At high temperatures, silicon reacts with oxygen, forming a layer of silica that does not react further. Silicon is important in plant and animal life. Diatoms in both fresh and salt water extract silica from the water to use as a component of their cell walls. Silicon doesn't occur in the free, elemental state, but is found in the form of silicon dioxide and complex silicates. Silicon is used in transistors, solar cells, rectifiers, and other electronic solid-state devices.
Silicones are important products of silicon.
Silica, as sand, is a principal ingredient of glass, a material with excellent mechanical, optical, thermal, and electrical properties. It is used for lubricants. It is used to make concrete and bricks. It is used in medicine for silicone implants . J ns Jacob Berzelius is generally credited with the discovery of silicon in 1824.