ABSTRACT
The origin of life has been a mystery to scientists for a long time. The abundance in water has allowed the life to prosper on Earth, but the sudden appearance of prokaryotes (e.g. bacteria) immediately after the solidification of Earth’s crust about 3.8 billion years ago was a surprise. All living organisms are based on organic materials, i.e. carbon containing molecules. Moreover, most carbon atoms are diamond-like with covalent bonds of tetrahedral (sp3) configuration. Since carbon is the fourth abundant elements in the universe, nanodiamond particles can be commonplace. Hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen are among the commonest gasses that could be anchored on the surface of nanodiamond. The gas-terminated nanodiamond could be floating around in space so it could be impinged frequently with other molecules. Due to the versatility of carbon bonding, nanodiamond could act as a catalyst to promote the formation of stable radicals, such as acidic (-COOH), methyl (-CH3), amine (-NH2), hydroxyl (-OH) and others.
