Helios Space

Universal Event | Exploring Venus Together

Awards & Nominations

Helios Space has received the following awards and nominations. Way to go!

Global Nominee

In Situ Resource Utilization of Venusian CO2 for Power Generation in a Lander

High-Level Project Summary

We propose a novel approach to fabricate carbon nanotubes (CNT) utilizing in-situ atmospheric CO2 from the Venusian atmosphere to create a tethered balloon, which would enable a temperature differential, leveraged by a thermoelectric generator to produce constant power for the lander system. It is important to both NASA and Earth to work on the mass manufacturing capabilities of carbon nanotubes to enable strong lightweight and highly conductive materials that provide multiple benefits here on Earth and in our mission to travel the stars, ranging from space elevators to high capacity energy storage systems.

Link to Final Project

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1GiB94f_3V7Rji-_gnZgA-lj--QKfEh4n/view

Link to Project "Demo"

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Gn5lnniE_tdm_IZp72zquXWw9xG7SKn3/view

Detailed Project Description

We propose a novel approach to fabricate carbon nanotubes (CNT), via a wet-spin process, utilizing in-situ atmospheric CO2 from the Venusian atmosphere to create a tethered balloon, which would enable a temperature differential, leveraged by a thermoelectric generator to produce constant power for the lander system. Then we propose an extension whereby, with a sufficiently strong tether, a balloon is sent to capture sulfuric acid and extract its H2 to be used in hydrogen fuel cells or with hydroxide exchange membrane fuel cells (HEMFC) to extract atmospheric CO2 and generate power.


We used TinkerCAD to develop the CAD model.

Space Agency Data

We used the information provided in the NIAC Phase 1 Final Report: Venus Landsailer Zephyr extensively to understand the challenges in a spacecraft designed for the Venusian surface.

Hackathon Journey

The initial idea of the CO2 ISRU approach was to use hydroxide exchange membrane fuel cells (HEMFC) to extract the CO2 for the lower atmosphere to generate energy. After an analysis of the chemical reaction equations, we determined that key components necessary for the reaction to occur are not available on the surface of Venus, but in its atmosphere. Specifically, the sulfuric acid clouds, which lead us down the path of a tethered balloon system via carbon nanotube manufacturing. But after further investigation, we determined that the wind speeds at that altitude would be catastrophic for the balloon and the tether system. We finally realized that if we go lower in the atmosphere, we could leverage the temperature difference with a thermoelectric generator.

References

  1. Landis, Geoffrey A., et al. NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) Phase 1 Final Report: Venus Landsailer Zephyr. No. NASA/TM-2019-220004. 2019. https://ntrs.nasa.gov/citations/20190034022
  2. Kim, Gi Mihn, et al. "Transformation of carbon dioxide into carbon nanotubes for enhanced ion transport and energy storage." Nanoscale 12.14 (2020): 7822-7833. https://doi.org/10.1039/C9NR10552B
  3. Shi, L., Zhao, Y., Matz, S. et al. A shorted membrane electrochemical cell powered by hydrogen to remove CO2 from the air feed of hydroxide exchange membrane fuel cells. Nat Energy 7, 238–247 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-021-00969-5
  4. Dewangan, Yeestdev, Amit Kumar Dewangan, and Dakeshwar Kumar Verma. "Carbon Nanotubes as Corrosion Inhibitors." Organic Corrosion Inhibitors: Synthesis, Characterization, Mechanism, and Applications (2021): 371-385. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119794516.ch16
  5. Pruna, Alina. "Advances in carbon nanotube technology for corrosion applications." Handbook of Polymer Nanocomposites. Processing, Performance and Application (2015): 335-359. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-45229-1_36
  6. “Spinning nanotube fibers at Rice University.” YouTube, uploaded by Rice University, 10 Jan. 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XDJC64tDR0
  7. “Making Carbon Nanotube Yarns.” YouTube, uploaded by DexMat Inc., 10 Jan. 2019, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2gfenoRlb4
  8. “Atmosphere of Venus.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 31 Aug. 2022, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere_of_Venus
  9. Colozza, Anthony, and Geoff Landis. Solar powered flight on Venus. No. NASA/CR-2004-213052. 2004. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/24381363_Solar_Powered_Flight_on_Venus
  10. Chen, Zuofeng, et al. "Splitting CO2 into CO and O2 by a single catalyst." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 109.39 (2012): 15606-15611. https://www.pnas.org/doi/epdf/10.1073/pnas.1203122109
  11. “PB/Tags 400°C-600°C High Efficiency 12% TEG Modules.” EspressoMilkCooler.com, 22 May 2018, https://espressomilkcooler.com/pbtags-400c-600c-high-efficiency-12-teg-modules/
  12. Corgnale, Claudio, Maximilian B. Gorensek, and William A. Summers. "Review of sulfuric acid decomposition processes for sulfur-based thermochemical hydrogen production cycles." Processes 8.11 (2020): 1383. https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9717/8/11/1383
  13. Hall, Loura. “Power Beaming for Long Life Venus Surface Missions.” NASA, NASA, 8 Apr. 2019, https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/spacetech/niac/2019_Phase_I_Phase_II/Power_Beaming/

Tags

#CO2, #ISRU, #Venus, #hardware, #Power, #TEG, #CNT

Exploring Venus Together

Your challenge is to design an energy storage system that will power a surface lander or rover on the surface of Venus for at least 60 days, so that there is a viable energy storage capability for long-duration exploration missions.