Molecules In Extraterrestrial Environments Research Articles

Pilot for Validation of Online Pretreatments for Analyses of Organics by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry: Application to Space Research.

The search for complex organic molecules in extraterrestrial environments, including important biomolecules such as amino and fatty acids, will require a space compatible sample handling system to enable their detection by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). For the future Mars exploratory mission Exomars 2018 aimed at organic molecules detection, a dedicated laboratory pilot, called Device for Pretreatment of Sample (DPS), reproducing representative space operating conditions has been developed. After its optimization, it aimed at validating under development protocols and interpreting forthcoming in situ resulting data. The DPS, dedicated to organic compounds' analysis, is discussed in terms of its technical features. The derivatization is carried out on a 50-100 mg mineral sample in a 4 mL reactor coupled with a GC-MS injector to simulate on line in situ derivatization-volatilization-transfer steps. Three derivatization reactions have been carried out with N-methyl-N-(tert-butyldimethylsilyl)-trifluoroacetamide (MTBSTFA) as silylating reagent, N,N-dimethylformamide dimethylacetal (DMF-DMA) and tetramethylammonium hydroxide (TMAH) as methylating agents. The performances are illustrated by comparison of conventional and in situ silylation, developed for space research applications, using terrestrial mineral matrix and Mars analog materials enriched with 25 nmol of each targeted organic molecule. The work presented in this rationale has established that the use of derivatization reactions widens the scope of targeted molecules but also clearly points out mineral matrix effect. Decreasing mineral influence on pretreatment will be the next scientific challenge in in situ analysis.

Quantum yields of decomposition and homo-dimerization of solid L-alanine induced by 7.2 eV Vacuum ultraviolet light irradiation: an estimate of the half-life of L-alanine on the surface of space objects.

One of the leading hypotheses regarding the origin of prebiotic molecules on primitive Earth is that they formed from inorganic molecules in extraterrestrial environments and were delivered by meteorites, space dust and comets. To evaluate the availability of extraterrestrial amino acids, it is necessary to examine their decomposition and oligomerization rates as induced by extraterrestrial energy sources, such as vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) and X-ray photons and high energy particles. This paper reports the quantum yields of decomposition ((8.2 ± 0.7) × 10(-2) photon(-1)) and homo-dimerization ((1.2 ± 0.3) × 10(-3) photon(-1)) and decomposition of the dimer (0.24 ± 0.06 photon(-1)) of solid L-alanine (Ala) induced by VUV light with an energy of 7.2 eV. Using these quantum yields, the half-life of L-Ala on the surface of a space object in the present earth orbit was estimated to be about 52 days, even when only photons with an energy of 7.2 eV emitted from the present Sun were considered. The actual half-life of solid L-Ala on the surface of a space object orbit around the present day Earth would certainly be much shorter than our estimate, because of the added effect of photons and particles of other energies. Thus, we propose that L-Ala needs to be shielded from solar VUV in protected environments, such as the interior of a meteorite, within a time scale of days after synthesis to ensure its arrival on the primitive Earth.

Analysis of Mars analogue soil samples using solid-phase microextraction, organic solvent extraction and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry

AbstractPolycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are robust and abundant molecules in extraterrestrial environments. They are found ubiquitously in the interstellar medium and have been identified in extracts of meteorites collected on Earth. PAHs are important target molecules for planetary exploration missions that investigate the organic inventory of planets, moons and small bodies. This study is part of an interdisciplinary preparation phase to search for organic molecules and life on Mars. We have investigated PAH compounds in desert soils to determine their composition, distribution and stability. Soil samples (Mars analogue soils) were collected at desert areas of Utah in the vicinity of the Mars Desert Research Station (MDRS), in the Arequipa region in Peru and from the Jutland region of Denmark. The aim of this study was to optimize the solid-phase microextraction (SPME) method for fast screening and determination of PAHs in soil samples. This method minimizes sample handling and preserves the chemical integrity of the sample. Complementary liquid extraction was used to obtain information on five- and six-ring PAH compounds. The measured concentrations of PAHs are, in general, very low, ranging from 1 to 60 ng g−1. The texture of soils is mostly sandy loam with few samples being 100 % silt. Collected soils are moderately basic with pH values of 8–9 except for the Salten Skov soil, which is slightly acidic. Although the diverse and variable microbial populations of the samples at the sample sites might have affected the levels and variety of PAHs detected, SPME appears to be a rapid, viable field sampling technique with implications for use on planetary missions.

