The short chain, gaseous alkanes ethane, propane, n- and iso-butane are released in significant amounts into the atmosphere, where they contribute to tropospheric chemistry and ozone formation. Biodegradation of gaseous alkanes by aerobic microorganisms, mostly bacteria and fungi isolated from terrestrial environments, has been known for several decades. The first indications for short chain al...

Filter samples of total suspended particle (TSP) collected during a cruise campaign over the northern South China Sea (SCS) from September to October 2013 were analyzed for non-polar organic compounds (NPOCs) as well as organic carbon (OC), elemental carbon (EC) and water-soluble ions. A total of 115 NPOCs species in groups of n-alkanes, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), iso-/antiso-alka...

Microorganisms can degrade saturated hydrocarbons (alkanes) not only under oxic but also under anoxic conditions. Three denitrifying isolates (strains HxN1, OcN1, HdN1) able to grow under anoxic conditions by coupling alkane oxidation to CO(2) with NO(3) (-) reduction to N(2) were compared with respect to their alkane metabolism. Strains HxN1 and OcN1, which are both Betaproteobacteria, utilize...

The self-diffusion coefficient of hydrogen (H(2)), carbon monoxide (CO) and water (H(2)O) in n-alkanes was studied by molecular dynamics simulation. Diffusion in a few pure n-alkanes (namely n-C(8), n-C(20), n-C(64) and n-C(96)) was examined. In addition, binary n-C(12)-n-C(96) mixtures with various compositions as well as more realistic five- and six-n-alkane component mixtures were simulated....

Geobacillus thermodenitrificans NG80-2 encodes a LadA-mediated alkane degradation pathway, while G. thermodenitrificans DSM465 cannot utilize alkanes. Here, we report the draft genome sequence of G. thermodenitrificans DSM465, which may help reveal the genomic differences between these two strains in regards to the biodegradation of alkanes.

A P450 monooxygenase from Nocardia farcinica (CYP154A8) catalyses the stereo- and regioselective hydroxylation of n-alkanes, still a challenging task in chemical catalysis. In a biphasic reaction system, the regioselectivity for the C2-position of C7-C9 alkanes was over 90%. The enzyme showed strict S-selectivity for all tested substrates, with enantiomeric excess (ee) of up to 91%.

A new method for the preparation of alkyl aryl sulfides through direct oxidative thiolation of alkanes or ethers with arylsulfonyl hydrazides using di-tert-butyl peroxide (DTBP) as an oxidant catalyzed by Pd(OAc)2 has been reported. The C-H bonds in various alkanes or ethers were successfully converted into C-S bonds to yield the corresponding sulfides in moderate to good yields.

The relationship between energy calculations and boiling points was studied on a set of fourteen n-alkanes. The correlation analysis clearly showed that the best relationship is not linear. The regression analysis showed that a dose-response logistic function provided a very good agreement between the boiling points of alkanes and their heat of formation.

Citation: Bender ALD, Chitwood DH and Bradley AS (2017) Heritability of the Structures and 13C Fractionation in Tomato Leaf Wax Alkanes: A Genetic Model System to Inform Paleoenvironmental Reconstructions. Front. Earth Sci. 5:47. doi: 10.3389/feart.2017.00047 Heritability of the Structures and 13C Fractionation in Tomato Leaf Wax Alkanes: A Genetic Model System to Inform Paleoenvironmental Reco...

The paper studies the individual composition of n-alkanes, polycycloaromatic hydrocarbons, steroids, bi-, tri-, and pentacyclic terpenoids of two peat deposits of rich fen Kirek located in Western Siberia. Considering the individual n-alkanes concentrations, some indexes were calculated to estimate the humidity during peat formation. It was shown that the pH of peat medium primarily affects ste...