ISSN:
1432-1432
Keywords:
Key words: Aldol condensation — Chemical evolution — Origin of life — Double-layer hydroxide minerals — Phosphonic acids
Source:
Springer Online Journal Archives 1860-2000
Topics:
Biology
Notes:
Abstract. Minerals may have played a significant role in chemical evolution. In the course of investigating the chemistry of phosphonoacetaldehyde (PAL), an analogue of glycolaldehyde phosphate, we have observed a striking case of catalysis by the layered hydroxide mineral hydrotalcite ([Mg2Al(OH)6][Cl.nH2O]). In neutral or moderately basic aqueous solutions, PAL is unreactive even at a concentration of 0.1 M. In the presence of a large excess of NaOH (2 M), the compound undergoes aldol condensation to produce a dimer containing a C3–C4 double-bond. In dilute neutral solutions and in the presence of the mineral, however, condensation takes place rapidly, to produce a dimer which is almost exclusively the C2–C3 unsaturated product.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/PL00006406
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