The role of borosilicate glass in Miller\u2013Urey experiment

Joaquín Criado-Reyes,Bruno M Bizzarri,Juan Manuel García-Ruiz,Raffaele Saladino,Ernesto Di Mauro

doi:10.1038/s41598-021-00235-4

Abstract

We have designed a set of experiments to test the role of borosilicate reactor on the yielding of the Miller–Urey type of experiment. Two experiments were performed in borosilicate flasks, two in a Teflon flask and the third couple in a Teflon flask with pieces of borosilicate submerged in the water. The experiments were performed in CH4, N2, and NH3 atmosphere either buffered at pH 8.7 with NH4Cl or unbuffered solutions at pH ca. 11, at room temperature. The Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy results show important differences in the yields, the number of products, and molecular weight. In particular, a dipeptide, multi-carbon dicarboxylic acids, PAHs, and a complete panel of biological nucleobases form more efficiently or exclusively in the borosilicate vessel. Our results offer a better explanation of the famous Miller's experiment showing the efficiency of borosilicate in a triphasic system including water and the reduced Miller–Urey atmosphere.

Highlights

We have designed a set of experiments to test the role of borosilicate reactor on the yielding of the Miller–Urey type of experiment
Our results demonstrate that the wall of the reactors plays a crucial role in the synthesis of organic compounds in the Miller-Urey experiment
The experiment is especially important in the framework of the new ideas about the Hadean Earth in which the concomitance of a reduced atmosphere, electrical storms, silicate-rich rocky surfaces, and liquid water is expected[31,44]

Summary

Introduction

We have designed a set of experiments to test the role of borosilicate reactor on the yielding of the Miller–Urey type of experiment. Our results offer a better explanation of the famous Miller’s experiment showing the efficiency of borosilicate in a triphasic system including water and the reduced Miller–Urey atmosphere. The 1953’s publication of the Miller–Urey experiment opened the door to the scientific investigation of the origin of life[1] In this brilliant experiment, Miller and Urey demonstrated that electrical sparking a mixture of methane, ammonia, and hydrogen in the presence of water produces amino acids within a variety of organic compounds. Miller and Urey demonstrated that electrical sparking a mixture of methane, ammonia, and hydrogen in the presence of water produces amino acids within a variety of organic compounds The impact of these results was so high that its mind-opening relevance hardly fades over time[2]. Motivated by the biomimetic role of silica in mineral self-organized structures, such as silica-carbonate biomorphs[11,12,13] and its catalytic role in prebiotic chemistry[14,15], we designed a set of experiments to test the possible influence of silica on the classical Miller experiments

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion