Hesperus

Dubai | Exploring Venus Together

Nucleo

High-Level Project Summary

We have developed an energy source and storage system to power a rover on Venus. It is protected by highly durable, light and non-corrosive materials. Within this covering are three energy sources - a diamond battery, which operates on the concept of nuclear physics, a tritium battery, and the wheels of the rover, the movement of which will be used by the dynamo to produce energy.Our solution tactically solves the challenge by using batteries which last long, produce high amounts of power and are chemically safe.This product revolutionizes interplanetary travel technology and provides NASA with an opportunity to extend ambitious missions and explore enigmatic lands.

Link to Final Project

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1FYI80Bg7zVXS1TU75Fgrmu6Rsz6S43ePd6ZKrcLtah8/edit?usp=sharing

Link to Project "Demo"

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1AX7CpegykharZjg7uzXXU6puOhO1WtZa/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=102694106305100662380&rtpof=true&sd=true

Detailed Project Description

Our energy storage system, Nucleo is built to last over 3 months in Venus. I will be explaining our model in three parts:

1: The protective enclosure:

We have a 3 layer protective covering over Nucleo:

1: Ceramic Fibres with small amounts of Zirconium Oxide: This has a very high resistance to temperatures of approx. 1600 degrees celsius(due to the addition of zirconium oxide). It is very malleable and ductile and can be moulded into multiple shapes.

It was built to last in highly corrosive environments and renders unreactive to many acids. We chose this material over Gold (Gold has similar characteristics) as it is very heavy and will affect the weight of the overall energy storage system, making it less efficient. The ceramic fibres will also help the energy storage system tolerate the forces and vibrations due to launch, reentry, descent, and landing.

2: Kevlar-based Carbon fibres: We included this material because it has high chemical resistance and is five times stronger and twice as stiff as steel. It is very lightweight and flexible making it the perfect secondary protective layer. These fibres can handle high temperatures and pressure. It also has low heat conduction characteristics. This will support the ceramic fibres during launch re-entry, descent and landing.

3: Tantalum Carbide: Considered one of the most heat-resistant compounds on planet Earth. This material is our tertiary protective layer. It has excellent electronic conductivity and is very hard. It has a melting point of about 3880 degrees Celsius, which basically secures our battery system, and keeps it safe from any harm.

2: The technology used:

We have used three power sources and one dynamo (which I will elaborate on in a bit).

1: Diamond Battery: We are using the C14 type diamond battery as our primary power source. We choose this power source as one diamond battery cell can deliver 15 J of power (according to data extrapolated from testing of the Ni63 diamond battery) for over 5,730 years. One cell is approximately 10 mm x 10 mm and 0.5 mm in thickness (excluding the wiring and circuits). It is very heat resistant and can work in temperatures till 750 degrees celsius. This battery will power the entire rover(movement, communication etc) and there will be approximately 2000 diamond battery cells in our setup. This diamond will be wrapped up with titanium and graphene sheets protecting the human skin that handles this battery from the beta emissions of the C14 isotope. . It contains the active material C14. This battery's key benefit is its longevity and ability to work in high temperatures.

2: Tritium Battery: This is a nuclear battery which has a lifespan of 15-20 years. It has a continuous low voltage charge which makes it a perfect secondary power source. This battery is incredibly advantageous(regarding the safety of the system's components as when this battery decomposes, it decomposes in a stable state, leaving no leftover nuclear waste. This is also preferred over Lithium ions battery as it has a larger lifespan and is corrosion resistant, unlike lithium-ion batteries which have a two-year life span and is susceptible to corrosion. In case of any failure, this secondary power source will be key to this mission's success. They will be covered with titanium and graphene to prevent excessive radiation and to keep the system safe.

3: The Hafnium Carbide-based dynamo: This dynamo will be me up of hafnium carbide as it has excellent electrical conductivity. Hafnium carbide is one of the most heat resistant materials on Earth which makes it perfect for making our dynamo heat resistant. The dynamo will convert the kinetic energy of the rover which is being powered by our diamond batteries into electrical energy which will be used to charge our tertiary power source which will be used as a failsafe in case of damage to our other power sources. This will minimize the loss of energy making our energy storage system more self-sustainable.

4: Our tertiary power source NaS batteries: These are rechargeable batteries which will be charged by our dynamo(mentioned above). The active materials in a NaS battery are molten sulfur as the positive electrode and molten sodium as the negative. The electrodes are separated by a solid ceramic, sodium alumina, which also serves as the electrolyte. This ceramic allows only positively charged sodium ions to pass through. In case of failure of both power sources, this tertiary power source is the next efficient power source. NaS batteries have a rated power output of 50 kW to 400 kW. These batteries can withstand high temperatures and pressure making them the ideal tertiary power source.

