Field Museum researchers in Chicago have devised a method to synthesize amber by transforming fresh pine resin into a material that closely resembles natural amber. The project, documented in Scientific Reports, describes the creation of a laboratory amber analogue derived from pine resins and explains how processing conditions influence the final properties. The team emphasizes that producing amber-like material in the lab can unlock detailed study of resin chemistry while avoiding the risk of damaging priceless natural samples. By creating a controllable surrogate, scientists can explore how heat, pressure, and mineral interactions shape resin into a fossil-like state that preserves the signatures researchers would otherwise seek in living or fossilized form. This milestone underscores the value of laboratory approaches in geochemistry, materials science, and paleontology and demonstrates a practical path for investigating amber formation from first principles.
Amber, the fossilized resin prized for thousands of years, offers a window into ancient ecosystems and the organisms trapped inside. However, natural amber is fragile and rare, which makes it challenging to study in the laboratory. Scientists historically faced the dilemma of needing a representative sample that would withstand rigorous testing without exposing rare specimens to handling risks. The laboratory analogue addresses this problem by providing a robust surrogate. It allows researchers to run repeated experiments, compare processing regimes, and observe how different resin sources behave under controlled diagenetic-like conditions. The Field Museum team notes that such an approach can accelerate understanding of amber’s chemical pathways and help distinguish genuine amber features from artifacts produced in the lab.
For the experiment three pine resin samples were prepared and sourced from the Chicago Botanical Garden. They were embedded in bentonite clay, a mineral-rich medium, and then subjected to pressures from 159 to 241 bar and temperatures from 130 to 150 degrees Celsius for 19 to 41 hours. The aim was to replicate the long-term chemical evolution resins undergo as they harden into amber while maintaining enough control to observe cause and effect. After treatment, the resin shifted from an opaque, sticky mass to a brittle, transparent material with a yellow-orange hue that suggested amber-like appearance.
Analytical techniques revealed that the lab-generated material exhibited chemical changes reminiscent of natural amber formation. Infrared spectroscopy showed a reduction in carbonyl group signals and the emergence of spectral features similar to those found in Baltic amber, indicating the resin had undergone polymerization and rearrangement of its molecular structure. While these results do not prove that the lab product is identical to natural amber, they demonstrate a real chemical trajectory toward an amber analogue. The findings imply that controlled laboratory conditions can drive resin chemistry toward amber-like states, providing a practical platform for further refinement.
Despite the promising signs, the material remains different from natural amber in the degree of polymerization and long-range molecular architecture. The researchers caution that achieving a perfect match will require additional optimization of variables such as resin type, mineral environment, temperature regimes, and exposure times. The study thus marks a foundational step, confirming the plausibility of synthetic amber formation and laying out a roadmap for closer imitation through systematic experimentation. The goal is not only to reproduce amber’s look but to emulate its structural integrity and resistance to environmental degradation.
Aside from the immediate amber implications, the work echoes a broader scientific narrative. Earlier reports indicated amber creation in Antarctica, revealing global interest in resin chemistry and the diverse contexts in which these materials can form. That Antarctica milestone complements the Chicago results by illustrating that resin metamorphosis into amber is a subject of wide interest across different climates and geological settings. The lab-based amber analogue is intended to be a safe, repeatable teaching and research tool that can inform investigations in paleontology, archaeology, mineralogy, and materials science.
In sum, the laboratory approach replaces guesswork with controlled experimentation. It offers researchers a versatile platform to probe resin chemistry, test hypotheses about diagenesis, and explore how amber-like materials might be used in education and conservation science. As parameter sets are refined, scientists expect the lab product to resemble natural amber more closely, enabling highly informative comparisons with real samples. The work paves the way for future discoveries about the resilience of plant resins, the processes that preserve life-forms for millions of years, and the potential for synthetic analogues to support research where natural specimens are scarce or off-limits.