Experimental Investigation of Organic Synthesis in Submarine Hydrothermal Systems

海底热液系统有机合成实验研究

• 批准号: 0241579
• 负责人: Thomas McCollom
• 金额: $ 31.7万
• 依托单位: University of Colorado at Boulder
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2003
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2003-04-15 至 2007-03-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0241579&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Experimental; Investigation; Organic; Synthesis; Submarine

It is widely thought that abiotic synthesis is a widespread source of organic compounds in submarine hydrothermal systems and the igneous ocean crust. Yet, with the possible exception of methane, organic compounds with a demonstrably abiotic origin have never been identified in samples from these environments, and criteria to distinguish between abiotic compounds and organic compounds derived from biological sources have not been established. Consequently, laboratory studies are required to establish the characteristics of organic synthesis in hydrothermal environments for comparison with natural samples. This research is a series of laboratory experiments that is characterizing the products of abiotic organic synthesis reactions under hydrothermal conditions. In particular, the experiments are: (1) investigating which minerals in the ocean crust are capable of catalyzing organic synthesis and under what conditions, (2) characterizing the composition and relative abundance of organic synthesis products, (3) measuring the isotopic fractionation of organic synthesis from CO2, and (4) evaluating how the product composition and isotopic fractionation vary as a function of environmental variables such as temperature and CO2/H2 ratio. The results will provide criteria that will allow abiotic compounds to be identified in future studies of organic matter from hydrothermal systems and the ocean crust. Since abiotic organic compounds are believed to play a significant role in providing nutrients to microbes in these environments, the results will also help in understanding the distribution and abundance of heterotrophic microbes in surface and subsurface habitats. In addition, since hydrothermal systems were prevalent on the early Earth as well as on other planetary bodies, the results will aid in interpretation of the origin of organic matter in rocks from ancient hydrothermal systems, samples form Mars, and meteorites.

人们普遍认为，非生物合成是海底热液系统和火成岩洋壳中有机化合物的广泛来源。 然而，除了甲烷可能例外，在这些环境的样品中从未发现具有明显非生物来源的有机化合物，并且尚未建立区分非生物化合物和来自生物来源的有机化合物的标准。 因此，需要进行实验室研究，以确定热液环境中有机合成的特征，并与天然样品进行比较。本研究是一系列的实验室实验，是在水热条件下的非生物有机合成反应的产物进行表征。 具体而言，实验是：（1）调查海洋地壳中哪些矿物能够催化有机合成以及在什么条件下，（2）表征有机合成产物的组成和相对丰度，（3）测量来自CO2的有机合成的同位素分馏，以及（4）评估产物组成和同位素分馏如何作为环境变量如温度和CO2/H2比的函数而变化。研究结果将提供标准，以便在今后研究热液系统和洋壳中的有机物时查明非生物化合物。 由于非生物有机化合物被认为在为这些环境中的微生物提供营养方面发挥着重要作用，因此这些结果也将有助于了解地表和地下栖息地中异养微生物的分布和丰度。 此外，由于热液系统在早期地球和其他行星上普遍存在，因此这些结果将有助于解释古代热液系统岩石中有机物质的起源，火星样品和陨石。