TY - JOUR

T1 - Hydrocarbon composition of Russian amber from the Voznovo lignite deposit and Sakhalin Island

AU - Bechtel, Achim

AU - Chekryzhov, Igor Yu.

AU - Nechaev, Victor P.

AU - Kononov, Valery V.

PY - 2016/10/14

Y1 - 2016/10/14

N2 - Amber of different color and fluorescence has recently been found in a lignite seam inthe Zerkal'nenskaya depression, Primorsky Krai, Russia. In this deposit, the amber isassociated with abundant charcoal and fusain fragments in the host rocks. Besidethree composite samples of different color from the lignite and one composite ambersample from the Sakhalin Island has been included in this study for comparison.Based on previous fluorescence and fluorescence excitation measurements, theblue glow of amber has been related to the fluorescent aromatic hydrocarbonperylene, although FTIR study of the Russian blue amber has not found any distinctsignature of this compound. The present analyses using gas chromatography-massspectrometry have also identified no perylene in any of the four Russian ambersamples. The hydrocarbon fractions of the extractable organic matter from theambers are dominated by C18 to C20 diterpenoids of the labdane, abietane,pimarane,phyllocladane and kaurane types. Their biomarker composition is consistent with theproposed origin from gymnosperms of the families Pinaceae, Cupressaceae, and/orTaxodiacceae. The cause for the blue amber glow could not be clarified based on thecommonly used methods of hydrocarbon composition study.

AB - Amber of different color and fluorescence has recently been found in a lignite seam inthe Zerkal'nenskaya depression, Primorsky Krai, Russia. In this deposit, the amber isassociated with abundant charcoal and fusain fragments in the host rocks. Besidethree composite samples of different color from the lignite and one composite ambersample from the Sakhalin Island has been included in this study for comparison.Based on previous fluorescence and fluorescence excitation measurements, theblue glow of amber has been related to the fluorescent aromatic hydrocarbonperylene, although FTIR study of the Russian blue amber has not found any distinctsignature of this compound. The present analyses using gas chromatography-massspectrometry have also identified no perylene in any of the four Russian ambersamples. The hydrocarbon fractions of the extractable organic matter from theambers are dominated by C18 to C20 diterpenoids of the labdane, abietane,pimarane,phyllocladane and kaurane types. Their biomarker composition is consistent with theproposed origin from gymnosperms of the families Pinaceae, Cupressaceae, and/orTaxodiacceae. The cause for the blue amber glow could not be clarified based on thecommonly used methods of hydrocarbon composition study.

U2 - 10.1016/j.coal.2016.10.005

DO - 10.1016/j.coal.2016.10.005

M3 - Article

VL - 167.2016

SP - 176

EP - 183

JO - International journal of coal geology

JF - International journal of coal geology

SN - 0166-5162

IS - 1 October

ER -