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Scientists turned water into oxygen and hydrogen under microgravity conditions using only semiconductor and sunlight. Technology could make space travel possible over long distances.
Researchers have already developed a variety of water separation technologies for use on Earth. One of the simplest methods is called photocatalysis – the technology uses photons, a semiconductor material, and water to create electron-hole pairs.
When the material absorbs photons, a free electron is released. The reaction draws a proton from the water, which can combine with the free electron to form hydrogen. The hole created by the electron released is replaced by an electron from the water, which can combine with protons to form oxygen.
The system can produce hydrogen fuel for a spaceship and oxygen for astronauts. technology can work in microgravity conditions, scientists have dropped a photocatalyst system in a fall tower. When an object is in free fall, it experiences conditions similar to microgravity.
Photocatalysis causes the production of bubbles near the catalyst material. On Earth, buoyancy floats bubbles on the surface. But under microgravity conditions, the bubbles remain near the catalyst.
Scientists were able to make nanoscale increases in the microstructure of the catalyst material, creating tiny pyramidal shapes on the surface. The texture causes the bubbles to move towards the end of the pyramid and to disengage.
Researchers detailed their design change this week in Nature Communications.
The technology is not yet perfect. Although scientists have managed to separate the bubbles from the catalyst, they remain in the water. The accumulated foam decreases the efficiency of the process of producing hydrogen.
"The engineering solutions around this problem will be critical to the successful implementation of technology in the space – with the possibility of using the centrifugal forces solution," wrote the researchers in The Conversation
. There is also the problem of water supply. Although stripping with large amounts of water is safer than carrying large amounts of fuel, the water is heavy. Long-term space travel will require external sources. Finally, scientists hope that space extraction operations will be able to harvest asteroids in the form of water.
"With this new study, we are getting closer to long-term human spaceflight," say the scientists.
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