High molecular weight polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in hydrothermal petroleums from the Gulf of California and Northeast Pacific Ocean

Hydrothermal petroleums and heavy tars have been analyzed for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) with molecular weights greater than that of coronene (300 da). Samples from the hydrothermal systems in the Guaymas Basin (Gulf of California) and in the Escanaba Trough and Middle Valley (Northeastern Pacific) were analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and high pressure liquid chromatography with diode-array absorbance detection. Mass spectra and fluorescence spectra were used to characterize the compounds. Several large PAHs with six and more rings were identified among the heavy PAH. Production routes via one-ring build-up and Scholl-condensation are proposed to explain the observed structures. The variations in PAH concentrations and distributions between samples from different locales are a consequence of the hydrothermal conditions of generation, migration, and post-depositional alteration.