On the study of impact induced hydrothermal systems as potential environments for the origins of life on earth
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Authors
Herrero Perez, Maria Jesus
Issue Date
2025-12
Type
Electronic thesis
Thesis
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
Geology
Alternative Title
Abstract
Understanding how life emerged on Earth requires exploring environments that couldpotentially have supported prebiotic chemistry reactions. Impact-induced hydrothermal
systems offer a unique combination of energy, mineral composition, and organic material
that may have fostered chemical evolution on the early Earth. This dissertation
investigates the fate of simple organic compounds delivered by meteorites within these
dynamic hydrothermal environments.
First, the implementation of two analytical techniques will be presented for their ability to
detect small organic molecules in complex, saline fluids representative of the early Earth
oceans. These techniques, Direct Analysis in Real Time mass spectrometry (DART-MS)
and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), will be discussed in detail for how effectively
they can characterize organic mixtures with minimal sample processing.
Building on this analytical foundation, a series of high-pressure, high-temperature
experiments will be presented. These experiments simulate the chemical alteration of
meteoritic soluble organic compounds within subaerial and submarine impact-induced
hydrothermal systems. It will be shown how temperature, mineral composition, redox
state, and salinity all play crucial roles in determining the direction and complexity of
organic transformations.
Finally, the design and implementation of a novel flow-through reactor system capable of
simulating the dynamic, flowing conditions within impact craters will be shown. Ultimately,
the research presented will offer new insights and fundamental aspects about how postimpact
environments may have contributed to the emergence of life on the early Earth.
Description
December2025
School of Science
School of Science
Full Citation
Publisher
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, NY