Molten Regolith Electrolysis Using Concentrated Solar Heating

Molten regolith electrolysis (MRE) is a space resource utilization technology with the potential to provide a dependable source of oxygen to astronauts in upcoming Artemis missions. Honeybee Robotics and NASA Kennedy Space Center’s SwampWorks Lab have designed and constructed a technology development test bed for the MRE process. The team has used this test bed to develop subsystems related to introducing granular material, melting regolith with a variety of methods, electrolyzing the melt pool, removing byproducts, and regulating these processes to optimize the electrolysis process. Honeybee has specifically focused on a combined Joule heating and concentrated solar heating process to form the melt pool. In this paper we will discuss the background and relevance of MRE, specific aspects of the test bed’s design, test parameters and results, ongoing work, and conclusions based on the work performed. Of specific interest is the alternating use of Joule heating and solar heating as the melt pool forms, oxygen evolves, and melt pool dynamics drive a changing melt pool resistivity.