Serpentinization and the inorganic synthesis of H2 in planetary surfaces |
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Authors: | Christopher Oze Mukul Sharma |
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Institution: | a Department of Earth Science, 6105 Fairchild Hall, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA b Department of Geology, Bryn Mawr College, 101 North Merion Avenue, Bryn Mawr, PA 19010, USA |
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Abstract: | The near-surface inorganic synthesis of molecular hydrogen (H2) is a fundamental process relevant to the origins and to the sustenance of early life on Earth and potentially other planets. Hydrogen production through the decomposition of water is thought to be a principal reaction that occurs during hydrothermal alteration of olivine, an iron-magnesium silicate abundant near planetary surfaces. We demonstrate that copious amounts of H2 are produced only when the olivine undergoing alteration (serpentinization) contains 1 to 50 mol% iron over a variety of planetary surface P-T conditions. This suggests that extrasolar Earth-like planets that are hosted by a star with iron contents up to two times the solar value could support life provided they are hydrothermally active and fall within the habitable zone around the star. |
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Keywords: | Prebiotic chemistry Mineralogy Earth Mars Titan |
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