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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 19 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS2011

Use of Hawaii Analog Sites for Lunar Science and In-Situ Resource Utilization

In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) and lunar science share similar objectives with respect to analyzing and characterizing the physical, mineral, and volatile materials and resources at sites of robotic and human exploration. To help mature and stress instruments, technologies, and hardware and to evaluate operations and procedures, space agencies have utilized demonstrations at analog sites on Earth before use in future missions. The US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), and the German Space Agency (DLR) have utilized an analog site on the slope of Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawaii to test ISRU and lunar science hardware and operations in two previously held analog field tests. NASA and CSA are currently planning on a 3rd analog field test to be held in June, 2012 in Hawaii that will expand upon the successes from the previous two field tests.

Sanders, G. B.↗
NASA NTRS2012

Contaminant Removal from Oxygen Production Systems for In Situ Resource Utilization

The In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) project has been developing technologies to produce oxygen from lunar regolith to provide consumables to a lunar outpost. The processes developed reduce metal oxides in the regolith to produce water, which is then electrolyzed to produce oxygen. Hydrochloic and hydrofluoric acids are byproducts of the reduction processes, as halide minerals are also reduced at oxide reduction conditions. Because of the stringent water quality requirements for electrolysis, there is a need for a contaminant removal process. The Contaminant Removal from Oxygen Production Systems (CROPS) team has been developing a separation process to remove these contaminants in the gas and liquid phase that eliminates the need for consumables. CROPS has been using Nafion, a highly water selective polymeric proton exchange membrane, to recover pure water from the contaminated solution. Membrane thickness, product stream flow rate, and acid solution temperature and concentration were varied with the goal of maximizing water permeation and acid rejection. The results show that water permeation increases with increasing solution temperature and product stream flow rate, while acid rejection increases with decreasing solution temperature and concentration. Thinner membranes allowed for higher water flux and acid rejection than thicker ones. These results were used in the development of the hardware built for the most recent Mars ISRU demonstration project.

Anthony, Stephen M.↗
NASA NTRS2017

Overview of NASA Technology Development for In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU)

In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) encompasses a broad range of systems that enable the production and use of extraterrestrial resources in support of future exploration missions. It has the potential to greatly reduce the dependency on resources transported from Earth (e.g., propellants, life support consumables), thereby significantly improving the ability to conduct future missions. Recognizing the critical importance of ISRU for the future, NASA is currently conducting technology development projects in two of its four mission directorates. The Advanced Exploration Systems Division in the Agency's Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate has initiated a new project for ISRU Technology focused on component, subsystem, and system maturation in the areas of water volatiles resource acquisition, and water volatiles and atmospheric processing into propellants and other consumable products. The Space Technology Mission Directorate is supporting development of ISRU component technologies in the areas of Mars atmosphere acquisition, including dust management, and oxygen production from Mars atmosphere for propellant and life support consumables. Together, these two coordinated projects are working towards a common goal of demonstrating ISRU technology and systems in preparation for future flight applications.

In-situ Resource Utilization↗
NASA NTRS2011

Dust Removal Technolgy for a Mars In Situ Resource Utilization System

Several In Situ Resource Utilization (lSRU) systems being considered to enable future manned exploration of Mars require capture of Martian atmospheric gas to extract oxygen and other commodities. However, the Martian atmosphere contains relatively large amounts of dust which must be removed in tbe collection systems of the ISRU chambers. The amount of atmospheric dust varies largely with the presence of daily dust devils and the less frequent but much more powerful global dust storms. A common and mature dust removal technology for terrestrial systems is the electrostatic precipitator. With this technology, dust particles being captured are imparted an electrostatic charge by means of a corona discharge. Charged dust particles are then driven to a region of high electric field which forces the particles onto a collector for capture. Several difficulties appear when this technology is adapted to the Martian atmospheric environment At the low atmospheric pressure of Mars, electrical breakdown occurs at much lower voltages than on Earth and corona discharge is difficult to sustain. In this paper, we report on our efforts to obtain a steady corona/glow discharge in a simulated Martian atmosphere of carbon dioxide at 9 millibars of pressure. We also present results on the design of a dust capture system under these atmospheric conditions.

