Two of the four proposals recently selected by NASA for improving oxygen recovery on spacecraft were submitted by researchers at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland.
Once developed, the systems have the potential to improve the oxygen recovery rate to at least 75 percent with high reliability. This technology development area is critical for any long-duration human spaceflight mission.
One proposal, titled “Oxygen Recovery from Carbon Dioxide Using Ion Exchange Membrane Electrolysis Technology,” is led by Glenn’s Kenneth Burke. According to Burke, “We anticipate that our work on this oxygen regeneration system will help future astronauts extend their voyages beyond Earth and improve their quality of life.”
Glenn’s Robert Green leads the other effort titled “A Combined Solid Oxide Co-Electrolyzer and Carbon Formation Reactor System for Spacecraft Life Support Oxygen Regeneration.”
“Our team here is excited to begin work on a NASA life support technology to enable future long-duration space and planetary surface exploration,” said Green.
Both proposals are Phase I NASA technology development efforts. Each proposal may receive up to $750,000 for 15 months to complete the engineering development unit hardware phase. There will be a follow-on competition for Phase II, where prototype hardware will be developed over a two-year period, with up to $2 million granted for each successful proposal.
These awards are managed by NASA’s Game Changing Development Program within the agency’s Space Technology Mission Directorate. NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, manages the Game Changing Development Program.
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