Liquid and supercritical CO2 as an organic solvent in Hadean seafloor hydrothermal systems: implications for prebiotic chemical evolution

Prebiotic chemical evolution and the emergence of life in the seafloor hydrothermal systems of Hadean Earth is among the most plausible and popular hypotheses for the origin of earthly life. In contrast, many studies pointed out that this hypothesis intrinsically harbors a critical unsolved problem called the water paradox: Abundant water limits dehydration synthesis and instead facilitates hydrolysis of organic molecules during the early stage of chemical evolution. However, many of these criticisms have not referred to the abundant liquid/supercritical CO2 (L/SC-CO2) fluids and pools in modern hydrothermal systems, which not only create dry environments but also behave as hydrophobic solvents at and beneath the seafloor. In this paper, we theorize the generation and preservation of a L/SC-CO2 pool in modern seafloor hydrothermal systems and reinterpret the fossil hydrothermal systems preserved in early Archean seafloor basalts. The theoretical estimation of subseafloor phase separation and phase segregation of CO2-rich hydrothermal fluids suggests the presence of L/SC-CO2 fluids and pools in Hadean seafloor hydrothermal systems. Because they behave as hydrophobic organic solvents, L/SC-CO2 can potentially initiate the dehydration synthesis of organic molecules in seafloor hydrothermal systems. Moreover, at the interface between L/SC-CO2 and H2O-rich fluid (seawater or hydrothermal fluid), amphiphilic molecules might be generated and triggered into self-assembled growth. Based on the abundant occurrence and physicochemical properties of L/SC-CO2 fluids, we propose a new stepwise concept for the origin of life, whereby prebiotic chemical evolution was co-hosted and facilitated by L/SC-CO2 in Hadean water-rich seafloor hydrothermal systems. This liquid/supercritical CO2 hypothesis potentially overcomes the water paradox and strengthens the idea that earthly life was hatched in deep-sea hydrothermal systems.

Automated summary

This study proposes a new hypothesis for the origin of life, suggesting that liquid/supercritical CO2 (L/SC-CO2) in the seafloor hydrothermal systems of Hadean Earth may have played a crucial role in prebiotic chemical evolution, overcoming the water paradox.