[ad_1]
Israeli space technology startup Helios this month announced a partnership with Florida-based Eta Space to create and store oxygen on the moon in a bid to make space missions more cost-effective and provide a better solution for in-orbit refueling.
Helios was established in He was at the 2018 Israel Space Week at the Innovation Workshop held by the Israel Space Agency. The company has developed an electrochemical reactor that extracts oxygen from lunar regolith (lunar soil, powdered dust and broken rock), which it says would make multiple, long-duration missions to the moon economically viable. It would allow lunar colonies to “live off Earth” instead of taking their fuel and other resources from Earth.
One of the major obstacles to sending missions to the moon is the cost of transporting supplies from Earth to the lunar surface. Launching rockets with cargo requires fuel; The heavier the load, the more fuel it needs. That extra fuel adds weight, and that requires more fuel. Oxygen is an important component for fuel combustion.
As part of the new agreement, Helios will use Eta Space’s expertise in cryogenic technologies, specifically liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, to produce and store oxygen. Together, they plan to develop a lunar oxygen production and liquidation plant.
“Eta Space will play an important role in refining and storing the oxygen produced by the Helio Reactor,” said Dr. William Notardonato, Eta Space’s founder and CEO, on the Florida Space Coast near the Kennedy Space Center. Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
“The two companies complement each other’s mission to further reduce the cost of space,” said Notardonato, who has worked for NASA for 30 years. This is a key step in making it sustainable beyond Earth’s existence.
A prototype of the lunar extractor technology developed by Helios, the startup hopes to make oxygen on the moon. (honour)
Jonathan Giffman, Helios CEO and co-founder, said: “Helios technology is not enough to enable the establishment of a permanent lunar base – a whole set of technologies is needed to realize the lunar economic value chain. This new collaboration with Eta Space brings together two pure commercial links in the chain – the production of oxygen and It connects storage for the first time – making multiple, long-duration missions to the Moon economically viable.
Setting up a lunar base or making repeated lunar visits, as planned for the next decade by private space companies like SpaceX, could require thousands of tons of oxygen per year for rocket boosters. It would cost hundreds of thousands of dollars per kilogram to transport anything to the moon — making long-duration missions uneconomic unless oxygen is produced on the M\moon, Helios said.
Helios’ process is called molten regolysis electrolysis, and in lunar-like conditions it melts lunar soil at 1,600 degrees Celsius, then electrolyzes it to create oxygen that can be stored for use.
The company simulated many of the conditions on the moon to test the system, using lunar-type sand based on samples returned from the moon developed by the University of Central Florida.
Helios signed an agreement last year with European multinational tech corporation OHB SE to deliver its technology for the lunar landing system LSAS (Lunar Surface Access Service) to produce oxygen and metals on the moon. Helios Technology Starting in 2025, the first three LSS missions will fly to the lunar surface, allowing the company to test the technology in real-world conditions.
According to Helio, the technology can be used to extract 99% pure metal from iron ore, which requires 50% less energy than what is currently used in the industry. This will lead to better methods for steel production, high emission industry and creating “green steel”.
A coin made of green metal produced in the Helios laboratory. (Helios)
The Tzur Yigal company in central Israel said it will start commercial agreements to build pilot plants, eventually to produce several tons of steel per day and to integrate the technology into the production chain.
Helios received funding from the Israel Space Agency and the Ministry of Energy. Last month, the company raised $6 million in a seed funding round led by At One Ventures, a “nature-positive” investment firm, and Israel-based Doral Energy-Tech Ventures. Deep tech investment firm Metaplanet also participated in the round.
Shoshana Solomon contributed to this report.
[ad_2]
Source link
