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Non Thermal Plasmas for in situ resources utilization (ISRU) in Mars missions
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The LPP contributed to a recent paper in the Journal of Applied Physics [1] on the use of plasmas for oxygen production on Mars. The paper, co-authored with collaborators from IST Lisbon (Portugal), the DIFFER Institute in Eindhoven (The Netherlands) and MIT (USA), proposes an innovative technology based on the combination of cold plasmas and ionic membranes to produce oxygen directly from the Martian atmosphere. The idea is to shift the chemical equilibrium in the plasma through the continuous extraction of oxygen atoms to prevent any reverse reaction process reforming CO2 from CO. The European Space agency (ESA) is supporting the idea [2], and sees it as a credible and complementary alternative to the MOXIE module deployed by NASA as part of the Perseverance mission. There are two main families of membranes envisaged for association with cold plasmas: a) solid oxide electrolysis cells (SOECs) and b) mixed ion-electronic conduction membranes (MIECs). The former (SOEC) allow the diffusion of oxygen ions by the application of an electric field and heating that can be provided by the plasma itself. With the latter (MIEC), oxygen permeation depends primarily on the difference in oxygen partial pressure on either side of the membrane. In both cases, the association of membranes with cold plasmas opens up new possibilities for the synthesis of molecules by plasma by making it possible to protect the products synthesised in the plasma and thus to improve the conversion efficiency. In addition to the production of oxygen on Mars, this type of approach could therefore prove very relevant for applications on Earth for the recycling of CO2 and the production of fertiliser from nitrogen.
For more details, see
[1] Guerra, V., et al. "Plasmas for in situ resource utilization on Mars: Fuels, life support, and agriculture." Journal of Applied Physics 132.7 (2022): 070902
[2] See ESA website here: https://www.esa.int/Enabling_Support/Preparing_for_the_Future/Discovery_and_Preparation/New_plasma_tech_for_oxygen_fuel_and_fertiliser_from_Mars_atmosphere
Contact at LPP : Olivier Guaitella
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