Electrochemical Production of Polyethylene from Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide

Supporting human life on long-tern space exploration missions, such as manned missions to the surface of Mars, require sustainable resource utilization with minimal support from Earth. In response to this need, NASA’s in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) mission was put in place to provide a sustainable infrastructure for long-tern missions, such as exploration of extraterrestrial planets. One particular resource available on Mars is atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2). CO2 makes up 95% of the atmosphere, providing an abundant resource for human explorers to take advantage of. For instance, CO2 can be electrochemically reduced into a variety of compounds, including polyethylene. Polyethylene is a widely used plastic, for manufacturing containers, tubing, sealants, and more. In Phase I, Faraday and UTEP will develop an electrochemical reactor capable of converting atmospheric carbon dioxide into polyethylene at conditions commonly experienced on the Martian surface, such as low temperatures (-65°C average on Martian surface) and low pressures (0.0065 bar). Optimization of polyethylene production will be performed through modifying the reactor design and the electrodes, with the goal of producing polyethylene with high selectivity (>50%) with a low energy requirement for production of polyethylene (0.034 g polyethylene per watt-hour). Phase I will include a critical risk assessment for using naturally occurring perchlorate salts, which are found in water on Mars, as the electrolyte in the electrochemical reactor. Alignment of this technology with future NASA and commercial missions to Mars is critical for successful integration, and with the help of our team, we will assess safety and system robustness metrics required for Phase II and beyond. In Phase II, we will work to scale up the production of polyethylene, while establishing the ability to process CO2 from atmospheric conditions similar to Mars.