Iron‐Silicate Chemical Garden Morphology and Silicate Reactivity with Alpha‐Keto Acids

Abstract Chemical gardens, which are self‐organizing, abiotic, inorganic precipitates in far‐from‐equilibrium systems, of interest for prebiotic chemistry/origin life research and, under certain reaction can be considered hydrothermal vent analogs. While the presence different additives to chemical including phosphate and amino acids, have been explored, reactivity organic molecules garden systems is not well understood. Here we explored two metabolically important alpha‐keto acids (pyruvic acid glyoxylic acid) ammonia iron‐silicate gardens. was observed case pyruvic acid, found that formed alpha‐hydroxy acids. We attributed silicate exterior solution as opposed solid iron‐containing structure. These results implications chimneys their surrounding environments iron‐ silica‐rich systems.