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Browsing by Subject "insitu resource utilization"
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Item Complete Hydrogen Storage System by ISRU(AIAA, 2018) Schubert, Peter J.; Electrical and Computer Engineering, School of Engineering and TechnologyNew technologies make it possible to build in space a complete hydrogen storage system using ISRU methods and techniques. Hydrogen can be stored in a solid-state form on the surface atoms of high surface area matrices such as those of porous silicon. Silicon is abundant in regolith and can be purified using a purely mechanical means which results in particulates in the scale range of tens of nanometers. Reagents used to porosify these nano-particles can be regenerated thermally to essentially eliminate the need for resupply from earth. Catalysts are needed to divide dihydrogen gas into atomic hydrogen for solid-state adsorption and to mediate the temperatures and pressures of charge and discharge into ranges easily achievable with simple equipment. Recent research has identified the utility of non-platinum group catalyst materials which are widespread on the moon. Rapid discharge, needed for propulsion, is possible with infra-red illumination at wavelengths which pass through pure silicon but are absorbed by the silicon-hydrogen bond. Such IR emitters can be fabricated by embossing of silica and additive manufacturing of metals. Control and power electronics can be fabricated using a patented process designed for space operations, and built on either silicon or silicon carbide substrates derived from regolith. Bringing these five technologies together for the first time allows a system which can be fed with moderate pressure gaseous hydrogen at moderate temperatures, stored for long durations with minimum loss, then released upon demand across a wide range of controllable rates. Such a system can displace the need for cryogenic hydrogen storage. Being suitable to bottom-up fabrication using only in-space materials makes this a “green” ISRU technology to store hydrogen for fuel cells, rocket engines, and chemical processes.Item Lunar-sourced GEO Powersats: An Integrated ISRU System(AIAA, 2018-09) Schubert, Peter J.; Anderson, Richard J., III; Somera, Alex; Proctor, Patrick; Chin, Yung Wei; Bowyer, Jonathan; McIntyre, Nathan; Jackson, Tyler; Electrical and Computer Engineering, School of Engineering and TechnologySolar power satellites (powersats) can be built almost entirely from lunar resources. When C-class asteroids are also included as ore bodies a complete powersat can be built through insitu resource utilization (ISRU) given appropriate processing and transportation technology.This article provides an in-depth overview of the technical feasibility and economic viabilityof lunar construction and operations for powersat component construction and delivery togeostationary earth orbit (GEO). Techno-economic analysis suggests a return on investmentin seven years assuming a three percent discount rate. Electrical power collected in GEO andbeamed to terrestrial receivers by the powersats can be sold as baseload power in the wholesale electricity market to generate revenue. This work presents a complete concept of operationsfrom initial rocket launches to regolith harvesting through transport to GEO. Lunarinfrastructure can be constructed of modules to optimize size and weight for launch costs.Future growth can be derived from using ISRU to build additional processing bases. A scale-up in this manner can provide 22% of the world’s energy needs by the end of a 20-year period.This work builds upon previous studies and completes the architectural description ofpredominantly lunar-sourced GEO powersats.