assignment

1. STATEMENT
You are required to propose a scheme to produce
oxygen on moon to be used to provide life support to
lunar colonies, keeping in view the climate conditions
on moon and feasible source of energy. Support your
proposal with valid literature.
INTRODUCTION
Oxygen is one of the basic chemical elements.In its most
common form ,oxygen is a most colourless gas found in
air.It is one of the life-sustaining elements on earth and
is needed by all animals.oxygen is one of the most
abundant chemical elements on earth.
Because we have to produce oxygen on moon for the
existence of life on moon surface So,we have to take
some knowledge about moon climate.
The moon’s Atmosphere[1]
Although it is very thin, the moon does have an
atmosphere.The composition is not well known ,but it is
estimated to consist of helium, neon,
hydrogen(H2),argon, neon, methane, ammonia, and
carbon dioxide, with trace amount of oxygen, aluminum,
silicon, phosphorus, sodium, and magnesium ions.

2. Because conditions contrast sharply depending on the
hour, the composition during the day may be somewhat
different from the atmosphere at night.
Even though the moon has an atmosphere, it is too thin
to breathe and includes compounds you wouldn’t want
in your lungs[2].
METHODS
Oxygen can be produced from a numbers of materials,
using different methods.
The most common natural method is
“photo-synthesis”
,in which plants use sunlight convert oxygen in the air
into oxygen.This offsets the respiration process, in which
animals convert oxygen in the air back into carbon
dioxide.
Another most common method for producing oxygen
is the separation of air using either a
“cryogenic distillation or vacuum adsorption”

3. Process .Nitrogen and argon are also produced by
separating them from air.
Oxygen can also be produced as the result of a chemical
reaction in which oxygen is freed from a chemical
compound and becomes a gas.
This method is used to generate limited quantities of
oxygen for life support on submarines, aircraft, and
spacecraft.
Hydrogen and oxygen can be generated by passing an
electric current through water and collecting the two
gases as they bubble off.
Hydrogen forms at the negative terminal and oxygen at
the positive terminal.This method is called
“ELECTROLYSIS”
And produces very pure hydrogen and oxygen.
Another process of obtaining oxygen on moon is
“METALYSIS”
It took around fifty hours to extract 96% of the oxygen
bound up in the rego sample,but 75% of the oxygen
lifted in the first 15 hours.

4. LITERATURE
Rejection of method of
“PHOTOSYNTHESIS”
Photosynthesis process occur in plants and due to this
process plants produce oxygen by using sunlight and
carbon dioxide.
Scientist use this process to produce food and oxygen in
spacecrafts by using artificial photosynthesis process.[3]
But the question is
“Do plants grow on the moon?”
No, the condition are completely hostile to plants, Lack
of air to supply carbon dioxide, lack of water, and
temperature either far too hot(sun side) or cold (dark
side) mean that plants can’t grow there.
Another problem is that the lunar soil does not have the
soil microbes and bits of organic matter mixed in that
plants need to flourish.
Even worse, most of its minerals are tied up in ilmenite
and other forms that Earth plants cannot break down.
But all of this doesn’t mean plants will never grow on
the moon

5. So the result is that we cannot obtain oxygen on moon
by the process of photosynthesis.But in future the
process might be possible.
Rejection of method of
“cryogenic distillation”
Oxygen is a nonmetallic element and one of the most
abundant elements on earth’s surface.Under standard
pressure and temperature conditions, oxygen is a
diatomic gas with a the molecular formula O2.[4]
The gas is used in several industries, including
steel-making, chemicals, waste water treatment, pulp
and paper manufacturing, and others.
Initially, atmosphere air is passed through a mechanical
air filter to remove dust particles, and compressed to a
pressure of about 6 bars.
The compressed air is fed to a direct-contract cooler,
where it is cooled first with cooling water and then with
Chilled water.
Subsequently, the cooled, compressed air is passed
through an adsorbent bed of molecular sieves for the
removal of water,carbon dioxide and other trace
impurities.

