Starlight| Virtual Planetary Exploration
Virtual Planetary Exploration
3D-Printing of Energy Storage Devices
Summary
Starlight develops 3D-printed battery components such as electrodes, separator, electrolyte or also current collector by using abundant materials that are directly available on the Moon or Mars surface. Earth's battery-dependency would be no more than a distant memory! Such project thus paves the way towards the development of new powered geology tools that future space explorers will employ to explore a planetary surface.
How We Addressed This Challenge
What did you develop?
Using abundant and available Lunar and Martian materials [1] [2], astronauts are able to directly produce customized/shape-conformable battery designs and three dimensional battery architectures at low cost by means of Selective Laser Sintering 3D printing process [3]. Such 3D printed energy storage systems can be introduced within the geology tools requiring energy.
Why is it important?
- Along with energy sources such as solar energy used with photovoltaic panels in space, electrical energy storage systems emerges as a crucial issue [4][5]. They enable the capture of energy produced at one time to deliver it at a later time when it is needed. Among the various energy storage options on Earth, the most widespread currently is undoubtedly the so-called lithium-ion battery (LIB) [5]. Nowadays, it is a component found at the heart of all modern-day electronics: smartphones, laptops, electric scooters and electric vehicles. Astronauts strongly depend on these LIB to survive/perform their research in such a particularly hostile environment: the surface of the Moon or Mars. Indeed, most of their equipment/geology tools that future space explorers can use for activities like exploring a planetary surface must be powered, thus battery-dependent. Before developing new equipments /geology tools, this battery-dependency must be overcome.
- Moreover, cost of transporting material from the Earth to the Moon or Mars is extremely expensive. NASA reported that it actually costs $25,000 per pound! Hence, it is imperative to minimize materials and tools to transport to space. For this particular reason, 3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing [3], is a promising technique to employ with a view to create objects by using resources that are available on planetary surfaces such as the Moon or Mars. As equipment and geology tools for space explorers often require to be powered, energy storage systems such as batteries/capacitors/supercapacitors must be produced by 3D printer directly on the planetary surface using the available materials.
What does it do?
- By producing 3D-printed batteries (and other energy storage systems) directly from Lunar or Martian materials, it can considerably retrench expenditure to explore new planetary surfaces. By using innovative AM techniques such as Multi-Material Selective Laser Sintering or Multi-Materials Selective Laser Melting, astronauts are able to print battery components such as electrodes, separator, solid electrolyte or also current collector [6] from common materials directly available on the Moon.
- In addition, 3D printer can produce customized and optimized shape and size of batteries without various and long manufacturing process [6-10]. Therefore, astronauts can produce any batteries for electric vehicle, smart mobile, or micro-batteries whenever they want. Hence, topological optimization of energy-storage devices with a view to maximize the energy storage and reducing dead-volume and dead-weight could be imagined, thus allowing new types of implementations [7][8].
- Furthermore, 3D printer allows batteries to have innovative three dimensional architecture designs (interpenetrated battery designs) [10]. While today's (on Earth) commercial lithium ion batteries (2D-LIB) consist of planar electrodes, separator, and current collectors stacked in two-dimensional architecture of the battery, innovative three dimensional design for electrodes was shown to enhance considerably the electrochemical reaction surface area of electrodes, particularly great for power applications [6][10]. From the preliminary tests that were performed by our team on Earth during the last few years (using the thermoplastic material extrusion 3D-printing process, or FDM) [6-10], we were able to demonstrate that, indeed, 3D architectures enable lithium ions to be spread in three-dimensions and thus to reach enhanced specific capacity and specific power [6]. This is of course different from classical planar LIB (stacking) where, upon cycling charge and discharge, lithium ions diffuse only in one direction between the electrodes, thus limiting the power performances [11].
How does it work?
Additive manufacturing working principle
Additive manufacturing creates complex geometrical object from 3D digital model file [3]. First, the 3D digital model is designed by means of a Computer Aided Design Software and is saved as .STL. This last file is then imported into a second software called a Slicer where printing parameters such as resolution, printing temperature (FDM), Laser time exposition (SLS) are introduced. Finally, it is converted into a G-code file that any classical 3D printer can read. Finally, the final object (directly including the printed battery here) can be produced [10].
