Effect of iron metal and siderite on the durability of simulated archeological glassy material

Under anoxic conditions, the presence of iron is expected to enhance the alteration rate of silicate glass. In order to understand the underlying mechanisms, experiments were performed on a synthetic glass simulating archeological artifacts to study the effect of metallic iron and siderite in a clay-type groundwater. Characterization of the altered samples at different durations reveals different impacts of iron on glass alteration. In contact with siderite, the sorption of the released silicon maintains temporarily a high alteration rate which eventually drops. With metallic iron, glass is altered near the maximum dissolution rate throughout the experiment because of Fe-silicate precipitation. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.