Which condition is most necessary for petroleum formation from dead marine organisms?
High pressure and absence of air for long periods
Petroleum is formed from the remains of tiny marine plants and animals that settled on the sea bed and were buried under layer after layer of sediment. Deep burial gave two conditions that are both essential: high pressure and temperature from the overlying rock, and the absence of oxygen (air), which stopped the organic matter from simply decaying. Over millions of years these anaerobic, high-pressure conditions turned the organic matter into liquid hydrocarbons.
Direct contact with surface water and wind would allow oxygen to reach the organic matter and rot it away instead of preserving it. Exposure to open sunlight and atmospheric oxygen has the same problem — organic matter breaks down rather than forming petroleum. Freezing polar temperatures for only a few decades is far too short a time and does not supply the deep-burial pressure that petroleum formation needs.
Hence, the answer is High pressure and absence of air for long periods.
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