RADIOCARBON measurements of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) oxidizable by ultraviolet
irradiation (DOCuv) yielded apparent ages of∼ 6,000 yr in the deep waters of the …

IT is believed that C4 to C7 hydrocarbons in petroleum are formed by the cracking of organic
matter at depths generally exceeding 1,000 m at temperatures in excess of 50° C (refs 1–3) …

The isolation and identification of the metal porphyrins found in crude oils and oil shales
have been extensively studied since their discovery in these materials by Treibs1. He …

Abstract The Gulf of Carpentaria is a shallow epicontinental sea between Australia and
Papua New Guinea (Fig. 1); it has a maximum depth of− 69 m and is connected to the …

Stable carbon isotope ratios of organic carbon from palaeosols in loess, and oxygen isotope
ratios of pedogenic and lacustrine carbonates reveal significant Pleistocene climatic …

Today, over 90% of all organic carbon burial in the ocean occurs in continental margin
sediments. This burial is intrinsically linked to the cycling of biogeochemically important …

Biological formation of methane is the terminal process of biomass degradation in aquatic
habitats where oxygen, nitrate, ferric iron and sulphate have been depleted as electron …

The existence of a terrestrial Precambrian (more than 542 Myr ago) biota has been largely
inferred from indirect chemical and geological evidence associated with palaeosols,, the …

METHANE is an important component of the global carbon cycle1 and a potent greenhouse
gas2, 3. Surface ocean waters are typically supersaturated with dissolved methane relative …

The thermal generation of hydrocarbon gases in sedimentary systems is generally thought
to be an exclusively high-temperature process, although previous work has indicated that …