Experimental and theoretical investigation of the production of cations containing C–N bonds in the reaction of benzene with atomic nitrogen ions

In the last few years, astronomical spectra have revealed the presence of aromatic and polyaromatic molecules in extraterrestrial environments, near carbon stars, in molecular clouds and meteorites. Moreover, the recent observation of benzene in interstellar space has noticeably increased the interest in the entire class of molecules and in their chemical behavior. In this work, we have investigated the reaction between the benzene molecule and the atomic nitrogen cation and, in particular, the mechanisms by which the reactants are converted into cationic products containing at least one C–N bond, according to the general scheme C6H6+N+→HmCnN++CxHy. We have measured the energy dependence of the cross section in a guided ion beam tandem mass spectrometer. Relevant stationary points of the potential energy surface have been studied by using the density functional theory hybrid functional B3LYP with the 6-31G* basis set. Thermochemical calculations, and the comparison with experimental results, allow us to distinguish between exoergic and endoergic processes and to obtain a detailed description of the reaction mechanisms. We show that aromatic hydrocarbons may be converted into organic-nitrogen compounds via the insertion of N+ into the benzene ring and the formation of C–N bonds from C–C ring reactants.

Crossed beam investigation of elementary reactions relevant to the formation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH)-like molecules in extraterrestrial environments

The reactions of ground state carbon atoms, C( 3P j), with benzene, C 6H 6, and phenyl radicals, C 6H 5, with methylacetylene, CH 3CCH, were investigated in crossed beam experiments at collision energies of 21.8 and 140 kJ mol −1 to investigate elementary reactions relevant to the formation and chemistry of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in extraterrestrial environments. The C( 3P j) reaction proceeds via complex formation and gives a cyclic, seven-membered C 7H 5 doublet radical plus atomic hydrogen. This pathway has neither an entrance nor exit barrier, and is exothermic. Together with the experimental verification of the carbon versus hydrogen exchange under single collision conditions, the findings have an important impact on the chemistry of aromatic molecules in interstellar clouds and outflow of carbon stars. Even in the coldest molecular clouds ( T=10 K), the benzene molecule can be destroyed upon reaction with carbon atoms, whereas they are resistant toward an attack of oxygen and nitrogen atoms. Since the aromatic benzene unit is ubiquitous in extraterrestrial, PAH-like material, our results suggest that PAHs might react with carbon atoms as well. On the other side, the reaction of C 6H 5 radicals with methylacetylene to form phenylmethylacetylene is direct. Since an entrance barrier inhibits the reaction in cold molecular clouds and in the atmospheres of hydrocarbon rich planets like Jupiter and Saturn and satellites such as Titan, this reaction is expected to play a role in PAH synthesis only in high temperature interstellar environments, such as circumstellar outflows of carbon stars.

Crossed Molecular Beam Experiments of Radical-Neutral Reactions Relevant to the Formation of Hydrogen Deficient Molecules in Extraterrestrial Environments

During the last 5 years, laboratory experiments relevant to the formation of carbon-bearing molecules in extraterrestrial environments have been performed employing the crossed molecular beam technique and a high intensity source of ground state atomic carbon, C(3Pj). These investigations unraveled for the first time detailed information on the chemical reaction dynamics, involved collision complexes and intermediates, and – most important – reaction products of neutral-neutral reactions. Here, we extend these studies even further, and report on very recent crossed beam experiments of cyano radical, CN(2Σ+), reactions with unsaturated hydrocarbons to form nitriles in extraterrestrial environments and Saturn's moon Titan. Further, preliminary results on reactions of small carbon clusters and with acetylene, ethylene, and methylacetylene to synthesize hydrogen-deficient carbon-bearing molecules are presented.