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Updated: Jul 12, 2026

Using Archival Japanese Paper and Thermoplastic Resins to Prepare Fossils for Storage, Display, Transport, and Radiography
Published on: November 14, 2025
Replication in plastic of three-dimensional fossils preserved in indurated clastic sedimentary rocks
Abstract:
A new technique for replicating in plastic the fossils preserved in clastic rocks should now make available reliable morphologic and frequency data, comparable in quality to those derived from acid-prepared silicified faunas, for a major segment of the fossil record. The technique involves three steps: the dissolution of carbonate in fossiliferous rocks with hydrochloric acid, impregnation of resulting voids with liquid plastic, and dissolution of the rock matrix with hydrofluoric acid, leaving a concentrate of plastic-replaced fossils.
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