Direct Electrolysis of Molten Lunar Regolith for the Production of Oxygen and Metals on the Moon

Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use. The MIT Faculty has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters. The feasibility of producing oxygen by direct electrolysis of molten lunar regolith at 1600 ºC 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. 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 cm 2) electrodes to plate and disc electrodes (ca. 10 cm 2) was achieved.