Organic Matter in Recent and Ancient Sediments of Organic Rich Depositional Environments

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This is a geochemical study of organic matter transformations in the sediments under the Peru Current upwelling system. The Principal Investigator will evaluate new lipid biomarkers by determining the accuracy with which they have recorded the history of El Ninyo (El Nino) derived productivity fluctuations. Such studies of organic matter transformations in sediments are important because they will lead to an understanding of petroleum formation as well as to an understanding of the regeneration of inorganic nutrient salts at the sediment-water interface. Testing the accuracy of the new lipid biomarkers is important because they could be used to determine the past record of oceanic productivity, an important goal of current geoscience initiatives. The PI's samples were taken last year; now he will use high- resolution glass-capillary gas chromatography, column chromatography, and electron impact mass spectrometry to analyse these samples for alkanes, stereness, hopenes, aromatics, and fatty acids.