Shulou(Shulou.com)11/24 Report--

This article comes from the official account of Wechat: SF Chinese (ID:kexuejiaodian), author: SF

Recently, game maker Bethesda's upcoming single-player RPG game "Starfield" has rekindled people's yearning for space exploration: adventure among stars, exploration of different planets, visits to bustling space cities, exploration of dangerous abandoned space bases. So, oxygen is a necessary condition to realize this space dream, and artificial photosynthesis technology can make it easier to produce oxygen.

(by Chen Qiang / tr. by Robert Taylor)

The existence of life on earth is largely due to photosynthesis. This biological process evolved more than 200 million years ago, allowing plants and other organisms to use the collected sunlight to convert carbon dioxide and water into energy-storing organisms (such as sugars) while releasing oxygen.

Photosynthesis is an integral part of the earth's biosphere, and we almost take it for granted. However, when we look beyond the earth, we will soon discover how rare and precious this biological process is.

The efficient and reliable production of oxygen and other chemicals and the recovery of carbon dioxide in spacecraft and extraterrestrial habitats are enormous challenges that we need to address in long-term space missions. Scientists believe that artificial simulation of photosynthesis is a key technology that can help us realize our space dream.

Electrolysis technology has many drawbacks. Human demand for oxygen makes space travel tricky. Fuel constraints limit the amount of oxygen we can carry with us, especially if we want to make long trips to the moon and Mars. An one-way trip to Mars usually takes more than two years, which means we cannot easily transport resources from Earth.

On the International Space Station, there is already a device that can produce oxygen from recycled carbon dioxide. Most of the oxygen on the International Space Station comes from a process called electrolysis. The process uses electricity generated by the space station's solar panels to break down water into hydrogen and oxygen, which can provide astronauts with breath. It also has a separate system that converts hydrogen and carbon dioxide exhaled by astronauts into water and methane.

But this kind of electrolysis technology is unreliable and inefficient, and its equipment is very bulky and difficult to maintain. For example, the oxygen-making process consumes about 1/3 of the total electricity of the International Space Station. As a result, scientists are looking for a new oxygen supply for use on trips to the moon and Mars.

Artificial photosynthesis has great advantages. Recently, a team of scientists from the University of Warwick in the UK and the Federal Institute of Technology Lobsang in Switzerland have developed a new oxygen supply equipment that can directly convert recovered carbon dioxide into oxygen and organic matter by collecting solar energy. The only other input to this device is water, so it is similar to the process of photosynthesis in nature.

The device uses a semiconductor material to replace chlorophyll, which is responsible for light absorption in plants and algae, and the surface of the material can be directly coated with metal catalysts to support the required chemical reactions. In the process of collecting solar energy, the extra heat released can also be directly used to catalyze chemical reactions, thereby accelerating the production of oxygen. In addition, what kind of organic matter can be produced can be designed according to the demand.

In the oxygen supply equipment on the International Space Station, solar panels generate electricity and produce oxygen separately. Using artificial photosynthesis, the equipment is much simpler, and its weight and volume can be greatly reduced, which is more conducive to space missions. When the equipment becomes simple, the cabling is reduced and it is easier to maintain.

After analysis, the scientists believe that their equipment can indeed supplement existing life support systems, such as the oxygen supply equipment used on the International Space Station. It is particularly suitable for use in combination with focused solar devices (essentially a large mirror that focuses incident sunlight).

Of course, there are other ways to produce oxygen. For example, scientists recently developed a technology that can produce oxygen directly from lunar soil, but this requires high temperatures to work.

Artificial photosynthesis equipment can operate at standard atmospheric pressure and room temperature. This means that it can be directly used in spacecraft and extraterrestrial habitats, with water as the main input material. There is a lot of ice in some craters on the moon, which can be used as landing sites for future lunar missions.

On Mars, nearly 96% of the atmosphere is carbon dioxide, which seems to be an ideal raw material for artificial photosynthesis equipment. But because it is farther away from the sun, the sun on the red planet is much weaker than that on Earth. So will this cause problems? Scientists have actually calculated the intensity of sunlight available on Mars. The results show that artificial photosynthesis equipment can still be used there, although concentrating solar energy equipment is needed to increase light intensity.

The rewards of the technology to help deal with the earth's energy crisis will be huge. For example, we can actually use it to create a man-made atmosphere in space and to produce chemicals such as fertilizers, polymers or drugs for long-term missions.

In addition, artificial photosynthesis technology can also help us cope with the energy crisis on Earth. In addition to organic matter such as sugar, artificial photosynthesis equipment can be used to produce hydrogen or other carbon-based fuels, which can be used as energy for our production and life. Therefore, this technology has opened up a new road of green energy for us.

The technology of artificial photosynthesis is still in its infancy, and scientists need several years to conduct more in-depth research. Copying other necessary parts from the photosynthesis of nature can bring some help to the research of this technology and enable it to be applied in the near future.

References:

Https://theconversation.com/space-colonies-how-artificial-photosynthesis-may-be-key-to-sustained-life-beyond-earth-206942

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