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LITHOEN

Geological process

Chemical weathering

The alteration of minerals by reaction with water, dissolved carbon dioxide and oxygen. It dissolves some elements, oxidises others, and leaves a residue enriched in whatever is least soluble.

How this record is known

1
Interpretation
Reached by reasoning from evidence, or produced by a named model.

1 of 1 claims on this page cite at least one registered source. Counts describe how each statement is known, not how likely it is to be true.

What Lithoen records

Each claim states how it is known and cites its evidence.

InferredDifferential solubility leaves a residue enriched in the least soluble elements.

Chemical weathering separates elements by solubility: the soluble ones leave in solution and the insoluble ones stay. The residue is therefore enriched in whatever the water could not carry — a concentration mechanism that requires no melting and no ore fluid.

  • method: Follows from hydrolysis removing soluble cations while aluminium and silicon remain as clay.

Evidence support: Supported by the cited evidence 3 sources, multiple sources, independence unknown

Evidence: British Geological Survey n.d. Primary authority; British Geological Survey n.d. Primary authority; Commission on New Minerals, Nomenclature and Classification, International Mineralogical Association 2026 Primary authority

In the knowledge graph

Record last updated 2026-09-06. Corrections follow the published corrections policy; superseded claims are retained, never silently edited.