Different types of additive manufacturing techniques
According to the American Standards for Testing of Materials (ASTM), additive manufacturing techniques are classified in 7 categories depending on printing process and materials. Material extrusion (ME) is the most widely used additive manufacturing technique due to simple process, low cost, and multi material feasibility [6]. Particularly, Liquid Deposition Modeling (LDM) and Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) has been considered and employed to print energy storage devices such as LIB since 2013 [8][9][12].
LDM use ink and syringe [12]. LDM deposites ink layer by layer through Syringe and needle. LDM need post-process such as drying and annealing to solidify the ink. On the other hand, FDM use thermoplastic filament and nozzle. FDM melts and deposits thermoplastics by means of a heated nozzle. The thermoplastics are thus solidified directly when it is deposited on the building platform. Complex architectures of the battery (3D architectures) such as gyroid shaped batteries can be produced [6-10].
While LDM and FDM does not seem to be adapted to produce batteries on the surface of the Moon or Mars, due to the solvent requirements (LDM) and thermoplastic filament requirement (FDM), two other promising techniques called Selective Laser Sintering (SLS) or Selective Laser Melting (SLM) [13][14] are very appealing to print batteries using available Lunar or Martian materials. Both SLS and SLM processes primary involves the spreading of a thin and homogeneous powder over the build platform thanks to a leveling blade. Afterwards, either a LASER or an electron beam is applied selectively in order to partially melt (sintering) or completely melt the powder according to the pre-designed pattern. The build platform is subsequently lowered and a thin layer of powder is spread again homogeneously upon the platform. The process is thus repeated layer after layer until the final 3D object is finished.
What do we hope to achieve?
By 3D-printing energy storage devices such as batteries directly on the explored planetary surfaces by using available Lunar or Martian materials, we hope to reduce considerably the transportations cost from earth and weight of the spacecraft. Finally, by producing 3D-architectures of the batteries, electrochemical performances (specific power and specific capacity) could be improved [6]. We believe that it will pave the way towards the development of powered geology toolsthat future space explorers will use.
How We Developed This Project
What inspired your team to choose this challenge?
The biggest obstacle for the exploration of space is the cost issue [1][2]. The transporting necessary materials and tool between planets is not only financial issue but also time-consuming. 3D printer which allows astronauts to produce any tools in a timely manner is the solution to save time and cost. However, 3D printer cannot fabricate battery-dependent tool such as electrical device. Electrical storage device should be delivered from the earth or manufactured with high cost. By producing batteries thanks to 3D printers directly from available lunar and martian materials, it can save a lot of financial and time cost. Moreover, 3D printer which is able to fabricate three dimensional architectures can produce three dimensional batteries. These later are expected to exhibit enhanced specific capacity and high specific power thanks to efficient diffusion pathway for lithium ion [6][11][15][16].
What was your approach to developing this project?
Preliminary printing tests are currently being done on Earth by means of thermoplastic material extrusion technique, also called Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) [6-10]. Thanks to this process, we demonstrated that printability of classical Lithium-ion batteries is clearly possible (cf. demo video below) [6]. Nonetheless, as it is complicated to imagine the formulation of a thermoplastic composite filament directly on the Moon or on Mars, the use of another 3D-printing technique (instead of FDM) called Selective Laser Sintering or Selective Laser Melting seems very promising [13][14]. To develop such a project, the identification of Lunar and Martian materials [1][2] that can be employed as materials source for energy storage systems such as batteries/capacitors/supercapacitors was primordial.
What tools, coding languages, hardware, software did you use to develop your project?
Our proof of concept was based on the 3D-printing of classical lithium-ion batteries by means of thermoplastic material extrusion (FDM). So far, we created highly loaded composite filaments corresponding to the positive electrode, negative electrode, separator, solid polymer electrolyte, and current collector (cf. demo video below).
Tools
- Classical FDM 3D printer: Prusa MK3 3D-printer (Prusa Research, Czech Republic)
- Extruder Filabot Original provided by Filabot Triex LLC, USA
- Filabot spooler (Filabot Triex LLC, USA)
Materials
- Polylactic-acid (PLA 4032D) pellets were provided by NatureWorks, USA.
- Dichloromethane (DCM) was supplied by VWR Chemicals, USA.
- