I've been curious (as have a bunch of folks) about this material for a while now and I am really intrigued by these images provided by Jamie Hascall - Chief Preparator and mountmaker at Museums of New Mexico Santa Fe.

Jamie Hascall - F&#111.jpg

http://www.flickr.com/photos/24204269@N06/sets/72157625951028606/

From the Mountmakers Group comes a description of what the stuff is and how it works courtesy of
Megan J. Emery - Associate Conservator at the Cincinatti Art Museum.
In response a prompt from Shelly Uhlir at the Smithsonians National Museum of the American Indian Megan responds:

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Hi Shelly,

You are correct, we ran several Oddy tests on FOSSHAPE(tm), reviewed the MSDS information and carried out lengthy conversations with the manufacturer. Overall the material passed our Oddy test, however since Oddy tests can be objective and I always ere on the side of caution I recommend a barrier layer be used for long term display or storage. FOSSHAPE(tm) is a proprietary 100% polyester polymer blend, with no additives or post treatments. Each individual fiber is composed of two polyesters each with a different melting point: the outer shell of the fiber has a considerably lower melting point than the core. The fibers are then mechanically entangled to form the fabric. When FOSSHAPE(tm) is introduced to a heat source the outer core of the fibers begins to soften/melt causing the fibers to contract and become rigid upon cooling.

Hope this is helpful,

Megan J. Emery

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A big Thank You to Jamie, Megan and Shelly for sharing the wealth and to the Mountmakers Forum creating a venue for mountmakers to converse.