title: THERMODYNAMIC EQUILIBRIA IN PREBIOLOGICAL ATMOSPHERES.
abstract: The concentrations of a large number of compounds of biological interest which would be present in the atmosphere at thermodynamic equilibrium were computed under many combinations of temperature, pressure, and elemental composition. These computations revealed a possible mechanism for the abiological formation of asphaltic tar and an oxidative threshold at which all but the simplest compounds disappear.
mesh_terms: D001272:Atmosphere; D055598:Chemical Phenomena; D002621:Chemistry; D003201:Computers; D006838:Hydrocarbons; D011312:Pressure; D012106:Research; D013696:Temperature; D013816:Thermodynamics
chemical_list: D006838:Hydrocarbons; C006647:asphalt
keywords: BIOGENESIS; CHEMISTRY; COMPUTERS; EXPERIMENTAL LAB STUDY; PRESSURE; TEMPERATURE; THERMODYNAMICS