London, July 13 - a scientist has fabricated a new technique to 'see' fingerprints erased from fired bullets.

Alex Goddard of University of Leicester has developed a technique that involves studying the chemical and physical interactions occurring between the metal and the fingerprint sweat deposit -- which have been overlooked until now.

'Once a finger has touched the metal surface, a residue remains behind; this starts to react with the metal and an image of the fingerprint can be developed by use of elevated temperature and humidity, with the resultant image becoming a permanent feature on the surface of the metal,' Goddard explained.

'Currently, fingerprint recovery from bullets is very low; less than one percent.