Silicification of Wood: An Overview

Abstract

For many decades, wood silicification has been viewed as a relatively simple process of permineralization that occurs when silica dissolved in groundwater precipitates to fill vacant spaces within the porous tissue. The presence of specific silica minerals is commonly ascribed to diagenetic changes. The possibility of rapid silicification is inferred from evidence from modern hot springs. Extensive examination of silicified wood from worldwide localities spanning long geologic time suggests that these generalizations are not dependable. Instead, wood silicification may occur via multiple pathways, permineralization being relatively rare. Mineralization commonly involves silica precipitation in successive episodes, where changes in the geochemical environment cause various polymorphs to coexist in a single specimen. Diagenetic changes may later change the mineral composition, but for many specimens diagenesis is not the dominant process that controls mineral distribution. Rates of silicification are primarily related to dissolved silica levels and permeability of sediment that encloses buried wood. Rapid silica deposition takes place on wood in modern hot springs, but these occurrences have dissimilar physical and chemical conditions compared to those that exist in most geologic environments. The times required for silicification are variable, and cannot be described by any generalization.

Preparation of γ-phase pigment Red 170 through hydrothermal treatment and kaolin coating modification

“…In the spectrum of kaolin, the absorption peaks at 753 and 789 cm −1 corresponded to the Si–Si stretching vibrations, and the peaks at 1006 and 1114 cm −1 belonged to the Si–O stretching vibrations. 32 In the spectrum of kaolin-modified pigment, the above four peaks disappeared, suggesting kaolin was coated on pigment Red 170, and the characteristic absorption peaks of kaolin were covered.…”

k-Means Clustering to Enhance the Petrified Wood Composition Data Analyses and Its Interpretation

“…The correlation is an indicator of the strength of the linear relationship between two variabels, namely 𝑥 and 𝑦 [10], where, 𝑟 is the correlation coefficient, see Equations (1).…”

“…Geological records have shown that wood fossils are majorly found that already naturally silicified. These fossils are millions of years old and are still well-preserved, even on the cellular scale [1][2][3]. It has already replaced carbon-based organic wood fiber with various anorganic oxides, such as silica, manganese, iron, and copper.…”

“…However, wood fossil 'maturity' can be distinguished by their density and mineral composition. This is because the mineral structure changes and forms gradually and continuously, replacing the bio-organic structure of wood [1,5]. Recently, the process of chemical changes in wood fossils has been investigated.…”

11th Hardwood Conference Proceedings

“…Nevertheless, X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy maintains its efficacy as an effective method for elemental investigation of wood and subfossil wood (Pereira Junior. et al 2016, Zielenkiewicz et al 2012, Mustoe 2023, Gavrikov et al 2022. Subfossil wood refers to wood that has undergone partial fossilization but has not been yet fully mineralized to become a true fossil.…”