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ISRU Technologies for Mars Life SupportLife support systems can take advantage of elements in the atmosphere of Mars to provide for necessary consumables such as oxygen and buffer gas for makeup of leakage. In situ consumables production (ISCP) can be performed effectively in conjunction with in situ propellant production, in which oxygen and methane are manufactured for rocket fuel. This project considers ways of achieving the optimal system objectives from the two sometimes competing objectives of ISPP and ISCP. In previous years we worked on production of a nitrogen-argon buffer gas as a by- product of the CO2 acquisition and compression system. Recently we have been focusing on combined electrolysis of water vapor and carbon dioxide. Combined electrolysis of water vapor and carbon dioxide is essential for reducin,o the complexity of a combined ISPP/ISCP plant. Using a solid oxide electrolysis cell (SOEC) for this combined process would be most advantageous for it allows mainly gas phase reactions, O2 gas delivered from the electrolyzer is free of any H2O vapor, and SOE is already a proven technology for pure CO2 electrolysis. Combined SOEC testing is conducted at The University of Arizona in the Space Technologies Laboratory (STL) of the Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering Department.
Document ID
20030107829
Acquisition Source
Ames Research Center
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Finn, John E.
(NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Kliss, Mark
(NASA Ames Research Center Moffett Field, CA, United States)
Sridhar, K. R.
(Arizona Univ. AZ, United States)
Iacomini, Christie
(Arizona Univ. AZ, United States)
Date Acquired
August 21, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 2001
Subject Category
Man/System Technology And Life Support
Meeting Information
Meeting: Advanced Life Support PI Meeting
Location: Alexandria, VA
Country: United States
Start Date: November 7, 2001
Funding Number(s)
OTHER: 131-20-10
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.

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