“There appears to be no testable explanation as to how abiotic chemicals “evolved” into molecules, rather than the expression of a belief that such an event must have occurred”
An oldie but goodie ...
The classic experiments of Miller (1953) showed that impressive yields of certain amino acids can be obtained when a mixture of gases (hydrogen, methane, ammonia and water vapor) is exposed to an electrical discharge. This discovery represented a major breakthrough, since amino acids are the monomers that compose all proteins. The mixture was assumed to be a simulation of the original terrestrial atmosphere which, by analogy with the outer planets, would have contained hydrogen, methane, ammonia and water vapor. At sufficiently high energy fluxes, such reducing systems of gases generate hydrogen cyanide (HCN) and formaldehyde (HCHO), which in turn react to produce amino acids. Cyanide and formaldehyde are now considered to be key reactants in simulations of prebiotic chemical pathways (Ferris and Hagan, 1984).