Calle, C. I.↗
NASA NTRS2018

Don't Forget About... (Factoring in Everything for Successful Mars Exploration): In Situ Resource Utilization

Using In Situ Resources means reduced transportation requirements from Earth and a larger source of materials than might otherwise be available. Of the many in situ resources available on Mars, perhaps the most valuable is water. One facet of NASA's current Mars Exploration Program is a search for the locations and quantities of water in various forms: Subsurface liquid water aquafers; Surface and subsurface water ice and icy soils - Lineated Valley Fill (LVF), Lobate Debris Aprons (LDAs), Concentric Crater Fill (CCF); Hydrated minerals - Chlorides, Phyllosilicates, Sulfates, etc.; "Average regolith." Access to massive quantities of water could change surface mission concepts of operation and drive site selection. Availability of massive quantities of water could enable or change current assumptions for: Propellant manufacturing; Radiation protection;- "Relaxed" requirements for a closed loop ECLSS (Environmental Control and Life Support System); Crop growth; Improved crew amenities, such as more frequent showers and laundry.

ISRU↗
NASA NTRS2020

Operational Considerations for Fission Reactors Utilized on Lunar In-Situ Resource Utilization Missions: A Report to the Nuclear Power & Propulsion Technical Discipline Team

This report identifies the considerations related to the operation of space nuclear power reactors that would be utilized for In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) missions on the lunar surface. The objective of this study is to evaluate the operational complexities of reactors that would provide electrical and thermal power to a growing lunar ISRU and mining outpost/base.

Fission reactor↗
NASA NTRS2010

Pneumatic Regolith Transfer Systems for In-Situ Resource Utilization

One aspect of In-Situ Resource Utilization (lSRU) in a lunar environment is to extract oxygen and other elements from the minerals that make up the lunar regolith. Typical ISRU oxygen production processes include but are not limited to hydrogen reduction, carbothermal and molten oxide electrolysis. All of these processes require the transfer of regolith from a supply hopper into a reactor for chemical reaction processing, and the subsequent extraction of the reacted regolith from the reactor. This paper will discuss recent activities in the NASA ISRU project involved with developing pneumatic conveying methods to achieve lunar regolith simulant transfer under I-g and 1/6-g gravitational environments. Examples will be given of hardware that has been developed and tested by NASA on reduced gravity flights. Lessons learned and details of pneumatic regolith transfer systems will be examined as well as the relative performance in a 1/6th G environment

Mueller, Robert P.↗
NASA NTRS2005

In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) Experiments for Mars Exploration

In situ resource utilization can best be described as living off the land. In our case the land is the planet Mars. ISRU is based on the idea that some fraction of the consumables, life support and propellant materials do not have to be flown from earth. Rather, they can be manufactured or extracted from resources already present on Mars. The primary resources on Mars are the atmosphere, polar caps and regolith. The atmosphere of Mars is mostly carbon dioxide as shown in the table below. The proportion of oxygen on the other hand is quite small. Still, there is quite a bit of oxygen in the Martian atmosphere, but it is unfortunately tied up with carbon. Thus, one of the goals of ISRU is the separation of breathable oxygen from the carbon dioxide. Several means of separation have been proposed. We have begun experiments on another approach for production of oxygen with carbon monoxide as a useful by product. Our work on a CO2 separator is described later in this report. Regolith melting is another means of obtaining materials. Two materials of interest are iron and silicon. Iron oxide is plentiful on Mars and is of obvious importance for structural components. Silicon is the foundation of solid state devices. Power generation on Mars may be accomplished using silicon solar cells. There is discussion of the feasibility of in situ production of solar cells. This would require a means of extracting silicon from the regolith. We have conducted several experiments concerning melting and glassification of the Mars soil simulant. Other summer faculty fellows have tried various means of processing the stimulant material. These include furnace melting, microwave melting and laser ablation. We have conducted several furnace melting experiments in both air and carbon dioxide environments. We have also carried out experiments to test spark melting in a carbon dioxide atmosphere. These experiments suggest the possibility of using arc melting in a reducing atmosphere. It is important to keep in mind that we are working with a soil stimulant. Any simulant, no matter how chemically similar it is to Martian regolith, may differ in mineralogy. The underlying assumption in this work is that once a glass is formed, any differences between simulant and regolith are unimportant. The exact means of forming the glass do, however, depend on the mineralogy of the regolith. A sample return mission is required to help answer these questions.

Marone, Matt↗
NASA NTRS2005

In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) Capability Roadmap Progress Review

A progress review on In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) capability is presented. The topics include: 1) In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) Capability Roadmap: Level 1; 2) ISRU Emphasized Architecture Overview; 3) ISRU Capability Elements: Level 2 and below; and 4) ISRU Capability Roadmap Wrap-up.

