treatments are relatively scarce. This research provides the first comparative analysis of the effectiveness of consolidation among three bone consolidation products (Acril 33®, Paraloid B72®, and Nanorestore®) applied by three different methods (capillary, immersion, and drip). Consolidation effectiveness was analyzed by the characterization of the absorption (water-drop absorption), contact angle measurements, environmental scanning electron microscopy, observation of the ability to penetrate the bone microstructure, by 3D visible light microscopy (HIROX 8700), and Leeb har...
Assembling an Archival Marking Kit for Paleontological Specimens
vertpaleo.org
Will the number you put on your specimen, its tag, box or other housing, be legible in one hundred years? Is it rub-proof, water -proof, fade-proof? Will a future worker be able to remove it if necessary? This poster will present a plan for assembling an archival marking kit, adapted for fossils from a similar kit for anthropological objects. Having a well-designed kit saves time, and can help to improve and standardize marking practices. The proposed kit includes a variety of high quality materials, including India ink, acrylic paint, Acryloid/Paraloid B72 in a convenient nail-polish bottle and also in a tube, Japanese and archival papers, Bristol board, and various dispensers, brushes, pens etc. Possible additions to the kit (such as disposable pens) will be discussed. Even the best materials can fail if not used well! This poster illustrates marking failures and solutions for problematic fossil surfaces (dark, rough, friable, very small or fragile, etc.), and problematic materials such as coated surfaces and plastics. Also included are a discussion of permanence and removability, looking both at the materials included in the kit and others that could be used or have been used in the past.
Fassina Chapter 9 Adhesion and Adhesives in STONE DECAY & CONSERVATION
Stone Decay and Conservation, 1983
Properties of adhesives used for stone conservation purposes were presented. Theory of adhesion were discussed in terms of mechanical, chemical, electrostatic. Different modes of adhesive setting were presented. Composition of adhesives including stabilizers, plasticizers, fillers and solvents were discussed
Vibrational Spectroscopy 53: 64–70, 2010