The process in which sediments compact under pressure, expel connate fluids and gradually become solid rock: a destruction of porosity through compaction and cementation. It covers all the processes that convert unconsolidated sediments into sedimentary rocks; petrifaction, though often used as a synonym, more specifically names the replacement of organic material by silica in the formation of fossils. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Facts
TimescaleThousands to millions of years, depending on sediment type and burial depth. 1 Driving ForceCompaction under the weight of accumulating sediment and cementation as dissolved minerals precipitate in the pore spaces between grains. 1 Resulting FeatureConverts loose, unconsolidated sediment into coherent sedimentary rock. 1 SignificanceLithification is the step that turns sediment into the rock record geologists read to reconstruct Earth's past environments. 1 Timescale
Timescale (category) Connections
Associated With
Lithification turns the deposits sedimentation lays down into solid rock.
Source Lithification (Wikipedia)
Caused By
Lithification, the compaction and cementation of sediment into rock, is one outcome of the broader diagenetic process.
In Discipline
Source Lithification (Wikipedia)
Sources
1. Lithification (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationLead sectionQuote, Lead section
lithification is a process of porosity destruction through compaction and cementation
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