When falling sand/gravel falls through lava and then, lands in air, it will pop into an item (pic 1), but when the falling sand/gravel stays in the lava and land there, it will form a block (pic 2).
When falling sand/gravel falls through lava and then, lands in air, it will pop into an item (pic 1), but when the falling sand/gravel stays in the lava and land there, it will form a block (pic 2).
You can't have a block in the same place as a sign. So the sand doesn't have place because of the signs, not because of lava or anything else