Sanders, Gerald B.↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

In-Situ Resource Utilization Options for the Moon and Mars

In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) is key to enabling extended presence at exploration locations. NASA’s focus for ISRU to date has been human exploration locations: the Moon and Mars. Likewise the primary target for ISRU has been the production of mission consumables for propulsion and life support. Producing oxygen alone from minerals on the Moon or atmosphere on Mars can provide the majority of these consumables. However, accessing water at either location allows for full propellant production (fuel and oxidizer) as well as other applications (eg life support). Current and previous study efforts have looked at mission architectures and ISRU mass payback for these options. Studies have also identified gaps in information needed to design effective ISRU hardware and choose best architectures

In-Situ Resource Utilization↗
NASA NTRS1998

In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) Development Program

The question "Why In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU)?" is addressed in this presentation. The reasons given concentrate on Cost reduction, Mass reduction, Risk reduction, the expansion of human exploration and presence and the enabling of industrial exploitation. A review of the Martian and Lunar resources available for ISRU is presented. Other ISRU concepts (i.e., In-Situ Consumable production (ISCP) and In-Situ Propellant Production (ISPP)) are introduced and further explained. The objectives of a Mars ISRU System Technology (MIST) include (1) the characterization of technology and subsystem performance for mission modeling and technology funding planning, (2) reduce risk and concerns arising from sample return and human missions utilizing ISRU, and (3) demonstrate the environmental suitability of ISRU components/processes and systems. A proof of concept demonstration schedule and a facility overview for MIST is presented.

Sanders, Jerry↗
NASA NTRS2010

Integration of In-Situ Resource Utilization Into Lunar/Mars Exploration Through Field Analogs

The NASA project to develop In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) technologies, in partnership with commercial and international collaborators, has achieved full system demonstrations of oxygen production using native regolith simulants. These demonstrations included robotic extraction of material from the terrain, sealed encapsulation of material in a pressurized reactor; chemical extraction of oxygen from the material in the form of water, and the electrolysis of water into oxygen and hydrogen for storage and reuse. These successes have provided growing confidence in the prospects of ISRU oxygen production as a credible source for critical mission consumables in preparation for and during crewed missions to the moon and other destinations. Other ISRU processes, especially relevant to early lunar exploration scenarios, have also been shown to be practical, including the extraction of subsurface volatiles, especially water, and the thermal processing of surface materials for civil engineering uses and for thermal energy storage. This paper describes these recent achievements and current NASA ISRU development and demonstration activity. The ability to extract and process resources at the site of exploration into useful products such as propellants, life support and power system consumables; and radiation and rocket exhaust plume debris shielding, known as In-Situ Resource Utilization or ISRU, has the potential to significantly reduce the launch mass, risk, and cost of robotic and human exploration of space. The incorporation of ISRU into missions can also significantly influence technology selection and system development in other areas such as power, life support, and propulsion. For example. the ability to extract or produce large amounts of oxygen and/or water in-situ could minimize the need to completely close life support air and water processing system cycles, change thermal and radiation protection of habitats, and influence propellant selection for ascent vehicles and surface propulsive hoppers. While concepts and even laboratory work on evaluating and developing ISRU techniques such as oxygen extraction from lunar regolith have been going on since before the Apollo 11 Moon landing, no ISRU system has ever flown in space, and only recently have ISRU technologies been developed at a scale and at a system level that is relevant to actual robotic and human mission applications. Because ISRU hardware and systems have never been demonstrated or utilized before on robotic or human missions, architecture and mission planners and surface system hardware developers are hesitant to rely on ISRU products and services that are critical to mission and system implementation success. To build confidence in ISRU systems for future missions and assess how ISRU systems can best influence and integrate with other surface system elements, NASA, with international partners, are performing analog field tests to understand how to take advantage of ISRU capabilities and benefits with the minimum of risk associated with introducing this game-changing approach to exploration. This paper will describe and review the results of four analog field tests (Moses Lake in 6/08, Mauna Kea in 11/08. Flagstaff in 9/09; and Mauna Kea in 1/10) that have begun the process of integrating ISRU into robotic and human exploration systems and missions, and propose future ISRU-related analog field test activities that can be performed in collaboration with international space agencies.

