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4/27/2016 How do you mount several tiny samples together?…..Very carefully! | UCLA/Getty Conservation Program
https://uclagettyprogram.wordpress.com/2014/03/29/mountingsmallsamples/ 1/9
UCLA/GETTY CONSERVATIONPROGRAMA graduate conservation training program focusing on the conservation of archaeological andethnographic materials
We are all aware of how difficult it is to be able to take a sample
from an artifact (both permission-wise and logistically) and when we
need to, more often than not, the samples we take are extremely
small. Once we have our precious sample, we try to use as many
examination and analytical techniques we can that are non-
destructive to get the greatest amount of information from that one
sample. We may reach the point, however, where we need to use an
analytical technique that may require the sample to be mounted, cut
up or consumed, and we need to find ways to have the
samples extend as far as possible through all the stages of
investigation.
In our lab, we’ve been working on several projects (focusing on
How do you mount several tiny samplestogether?…..Very carefully!March 29, 2014 by vmuros | Leave a comment
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4/27/2016 How do you mount several tiny samples together?…..Very carefully! | UCLA/Getty Conservation Program
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Egyptian blue pigments, as well as archaeological glass from the
Mediterranean and China) that require taking very small samples
from archaeological objects. Most of us are at the stage in our
research that require the samples to be mounted in epoxy and
polished for various types of instrumental analysis. Because we can
only take very small samples (about a few millimeters in size) and we
need to use several techniques (SEM-EDS, EPMA, SIMS, Raman),
we’ve been trying to figure out the best way to prepare our samples
so that they can be used for all the techniques that will be applied.
Since the analytical methods we want to use will all work on polished
samples mounted in resin blocks, we decided to try and mount the
samples this way. In order to make it easier and faster to analyze
several mounted samples, we decided to place several of our
samples in the same resin block. Arranging the samples all in one
mount, documenting them in a way so you know which sample is
which and embedding and polishing them successfully is challenging
enough. When you are mounting 10-16 samples, about a few mm
wide, in a 1 inch diameter sample holder, it’s even more difficult!
Before you start, it’s good to have all the supplies you need out at
your work area, along with your samples. Using a binocular
microscope is key to mounting such small samples. The
materials/supplies we had for mounting our samples were: the
sample holder (we embedded our samples in 1 inch diameter disc of
epoxy resin and used a Teflon ring -cut from a longer Teflon tube) as
our sample holder, tweezers, double-sided tape (at least 1 inch wide)
, Mylar (2-3 mil polyester film), a pen and small, hard portable,
surface for mounting (we used a small tile or piece of glass). Steady
hands of course are essential. No sneezing is allowed, and holding
your breath for a bit may also be helpful when dealing with such
small samples. Of course don’t forget to eventually breathe-just not
on your samples!.
To donate, select the
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drop down menu on the
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Archaeology Online
Giving Site.
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the UCLA/Getty
Conservation Program.
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Once we had our supplies and samples at the microscope, we did
the following:
1. We took our hard portable surface (in this case a small tile) andattached a piece of Mylar to the top of the tile using doublesided tape. The Mylar will act as a barrier and prevent the epoxywe use for mounting from adhering to the tile (if not it will beimpossible to remove the mounted samples from the surface ofthe tile).
2. In the center of the Mylar covered tile, we placed 2 pieces ofdouble sided tape, making sure the taped area was larger than 1inch in diameter. The tape will be used to hold the samples (andthen the Teflon ring) in place during mounting.
3. We took the Teflon ring and placed it over the two pieces of tapeand drew a line to mark the interior diameter. This would helpguide us in placing our samples on the tape, making sure theyare positioned in the center of the ring.
Now it’s time to take your samples and place them on the double
sided tape. Since we’re going to mount several samples, we placed
our in rows, and tried to position them so they would fall within the
center of the Teflon ring when mounted. We marked the top of the
Mylar to indicate orientation. We also took notes and made a
drawing to map where we were positioning the samples. Because
some of the analysis we will be conducting will require quantitative
analysis and the use of standards, we mounted small samples taken
from a set of Corning Museum glass standards (A-D) we had in the
lab along side our archaeological samples.
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4/27/2016 How do you mount several tiny samples together?…..Very carefully! | UCLA/Getty Conservation Program
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Once we placed all our samples on the tape, we positioned the
Teflon ring around them, on the guide lines we drew earlier.
Because the ring is made of Teflon, we don’t need to add any release
agent because theepoxy resin won’t stick to it.
Now we’re ready to mix up and pour in the epoxy resin to embed the
samples. We use Struer’s Epofix epoxy resin for mounting.
Even though the Teflon ring is well adhered to the double sided tape,
there is the possibility that some of the resin might leak out from the
bottom edge of the ring. One way to avoid this is to seal the bottom
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4/27/2016 How do you mount several tiny samples together?…..Very carefully! | UCLA/Getty Conservation Program
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edge of the Teflon ring.
A couple things we’ve tried are:
putting tape along the bottom exterior edge of the Teflon ring (in the image above we used blue masking tape)
putting plasticine or modeling clay along the bottom edge
or sealing the exterior bottom edge with latex (This is the onethat worked best for me. I brushed Latex #74 moldingcompound from Douglas and Sturgess around the bottom edge. Once the latex was set, I mixed together the epoxy resin andpoured it into the ring and….no leaks!)
When embedding our samples in resin, we like to put them in a
vacuum chamber after pouring in the epoxy to remove any air from
the resin and the pores of our samples. This will ensure the samples
are completely impregnated with epoxy. This is particularly
important with porous samples, such as some of the very weathered
glass samples I was going to analyze.
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After the epoxy cures, the pressure is released from the vacuum and
the tile/ring/mounted samples removed.
The Teflon ring can now be lifted off the Mylar and the mounted
samples removed from the ring. The final step is to polish the
samples.We start off with very fine grit sand paper (ranging from
600-1200 grit) and finish with Buehler MetaDi Diamond polishing
suspension, first with 6 micron suspension followed by polishing
with the 1 micron suspension as the final step. We want to make
sure that the samples are exposed and that there are no scratches
on the surface.
4/27/2016 How do you mount several tiny samples together?…..Very carefully! | UCLA/Getty Conservation Program
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Once the mounted samples are polished, they are ready to be
analyzed.
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4/27/2016 How do you mount several tiny samples together?…..Very carefully! | UCLA/Getty Conservation Program
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Having to mount numerous small samples together is tricky, but
having all these samples in the same mount, plus the standards, will
certainly save time during analysis!
Vanessa Muros (Conservation Specialist)
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Categories: Glass, Research | Tags: analysis, archaeometry, glass, sampling |
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