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Organic Geochemistry

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Encyclopedia of Geochemistry

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series ((EESS))

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Definition

Organic geochemistry is the study of the origins and fates of organic matter and its constituents in the geosphere (including sediments, soils, rocks, coal, and petroleum), aquatic environments, and atmosphere. It is particularly focused on the interactions of the C cycle with those of other major elements such as major nutrients (N and P), other elements, and trace metals and how these have changed over geological time.

Introduction

Organic geochemistry encompasses studies of the origins and fates of organic matter in sediments , soils , coals , oils , gases , atmosphere, and marine and lacustrine water bodies (Johns 1986; Fleet et al. 1988; Engel and Macko 1993; Killops and Killops 1993; Rullkötter 2003; Volkman 2006). It is a relatively new field of endeavor which traces its origins to the identification by Treibs in 1934 of alkyl metalloporphyrins in crude oils that could be related to the structure of chlorophyll . This landmark research provided the...

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  1. Oceans and Atmosphere Flagship, CSIRO, Hobart, TAS, Australia

    John K. Volkman

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  1. Department of Earth, Cornell University Department of Earth, Ithaca, New York, USA

    William M. White

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Volkman, J.K. (2018). Organic Geochemistry. In: White, W. (eds) Encyclopedia of Geochemistry. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39193-9_149-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39193-9_149-1

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