Abstract
We have measured the extent of hopane and sterane isomerization and of monoaromatic-steroid-hydrocarbon aromatization in a sample of hydrothermally derived petroleum from the Escanaba Trough, a sediment-covered, volcanically active ridge axis. The results, along with kinetic parameters, predict the possible time-temperature history of the petrolum-forming process for this sample. The extent of these reactions is consistent with petroleum formation by intense heating (about 300–350°C) if the time period of this heating was as short as about 100 yr. Such a time scale is reasonable for hydrothermal-discharge events associated with ridge-crest volcanism.
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