Formamide Adsorption at the Amorphous Silica Surface: A Combined Experimental and Computational Approach
Mineral surfaces have been demonstrated to play a central role in prebiotic reactions, which are understood to be at the basis of the origin of life. Among the various molecules proposed as precursors for these reactions, one of the most interesting is formamide. Formamide has been shown to be a plu...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2018-09-01
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| Series: | Life |
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| Online Access: | http://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/8/4/42 |
| _version_ | 1811306353391566848 |
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| author | Matteo Signorile Clara Salvini Lorenzo Zamirri Francesca Bonino Gianmario Martra Mariona Sodupe Piero Ugliengo |
| author_facet | Matteo Signorile Clara Salvini Lorenzo Zamirri Francesca Bonino Gianmario Martra Mariona Sodupe Piero Ugliengo |
| author_sort | Matteo Signorile |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Mineral surfaces have been demonstrated to play a central role in prebiotic reactions, which are understood to be at the basis of the origin of life. Among the various molecules proposed as precursors for these reactions, one of the most interesting is formamide. Formamide has been shown to be a pluripotent molecule, generating a wide distribution of relevant prebiotic products. In particular, the outcomes of its reactivity are strongly related to the presence of mineral phases acting as catalysts toward specific reaction pathways. While the mineral–products relationship has been deeply studied for a large pool of materials, the fundamental description of formamide reactivity over mineral surfaces at a microscopic level is missing in the literature. In particular, a key step of formamide chemistry at surfaces is adsorption on available interaction sites. This report aims to investigate the adsorption of formamide over a well-defined amorphous silica, chosen as a model mineral surface. An experimental IR investigation of formamide adsorption was carried out and its outcomes were interpreted on the basis of first principles simulation of the process, adopting a realistic model of amorphous silica. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T08:44:01Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-1018d9e379514c86990e966f3f750cb7 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2075-1729 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T08:44:01Z |
| publishDate | 2018-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Life |
| spelling | doaj.art-1018d9e379514c86990e966f3f750cb72022-12-22T02:53:47ZengMDPI AGLife2075-17292018-09-01844210.3390/life8040042life8040042Formamide Adsorption at the Amorphous Silica Surface: A Combined Experimental and Computational ApproachMatteo Signorile0Clara Salvini1Lorenzo Zamirri2Francesca Bonino3Gianmario Martra4Mariona Sodupe5Piero Ugliengo6Dipartimento di Chimica and NIS, Università di Torino, Via P. Giuria 7 — 10125 Torino and Via G. Quarello 15/A — 10135 Torino, ItalyDipartimento di Chimica and NIS, Università di Torino, Via P. Giuria 7 — 10125 Torino and Via G. Quarello 15/A — 10135 Torino, ItalyDipartimento di Chimica and NIS, Università di Torino, Via P. Giuria 7 — 10125 Torino and Via G. Quarello 15/A — 10135 Torino, ItalyDipartimento di Chimica and NIS, Università di Torino, Via P. Giuria 7 — 10125 Torino and Via G. Quarello 15/A — 10135 Torino, ItalyDipartimento di Chimica and NIS, Università di Torino, Via P. Giuria 7 — 10125 Torino and Via G. Quarello 15/A — 10135 Torino, ItalyDepartament de Química, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Catalogna, SpainDipartimento di Chimica and NIS, Università di Torino, Via P. Giuria 7 — 10125 Torino and Via G. Quarello 15/A — 10135 Torino, ItalyMineral surfaces have been demonstrated to play a central role in prebiotic reactions, which are understood to be at the basis of the origin of life. Among the various molecules proposed as precursors for these reactions, one of the most interesting is formamide. Formamide has been shown to be a pluripotent molecule, generating a wide distribution of relevant prebiotic products. In particular, the outcomes of its reactivity are strongly related to the presence of mineral phases acting as catalysts toward specific reaction pathways. While the mineral–products relationship has been deeply studied for a large pool of materials, the fundamental description of formamide reactivity over mineral surfaces at a microscopic level is missing in the literature. In particular, a key step of formamide chemistry at surfaces is adsorption on available interaction sites. This report aims to investigate the adsorption of formamide over a well-defined amorphous silica, chosen as a model mineral surface. An experimental IR investigation of formamide adsorption was carried out and its outcomes were interpreted on the basis of first principles simulation of the process, adopting a realistic model of amorphous silica.http://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/8/4/42formamidesilicaIR spectroscopyDFT |
| spellingShingle | Matteo Signorile Clara Salvini Lorenzo Zamirri Francesca Bonino Gianmario Martra Mariona Sodupe Piero Ugliengo Formamide Adsorption at the Amorphous Silica Surface: A Combined Experimental and Computational Approach Life formamide silica IR spectroscopy DFT |
| title | Formamide Adsorption at the Amorphous Silica Surface: A Combined Experimental and Computational Approach |
| title_full | Formamide Adsorption at the Amorphous Silica Surface: A Combined Experimental and Computational Approach |
| title_fullStr | Formamide Adsorption at the Amorphous Silica Surface: A Combined Experimental and Computational Approach |
| title_full_unstemmed | Formamide Adsorption at the Amorphous Silica Surface: A Combined Experimental and Computational Approach |
| title_short | Formamide Adsorption at the Amorphous Silica Surface: A Combined Experimental and Computational Approach |
| title_sort | formamide adsorption at the amorphous silica surface a combined experimental and computational approach |
| topic | formamide silica IR spectroscopy DFT |
| url | http://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/8/4/42 |
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