Journal
SCIENCE ADVANCES
Volume 4, Issue 4, Pages -Publisher
AMER ASSOC ADVANCEMENT SCIENCE
DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aao7265
Keywords
-
Categories
Funding
- Japan Society for the Promotion of Science KAKENHI [16H04074, 16K13906, 17H06105, JP2610s6003]
- Astrobiology Center Program of the National Institutes of Natural Sciences [AB292004]
- Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research [16K14815, 16H04074, 17H06105, 16H04073, 16K13906] Funding Source: KAKEN
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Wachtershauser's proposal of the autotrophic origin of life theory and subsequent laboratory demonstrations of relevant organic reactions have opened a new gate for the exploration of the origin of life. However, this scenario remains controversial because, at present, it requires a high pressure of CO as a source of carbon and reducing energy, although CO must have been a trace C species on the Hadean Earth. We show that, simulating a geoelectrochemical environment in deep-sea hydrothermal fields, CO production with up to similar to 40% Faraday efficiency was attainable on CdS in CO2-saturated NaCl solution at <=-1 V (versus the standard hydrogen electrode). The threshold potential is readily generated in the H-2-rich, high-temperature, and alkaline hydrothermal vents that were probably widespread on the early komatiitic and basaltic ocean crust. Thus, Wachtershauser's scenario starting from CO2 was likely to be realized in the Hadean ocean hydrothermal systems.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available