Hydrothermal vents are considered potential sites for life's origin due to their stable, energy-rich environments filled with essential minerals. These vents form when seawater penetrates deep into the Earth's crust, is heated by magma, and rises to the surface, releasing dissolved minerals that form precipitates when meeting cold ocean water.
The RIKEN CSRS team, studying serpentinite-hosted hydrothermal vents, found that the mineral precipitates around these vents have complex layered structures made of metal oxides, hydroxides, and carbonates. Lead researcher Ryuhei Nakamura commented, "Unexpectedly, we discovered that osmotic energy conversion, a vital function in modern plant, animal, and microbial life, can occur abiotically in a geological environment."
The study focused on samples from the Shinkai Seep Field, located in the Pacific's Mariana Trench, at a depth of 5743 meters. A key finding involved an 84-cm brucite sample where crystals were organized into continuous columns that acted as nano-channels for vent fluid. These structures exhibited electrically charged surfaces, with charge direction varying across the surface - indicating a natural occurrence of osmotic energy conversion.
By testing the samples, the researchers confirmed that the nanopores in the brucite structures could act as selective ion channels, with varying behavior depending on the chemical composition of the surface. For example, carbonate-coated nanopores allowed positive sodium ions to flow through, while calcium-coated nanopores permitted only negative chloride ions.
"The spontaneous formation of ion channels discovered in deep-sea hydrothermal vents has direct implications for the origin of life on Earth and beyond," Nakamura explained. This finding may also inform technological advancements in osmotic energy conversion, potentially aiding engineers in developing more efficient methods for generating electrical energy through blue-energy harvesting.
Research Report:Osmotic energy conversion in serpentinite-hosted deep-sea hydrothermal vents
Related Links
The Earth-Life Science Institute (ELSI)
Explore The Early Earth at TerraDaily.com
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