Aluminous phyllosilicates promote exceptional nanoscale preservation of biogeochemical heterogeneities in Archaean siliciclastic microbial mats.

ABSTRACT: Exceptional preservation of biogeochemical complexity in the Precambrian is largely limited to cherts, phosphates and shales; however, ancient fossils, including microbial mats and microbially induced sedimentary structures, also occur, more rarely, in poorly sorted, coarse-grained siliciclastics. The precise micromechanics by which exceptional retention of organic microbial traces occur within such rocks over billion-year geological timescales remain poorly understood. Herein, we explore the micro-nano-scale characteristics of microbial mats preserved in ~2.9 billion-year-old sandstones from the Mosquito Creek Formation (Pilbara, Australia) using a suite of advanced spatially correlated microscopy and geochemistry techniques. We demonstrate that sedimentary horizons rich in K-Al-phyllosil

SUBMITTER: Hickman-Lewis K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11923192 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature