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Organic chemistry of Murchison meteorite: Carbon isotopic fractionationThe carbon isotopic composition of individual organic compounds of meteoritic origin remains unknown, as most reported carbon isotopic ratios are for bulk carbon or solvent extractable fractions. The researchers managed to determine the carbon isotopic ratios for individual hydrocarbons and monocarboxylic acids isolated from a Murchison sample by a freeze-thaw-ultrasonication technique. The abundances of monocarboxylic acids and saturated hydrocarbons decreased with increasing carbon number and the acids are more abundant than the hydrocarbon with the same carbon number. For both classes of compounds, the C-13 to C-12 ratios decreased with increasing carbon number in a roughly parallel manner, and each carboxylic acid exhibits a higher isotopic number than the hydrocarbon containing the same number of carbon atoms. These trends are consistent with a kinetically controlled synthesis of higher homologues for lower ones.
Document ID
19860017373
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Yuen, G. U.
(Arizona State Univ. Tempe, United States)
Blair, N. E.
(North Carolina State Univ. Raleigh, United States)
Desmarais, D. J.
(NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Cronin, J. R.
(Arizona State Univ. Tempe, United States)
Chang, S.
(NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Date Acquired
August 12, 2013
Publication Date
May 1, 1986
Publication Information
Publication: NASA, Washington Second Symposium on Chemical Evolution and the Origin and Evolution of Life
Subject Category
Astrophysics
Accession Number
86N26845
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.
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