6. But on moon ,there,s no air breathe, but there is a very
thin layer of gases on lunar surface that can almost be
called an atmosphere.
Because of having no air on moons atmosphere
we cannot prepare or obtained oxygen from air
on moon.So that because of this this method is
rejection to prepare oxygen on moon surface.[5]
“ELECTROLYSIS”
The processing of an electric current through a liquid is
called electrolysis.In this process a electrode and anode
works and reduction and oxidation occurs in this
process.Hydrogen and oxygen is produced
in this process.
To produce oxygen on moon surface electrolysis is a
useful process.
The feasibility of producing oxygen by direct electrolysis
of molten lunar regolith at 1600’c was investigated.
Oxygen gas at the anode was generated concomitantly
with production of iron and silicon at the cathode from
the tightly bound oxide mix.

7. Current efficiencies for oxygen evolution from
different melt compositions were determined during the
course of electrolysis by on-stream analysis of oxygen
gas.
Scale-up from thin wire (ca.0.3 2
cm ) electrodes to plate
and disc electrodes to plate and disc electrodes(ca.10 2
cm )
was achieved.
Rejection of this process
When considering the construction of a lunar base, the
cost(ca.$ 15
10 
kg ) of transporting materials to the surface
of the moon is a significant barrier.
Therefore in-situ resource utilization will be a key
component of any lunar mission.oxygen gas is a key
resource, abundant on earth but absent on the moon,
although half the weight of the moon is oxygen in the
form of tightly bound oxides.
Only because of this particular reason this method is
rejected for the production of oxygen on the moon
surface.

8. “METALYSIS”
Here in the following process we would be able to
produce oxygen on the moon surface by using moon
crust or lunar water.
The moon is a pretty inhospitable place for humans.It’s
all dry and dusty,and there,s no atmosphere for us to
breathe.But there is a bunch of oxygen.
The lunar regolith -the crumbly top layer of dirt and
rubble on the moon’s surface-is loaded with it.And now
scientist have figured out how to get it out.
The process also doesn’t produce waste.On the one
hand, you get a bunch of oxygen.On the other, a bunch
of metal alloys that it was bounded up with.
Between 40 and 45 percent by weight of the regolith is
oxygen.

9. This oxygen is an extremely valuable resource,but it is
chemically bound in the material as oxides in the form
Minerals or glass, and is therefore unavailable
For immediate use ,
“said chemist BETH LOMAX from the university of
Glasgow in Scotland.
The processing was performed using a method called
molten salt electrolysis.This is the first example of
direct powder to powder processing of solid lunar
regolith simulant that can extract virtually all the
oxygen.[6]
There have been previous attempts to extract the
oxygen from lunar theatregoer, such as the chemical
reduction of iron oxides using hydrogen to produce
water,and then electrolysis to separate the hydrogen
From the oxygen in the water; or a similar process with
methane instead of hydrogen.
METALYSIS PROCESS
Is a process to produce oxygen from lunar water or
lunar soil.
It took around 50 hours to extract 96% of the oxygen
bound up in the theatregoer sample, but 75% of the
oxygen lifted in the first 15 hours.

10. In addition,the metal left behind is usable-the first time
a lunar theatregoer oxygen extraction technique has
produced this result.
SO THAT IT IS FOUND THAT THE METALYSIS
PROCESS AND ALSO ELCTROLYSIS PROCESS
ARE USEFUL TO PRODUCE OXYGEN ON
MOON SURFACE.
Scientists are working hard for these
experiments to produce oxygen from lunar
water and lunar soil by extraction of lunar soil
and electrolysis of lunar water.

11. REFRENCES;
1.Sciencealert.com
2.Sciencealert.com
3.www.britinca.com
4.https://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.
gov/20120012879.pdf
5.Sciencealert.com
6.http://www.metalysis.com/oxygen-metal-from-lunar-regolit
h/