Center Innovation Fund: GRC CIF
Extraction and Capture of Water from Martian Soil
Project Description
The plan is to build and test in a relevant environment several concepts for extracting and capturing water moisture from a simulated Mars soil. We will include tests on both bound water and hydrated minerals. Specific objectives include: Demonstrate the feasibility of novel concepts to extract water from the martian soil Measure energy required to liberate the bound water and water from hydrated minerals Demonstrate the feasibility of low-complexity capture of released water Measure the efficiency of water extraction and capture in continuous process that does not require regolith seals.
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Anticipated Benefits
This work addresses the NASA Grand Challenges of Space Colonization and Efficient In-Space Transportation. The primary application of this work (in-situ resource utilization to reduce cost and risk of planetary exploration missions) aligns with GRC's core competency in Physical Sciences and Biomedical Technologies in Space. As the water resource can be used directly or further processed for a variety of purposes, such as propellant, reactants for fuel cells, life support, and habitat radiation shielding, the capability to extract and collect water will also lead to applications in our core competencies of In-Space Propulsion and Cryogenic Fluids Management, and Power, Energy Storage, and Conversion.
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Primary U.S. Work Locations and Key Partners
| Organizations Performing Work | Role | Type | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
Glenn Research Center
(GRC)
|
Lead Organization | NASA Center | Cleveland, Ohio |
| Universities Space Research Association (USRA) | Supporting Organization | Non-Profit Institution | Huntsville, Alabama |
Primary U.S. Work Locations
-
Ohio
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