Are organic molecules produced by nebular Fischer-Tropsch processes preserved in comets? Original Research Article

Chondritic porous interplanetary dust particles, thought to be of cometary origin, contain solid phases that were likely produced by gas-grain reactions in nebular environments. In the course of laboratory simulations addressed to reproduce under nebular conditions such distinctive mineralogies, simple organic molecules are formed through Fischer-Tropsch-type processes, suggesting that part of the organic volatiles in comets may have had a nebular origin. On the basis of these experiments, the relative abundances of homologous volatile hydrocarbons and the implications for the possible existence of thiols and sulfonic acids in comets are discussed.