Functional Stability Theory II: Chemical Stability and Autocatalytic Selection (DRAFT)

DRAFT version. This preprint is part of an active research programme and remains subject to revision, correction, and journal review. A game-theoretic framework for prebiotic chemistry, interpreting autocatalytic networks, hypercycles, and chirality selection as Nash-equilibrium-like structures of thermodynamic games. Building on Dynamic Kinetic Stability (DKS) and the England inequality, we propose that the Maximum Entropy Production Principle (MEPP) serves as a stability filter—demarcating the viable manifold of replicating systems—rather than as a causal driver. Empirical motivation comes from Azoarcus ribozyme experiments, where RNA replication dynamics conform to classical payoff matrices (cooperation, dominance, Prisoner's Dilemma). Homochirality is modeled as spontaneous symmetry breaking in a degenerate Nash equilibrium. The framework explicitly treats MEPP as contested far from equilibrium and separates known chemical kinetics from the proposed game-theoretic reinterpretation. Series position FST-II is the chemistry / autocatalytic stability companion (Level 1b) of the FST application series. The programmatic umbrella is the FST Hub (Concept-DOI 10.5281/zenodo.20130499). Sibling application companions: FST-I Thermodynamic Stability, FST-III Biological Stability, and FST-IV Cosmology. Code & sources GitHub: research-line/functional-stability-theory / applications/fst-ii-chemical. Changelog Version 1.3 (May 2026) Strict-review guardrails: Three-species stability example now distinguishes the neutral mass-conservation mode from tangent-space asymptotic stability. Claim calibration: The spectral radius is framed as a local stiffness/oscillation proxy, not as distance to a stability boundary. P3 calibration: The replicator table is framed as a catalytic-throughput toy proxy, not as independent entropy-production evidence. DE/EN synchronization: German DESS, Boerlijst/Hogeweg, homochirality, and MEPP wording aligned to the more cautious English claim level. Version 1.2 (May 2026) Source correction: FST-I self-citation corrected from unrelated Zenodo record DOI 10.5281/zenodo.14920522 to the FST-I concept DOI 10.5281/zenodo.20130544. Source correction: RH/RFEP self-citations corrected from unrelated Zenodo record DOI 10.5281/zenodo.15076553 to the RH and RFEP concept DOIs 10.5281/zenodo.19035640 and 10.5281/zenodo.19036190. Bibliography cleanup: Harper arXiv note no longer claims an unverified Journal of Theoretical Biology version; ChemSystemsChem article data and several DOI fields were aligned with Crossref, PubMed, and Zenodo checks. Claim calibration: England's inequality is framed as a constraint/consequence rather than a causal driver; MEPP is treated as a heuristic stability filter, not as a proven selection law. Minor-revision response: The paper now distinguishes established kinetics from the FST-II game-theoretic synthesis and includes a concrete experiment distinguishing FST-II from standard kinetic dominance predictions. Files: This release contains English, German, and combined bilingual PDFs. Version 1.1 (May 2026) Hub-link corrected: "FST-IV Overview" references replaced by "FST Hub" (programmatic umbrella). The Hub paper holds Concept-DOI 10.5281/zenodo.20130499 and is no-numeral; FST-IV is now the cosmological collector slot. GitHub source link added. Related Identifier: FST-DE reference relabelled to "FST-IV Cosmology / FST-DE". Version 1.0 (May 2026) Initial release as part of the FST series. Status: ~8.5/10 readiness; remaining open items per referee minor-revision verdict: MEPP-controversy framing, England-causal weakening, distinction known-kinetics vs. new game-theory insights, additional experimental tests.