Macromolecular composition of the dinoflagellate cyst Thalassiphora pelagica (Oligocene, SW Germany)

Origin, composition and fate of organic particles in marine sediments are to a large extent unknown. Here we contribute to resolving this lack of information by reporting on the structural characterization (FTIR micro-spectroscopy, py/GC/MS and TMAH assisted thermochemolysis GC/MS) of hand-picked Thalassiphora pelagica dinoflagellate cysts (Oligocene). The cyst wall macromolecule is relatively condensed. It is composed of a mixture of aliphatic moieties with the linear carbon units having an average chain length of 12 carbon atoms. In the pyrolysate this is reflected in aliphatic series of alkanes and alkenes (both