Authors:

Isaac Parks

Date Created:

Not specified

Course Title:

Professor:

Not specified

About Paper:

Space travel offers both the advent of vast scientific advancement and discovery, and the potential for substantial economic development. However, space travel is extremely expensive, due to the energy needs required to break Earth's gravitational field. One factor that could reduce costs and advance space travel is In Situ-Resource utilization (ISRU). ISRU is the process of utilizing existing materials on extraterrestrial bodies as opposed to bringing the required resources from Earth. This research specializes in procuring water for human spaceflight operations or agricultural projects on the lunar surface. As such, this paper looks to develop a system with which Lunar regolith may be processed to generate useable water. Previous data on Lunar water supplies was collected to determine the chemical composition and properties. From this, an experimental setup for procuring water was developed. Namely, this included heating the regolith to its desorption temperature using energy provided from concentrated solar power. Water is then separated from other gaseous contaminants using a membrane system before recondensing the water for use. In lieu of lunar experimentation, a model was developed to capture the critical elements. This model will assist in determining the viability of Lunar regolith for the ISRU production of water. Keywords: ISRU; Water; Space; Moon

Source:

Purdue University / 2025

Topics:

No topics listed

Co-authors:

Isaac Parks