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Twelfth International Diatom Symposium pp 473–484Cite as

Diatom preservation: experiments and observations on dissolution and breakage in modern and fossil material

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Part of the book series: Developments in Hydrobiology ((DIHY,volume 90))

Abstract

Selected aspects of diatom preservation in both laboratory and field environments are examined with a view to improving techniques and to help understand why only some lake sediments have good diatom preservation.

Laboratory measurements of biogenic silica following diatom dissolution by alkali digestion are questioned because results are shown to be dependant on initial sample size. Diatom breakage experiments identified drying carbonate rich sediment as a major cause of fragmentation of the large robust diatom Campylodiscus clypeus Ehrenb. Diatom dissolution experiments in carbonate media indicated that carbonate rich lakes should preserve diatoms better in order of the particular alkali metal type (Ca > Mg > Na). A preliminary assessment of the role of depth in diatom preservation is made for Lake Baikal where partly dissolved Cyclotella are more common in deep water surface sediments. The effect of time on diatom dissolution is examined in a saline lake sediment core and by comparing dissolution rates of recent and geologically old diatom samples in the laboratory. A simple link between diatom dissolution and sample age was not established. Factors thought to be important in controlling diatom preservation in lake sediments are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Change Research Centre, University College London, 26 Bedford Way, London, WC1H OAP, UK

    Roger J. Flower

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  1. Roger J. Flower
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Aquatic Ecology, DLO-Institute for Forestry and Nature Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands

    Herman van Dam

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© 1993 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

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Flower, R.J. (1993). Diatom preservation: experiments and observations on dissolution and breakage in modern and fossil material. In: van Dam, H. (eds) Twelfth International Diatom Symposium. Developments in Hydrobiology, vol 90. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-3622-0_48

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-3622-0_48

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-90-481-4324-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-017-3622-0

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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