The UK's Metalysis has been awarded a nine-month funding contract by the European Space Agency (ESA) for the development of technology that transforms moon dust and rock into oxygen and metal powders, paving the way for the eventual establishment of a lunar base.
Moon base artists impression
An artist's impression of Moon Base activities. Photo: ESA - P. Carril
The Sheffield-based company's recent study, conducted in partnership with Glasgow University, found that the technology could extract 96% of the oxygen from a material called JSC-2A - a simulant material with a composition similar to regolith, or moon dust.
The process, which has been used at an industrial scale on Earth in titanium and tantalum production since 2018 but with oxygen as a byproduct, involves the passing of an electrical current through the material, resulting in the creation of pure oxygen with the metal powders being a useful byproduct.
Ian Mellor, Managing Director at Metalysis, said: “We are really pleased Metalysis is involved in this exciting programme; taking an established earth-based technology and applying it to a lunar setting. The fact that the process is capable of simultaneously producing both oxygen and metal powders is unique, offering potential solutions to two key areas of the ESA Space Resources Strategy.”
The creation of oxygen on the Moon would be of enormous benefit, not just for human life support, but also in the production of rocket fuel for further exploration. The metal powders could be utilised in the future for lunar construction workers to use as a building material.
If the process can be refined and made to work well enough, it will lead to the creation of extraction facilities that produce oxygen and valuable materials on the lunar surface, saving time and bringing down costs hugely as they will not need to be hauled from Earth.
Sue Horne, Head of Space Exploration at the UK Space Agency, said: “In the future, if we want to travel extensively in space and set up bases on the Moon and Mars, then we will need to make or find the things required to support life - food, water and breathable air.
“The involvement of Metalysis in a programme that aims to do just that, by producing oxygen on a lunar setting, will showcase the UK’s space credentials on the world stage and help unlock breakthroughs that bring future space exploration a step closer.”
According to ESA estimates, extraterrestrial resource harvesting could create potential revenues of €73-€170 billion between 2018 and 2045. This will be in large part dependent on the successful establishment of a permanent human presence on the Moon, for extraction of lunar minerals and to act as a staging post for missions into deeper space.
Back to Homepage
Back to Metals & Mining