Abstract
The lipid extracts of a series of living and fossil reef organisms were subjected to analysis by a variety of techniques. Initial column chromatography over silicic acid gave a series of fractions: 1. Saturated and monenoic hydrocarbons 2. Waxes, aromatic and polyunsaturated hydrocarbons 3. Sterol esters 4. Triglycerides 5. Sterols 6. Di- and Monoglycerides and Xanthophyll 7. Chlorophylls and Phospholipids. Each of these was then subjected to further analysis by gas liquid chromatography, thin-layer chromatography and spectrometric methods to provide a detailed knowledge of the individual components. The first two fractions were analyzed in considerable detail as their components are of some significance in theories of the origin of petroleum, and remarkable similarities were demonstrated between the alkanes of the living corals, the fossil corals and extant petroleum analyses. It is suggested that during geologic time, under favorable conditions, whereas most of the lipids are degraded in some fashion, the hydrocarbons are largely unaffected as exemplified by the fossil analyses. It is further suggested that under certain conditions sufficient hydrocarbon material could collect to form an oil reservoir. Due to lack of existing hydrocarbon analyses in other marine organisms, it is not known how widely applicable this mechanism might be.
Pasby, Brian F. (1965). A characterization of the lipids of the organisms which make up the main bulk of a coral reef with particular emphasis on the hydrocarbons. Doctoral dissertation, Texas A&M University. Texas A&M University. Libraries. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /DISSERTATIONS -177154.