A review with many refs. on Glycolaldehyde phosphate, sorbed from highly dil., weakly alk. soln. into the interlayer of common expanding sheet structure metal hydroxide minerals, condenses extensively to racemic aldotetrose-2,4-diphosphates and aldohexose-2,4,6-triphosphates. In the absence of an inductive mineral phase, no detectable homogeneous reaction takes place in the concn.- and pH range used. Total prodn. of sugar phosphates in the mineral interlayer is largely independent of the glycolaldehyde phosphate concn. in the external soln., but is detd. by the total amt. of GAP offered for sorption up to the capacity of the mineral. [on SciFinder (R)]