Tech Specs: (approximated to the best of our ability)

Volume: ~ 17280 - 17500 inches^3

Mass: ~ 60-100 kgs

The power produced by the C14 Diamond battery: ~ 3.3 Wh/g

The power produced by the Tritium battery: ~ 24 W/kg

The power produced by the NaS battery: ~ 50kW to 400kW

Storage rating of NaS battery: ~ 25-250 kW (commercial NaS battery)

Storage rating of C14 Diamond Battery: 2.7TeraJ aka million Joules (very high)

Storage rating of Tritium Battery:

Self Discharge Rate: 20% per day

Estimated number of cells required for:

C14 Diamond Battery: ~500-2000 units

Tritium Battery: ~1200-1500 units

NaS battery: ~30-50 units

Optimum Temperature Range: ~ 100 degrees celsius-250 degrees celsius

We need NASA'S help taking our project forward as we need:

1: An efficient cooling system that doesn't damage the system's interior.

(The cooling system is a part of our energy storage system which we couldn't figure out so we left empty space in our prototype submission so that we can further brainstorm on potential cooling systems.)

2: Helping us with our calculations and providing specific results, improving the performance of Nucleo.

2: The expertise of NASA's scientists to make our project a reality

3: We believe that this project has very high potential and by utilizing NASA's resources we can truly create an energy storage system which can not only be used for the Venus mission(Da Vinci+ and Veritas) but also for other space expeditions.

As Michael Collins said:

Space exploration is not a choice really;

It's an imperative

We must innovate and the usage of new technologies is key to further understanding our cosmos, as humanity strives to explore to infinity and beyond.

-Gaurrav Upadhye and Team Hesperus

Space Agency Data

https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/venus/in-depth/

(About the environment and atmosphere in Venus)

https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/resources/549/energy-storage-technologies-for-future-planetary-science-missions/

(About general energy storage systems in planetary missions)

https://www.nasa.gov/directorates/spacetech/niac/2019_Phase_I_Phase_II/Power_Beaming/

(Powering Venus missions)

https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/missions/veritas/science/

(Veritas- Venus mission)

https://www.nasa.gov/feature/goddard/2022/nasa-s-davinci-mission-to-take-the-plunge-through-massive-atmosphere-of-venus

(Davinci- Venus mission)

We used information from NASA's sites relating to:

1. Information gathered about the atmosphere and environment of Venus

so we can understand more about what materials to use to design our

project in such a way that it does not get destroyed in Venus's harsh

environment. Knowing what environment we will be adapting our project to is important so that we can pick the right materials and design keeping in mind the high temperature and pressure conditions of Venus.

2. How and what kind of energy systems were used in other space missions

so that we would know where to start. Using something similar, then

making changes to it accordingly to suit and withstand the brutal

conditions of Venus. This gave us an idea of a basic structure of an energy storage system we can use for planetary missions.

3. Looking at the design, function and structure of NASA's upcoming

missions to Venus (DAVINCI and Veritas), we might be able to meet a

checkpoint, as to know what improvements can we make, if we are

missing out on some important component/feature. It also gave us some

detailed information regarding what we will need to make note of and

what we can add to an energy storage system to make it more suitable

for a cruel Venus-like atmosphere.

Hackathon Journey

Team Hesperus's hackathon journey was an enlightening one.

We discovered so many innovations, both existing and hypothetical. We met many influential and talented people who taught us to embrace the idea of 'coopetition', a healthy blend of cooperation and competition.

We learnt about different types of batteries and energy resources and energy systems used previously for space missions. This broadened our perspective on this challenge and energy sources in general.

We are all science aficionados who are always looking for ways to expand our horizons in the fields that interest us. Designing an energy source capable of lasting on a hellish planet such as Venus for sixty days is not an easy task, but we relied on our knowledge and the assets that each of our team members possesses, to tackle this demanding challenge NASA has presented us.

We choose this challenge as it highlighted our individual strengths and capitalized on our positive assets. It piqued our interests and gave us an opportunity to test our limits. We were very intrigued by the idea of creating a working energy storage system that is capable of powering a rover in an environment as ruthless as that of Venus.

We approached this project using the Design Thinking Process (DTP), a renowned guide to problem-solving, which helped us work efficiently and maximize our thinking potential. We studied numerous scholarly articles, asked thought-provoking questions to subject matter experts (SMEs) and, by analyzing our prototype and reflecting upon possible flaws, improved our project.

Challenges were constantly thrown at us. We were unaware of how to generate power while on Venus, so we brainstormed solutions until we found the most viable one. For instance, we were looking for ways to power our rechargeable battery. Only after deep consideration did we realise that a dynamo could be used to convert the kinetic energy of the wheels to electrical energy, hence minimizing the energy lost.

We faced lots of other setbacks such as this, and we were tactical in our approach to tackling them. We first searched for a potential solution ourselves and then asked SMEs for help, which led to us finding the most feasible solution.

We would like to thank the local lead and SMEs for their invaluable support throughout the hackathon. They were instrumental in the creation of our revolutionary prototype, 'Nucleo'.

We think that the cosmos is not only a vast abyss that houses a plethora of planets, stars and potential forms of extra-terrestrial life, but also a reservoir of knowledge, and there is always so much more to know and discover about the universe. This hackathon has encouraged us to adopt such a growth mindset and allow curiosity to help us shape our understanding of the universe.