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A Possible Mechanism for the Extra-terrestrial Synthesis of Straight-chain Hydrocarbon

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Abstract

STRAIGHT-CHAIN hydrocarbon material1,2 and long-chain fatty acids3 have been found in meteorites belonging to the carbonaceous chondrite group. Two possible explanations have been advanced for the origin of this material. Nagy, Meinschein and Hennessy1 have suggested that it is the result of extra-terrestrial life, since in Nature living processes are the only observed source of linear hydrocarbon molecules. An alternative hypothesis has been proposed by Wilson4: that there exists in free space a non-biological mechanism for the synthesis of hydrocarbon in a straight-chain configuration. The proposed mechanism (Fig. 1) involves crowding the reacting chains on to a surface so that only the ends are available for reaction, thus preventing branching.

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References

  1. Nagy, B. S., Meinschein, W. G., and Hennessy, D. J., Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci., 93, 25 (1961).

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  2. Meinschein, W. G., Nagy, B. S., and Hennessy, D. J., Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci. (in the press).

  3. Nagy, B., and Sister, M. C., Bitz. Arch. Biochem. Biophys., 101, 240 (1963).

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  4. Wilson, A. T., Nature, 196, 11 (1962).

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  5. Milas, N. A., and Surgenor, D. M., J. Amer. Chem. Soc., 68, 205 (1946).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand

    C. B. JOHNSON & A. T. WILSON

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  1. C. B. JOHNSON
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  2. A. T. WILSON
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JOHNSON, C., WILSON, A. A Possible Mechanism for the Extra-terrestrial Synthesis of Straight-chain Hydrocarbon. Nature 204, 181–182 (1964). https://doi.org/10.1038/204181a0

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