Evaporites are sediments formed when mineral rich water evaporates. They are commonly found in areas of high evaporation, such as dried lakes and deserts. Evaporation is the process whereby atoms or molecules in a liquid state (or solid state if the substance sublimes) gain sufficient energy to enter the gaseous state. ... A dune in the Egyptian desert In geography, a desert is a landscape form or region that receives little precipitation. ...
Evaporites start to precipitate when their concentration in water reaches such a level that they can no longer exist as solutes.
Evaporiteminerals are geologically important because they clearly are related to the environmental conditions that existed at the time of their deposition, namely an arid environment, such as coastal plain or restricted basinal, e.g.
Evaporites can also be easily recrystallized in laboratories in order to postulate the specific characteristics of their formation.
Messinian An important stage of the Late Miocene, about 7.2–5.3 Ma ago, marked by thick evaporite deposits in the Mediterranean, suggesting the Straits of Gibraltar were closed and the Mediterranean was reduced to a series of evaporite basins.
Termed evaporite deposits because they formed by the evaporation of saline water in partially enclosed basins, they...
Evaporite layers frequently occur at the toe of...