Petrified Conifer Tree / Petrified Lycopod Tree Stump in Tuscumbia in Colbert County, Alabama - Places of Geologic Significance on Waymarking.com

Plaque A
85-90 Million Years Old Possibly a Bald Cypress from the Cretaceous Period or the Age of Dinosaurs


Plaque B
325 Million Years Old A Member of the Giant Club Mosses from the early Coal Age


In geology, petrifaction, petrification or silicification is the process by which organic material is converted into stone by impregnation with silica. It is a rare form of fossilization. Petrified wood is the most well known result of this process, but all organisms from bacteria to vertebrates can be petrified.

How Does Wood Petrify



Wood must first be covered with such agents as volcanic ash, volcanic lava flow, volcanic mud-flows, sediments in lakes and swamps or material washed in by violent floods - by any means which would exclude oxygen and thus prevent decay. A number of mineral substances (such as calcite, pyrite, marcasite) can cause petrification, but by far the most common is silica. Solutions of silica dissolved in ground water infiltrate the buried wood and through a complex chemical process are precipitated and left in the individual plant cells. Here the silica may take a variety of forms; it may be agate, jasper, chalcedony or opal. The beautiful and varied colors of petrified wood are caused by the presence of other minerals that enter the wood in solution with the silica. Iron oxide stains the wood orange, rust, red or yellow. Manganese oxide produces blues, blacks or purple.



What turned the wood to stone?

Petrified wood has been preserved for millions of years by the process of petrification. This process turns the wood into quartz crystal which is very brittle and shatters. Even though petrified wood is fragile, it is also harder than steel.



Petrified wood is known for it's exquisite color and detail. Some pieces of petrified wood have retained the original cellular structure of the wood and the grain can easily be seen. Petrified wood can be found throughout the desert regions. It is easy to find and identify. It is used often in jewelry making and for other types of decorative artwork.



What is petrification?



The process of petrification begins with three raw ingredients: wood, water and mud. Petrification of the wood found in the Petrified Forest began during the Triassic Period when the primitive confers fell to the ground and into the waterways on a journey through time. The logs were swept and tumbled downstream with sediment and other debris. The streams traveled through a plain of lakes and swamps were wood, sediment and debris were deposited along the way.

In fact, 400 feet of sediments were deposited in the plain by the rivers that originated from the volcanic mountain range. The layer of sediments is known today as the Chinle Formation. As the logs were deposited in the plain they were buried with mud, water and debris. This is when the petrification process began. The mud that covered the logs contained volcanic ash which was a key ingredient in the petrification process. When the volcanic ash began to decompose it released chemicals into the water and mud. As the water seeped into the wood the chemicals from the volcanic ash reacted to the wood and formed into quartz crystals. As the crystals grew over time, the wood became encased in the crystals which over millions of years, turned the wood into stone.

What are the Variables Involved in Petrification?



1.The tissue systems of the plant



2. Temperature.



3. Minerals necessary for the process of silification or
calcification



4.Duration of chemical activity



5.The nature of the embedding rock material



How long does it take to pertify?

How long it takes for petrification to occur depends on factors such as pH and temperature, but all things being equal, groundwater saturated with calcium carbonate (calcite) acts the fastest because calcite is more soluble than silica or other petrifying minerals. So if we accept the fact that petrification occurs as a continuum (in other words, a gradual process from partial to complete replacment/recrystallization/permineralization) Under ideal chemical conditions, petrification is possible in a few hundred years or even less.The tree must be sealed from oxygen to prevent decay. if it is not sealed bacteria will usually decompose the wood.

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