Sanders, Gerald B.↗
NASA NTRS2010

The In-Situ Resource Utilization Project Under the New Exploration Enterprise

The In Situ Resource Utilization Project under the Exploration Technology Development Program has been investing in technologies to produce Oxygen from the regolith of the moon for the last few years. Much of this work was demonstrated in a lunar analog field demonstration in February of 2010. This paper will provide an overview of the key technologies demonstrated at the field demonstration will be discussed a long with the changes expected in the ISRU project as a result of the new vision for Space Exploration proposed by the President and enacted by the Congress in the NASA Authorization Act of2010.

Larson, William E.↗
NASA NTRS2013

Advanced Water Purification System for In Situ Resource Utilization

A main goal in the field of In Situ Resource Utilization is to develop technologies that produce oxygen from regolith to provide consumables to an extraterrestrial outpost. The processes developed reduce metal oxides in the regolith to produce water, which is then electrolyzed to produce oxygen. Hydrochloric and hydrofluoric acids are byproducts of the reduction processes, which must be removed to meet electrolysis purity standards. We previously characterized Nation, a highly water selective polymeric proton-exchange membrane, as a filtration material to recover pure water from the contaminated solution. While the membranes successfully removed both acid contaminants, the removal efficiency of and water flow rate through the membranes were not sufficient to produce large volumes of electrolysis-grade water. In the present study, we investigated electrodialysis as a potential acid removal technique. Our studies have shown a rapid and significant reduction in chloride and fluoride concentrations in the feed solution, while generating a relatively small volume of concentrated waste water. Electrodialysis has shown significant promise as the primary separation technique in ISRU water purification processes.

Anthony, Stephen M.↗
NASA NTRS2014

Advanced Water Purification System for In Situ Resource Utilization Project

A main goal in the field of In Situ Resource Utilization is to develop technologies that produce oxygen from regolith to provide consumables to an extratrrestrial outpost. The processes developed reduce metal oxides in the regolith to produce water, which is then electrolyzed to produce oxygen. Hydrochloric and hydrofluoric acids are byproducts of the reduction processes, which must be removed to meet electrolysis purity standards. We previously characterized Nation, a highly water selective polymeric proton-exchange membrane, as a filtrtion material to recover pure water from the contaminated solution. While the membranes successfully removed both acid contaminants, the removal efficiency of and water flow rate through the membranes were not sufficient to produce large volumes of electrolysis-grade water. In the present study, we investigated electrodialysis as a potential acid removable technique. Our studies have show a rapid and significant reduction in chloride and fluoride concentrations in the feed solution, while generating a relatively small volume of concentrated waste water. Electrodialysis has shown significant promise as the primary separation technique in ISRU water purification processes.

Technology Portfolio System↗
NASA NTRS2019

In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) Living off the Land on the Moon and Mars

In-Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) is the concept of using local resources at various destinations to provide products and services for robotic and human explorers. This idea of 'living off the land' has the potential of reducing reliance on earth to supply mission consumables such as propellants and life support consumables. Local resources include: water, oxygen, and metals within the surface soil material (regolith), atmospheric gases (eg CO2 on Mars), and the regolith material itself. ISRU systems involve physically and chemically extracting these resources and converting them into desired products.

In-situ resource utilization↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Demonstration of in-Situ Resource Utilization of Lunar Regolith for Plant Growing Systems Through Scaled Capillary Models

The development of reliable and bioregenerative crop growth production systems is vital for human exploration into deep space. As the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) prepares for the Artemis missions, scientists need to find a way to provide consistent and sufficient water delivery for all stages of a plant’s life cycle. NASA has been able to successfully model passive flow through felt material, to mimic the water uptake and transport through a plant, in microgravity. However, more studies need to be conducted to adapt the model for a substrate-based system and incorporate how flow will change during each stage of plant growth. For future missions, payload requirements to support crop production systems will need to be limited, leading to the use of available resources, such as lunar regolith. Although numerous lunar regolith simulants are commercially available, few have been evaluated for their suitability in agricultural applications. First, a base regolith simulant will need to be identified based on its physical and chemical properties. Then, additional amendments to improve the properties of the simulants to support plant growth will be identified. The design and composition of the substrate will be based on water transport requirements for different stages of plant growth. Scaled capillary models can be utilized to study surface-tension driven flows through various designer substrates to modify the physical properties of the selected regolith simulant. These models can accurately represent how flow will act in a reduced gravity environment, which can be used to design a full-scale facility for surface missions. This project will aid space researchers in the design of future crop production systems for surface missions by creating a refined model that can be used at all stages of plant growth and utilize in situ resources.

Fluids↗