Chinese researchers have come up with a radical proposal that involves generating energy using the Martian atmosphere. According to University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) scientists, the toxic atmosphere on Mars could serve as a medium for generating and storing energy in the future. This could potentially provide a secure and reliable source of energy for the first settlers on Mars and allow scientists stationed on the planet to conduct research over the long term without worrying about energy.
USTC researcher Shi Lingfeng says the atmosphere could act as an ‘energy converter’ as the air on Mars, which is mostly made up of carbon dioxide, nitrogen, and argon, is decent at converting heat to electricity. He noted that Martian air also has substantial molecular weight as well as a high specific heat, meaning it requires more energy to increase its temperature, which significantly boosts its ability to convert heat to electricity.
Compared to using xenon and helium as an energy generation and storage medium, the Chinese research team also found that the Martian atmosphere, at 95% carbon dioxide, can increase energy generation efficiency and maximum energy density by 20% and 14% respectively. Consequently, potential future settlers on Mars could take advantage of locally available resources to secure a reliable supply of energy, making the mind-bogglingly difficult prospect of setting up a Mars outpost just a little more feasible.
According to Shi, the research team’s proposal offers a great technological fix to one of the main challenges to building a sustainable settler/research outpost on Mars; generating energy. The Chinese researcher and his colleagues also came up with the ‘Mars battery,’ a theoretical battery that would store electrical energy in the Martian atmosphere.
This approach would eliminate the need for energy storage infrastructure as the Mars air battery could theoretically combine and store thermal, light, and electrical energy. Researcher Xiao Xu says this ‘air battery’ operates similarly to lithium-air batteries and lithium-carbon dioxide batteries, noting that it would take in certain components from the atmosphere and use them to generate electrical energy. This electrical energy could then function as a power source for helicopters, rovers, or critical life support systems on Mars.
The scientists used simulated conditions to test how the Mars air battery would perform on Mars, especially in regard to the substantial differences between day and night temperatures on the Red Planet. Their findings revealed that the Mars battery could still produce enough power to run electrical devices even when night temperatures on Mars fall to zero degrees Celsius.
Using the Martian atmosphere to both generate and store energy would significantly reduce the need to transport heavy battery systems from Earth. It would also enable future missions to harness energy locally, taking advantage of Mars’ natural environment instead of relying solely on pre-delivered supplies. Most importantly, this method could provide a stable and scalable energy source capable of sustaining long-term research and development efforts on the Red Planet.
The concepts that the Chinese researchers are suggesting are likely to be of interest to enterprises like SolarBank Corp. (NASDAQ: SUUN) (Cboe CA: SUNN) (FSE: GY2) since they could be modified for use here on Earth, especially to improve the existing renewable energy generation and storage technology.
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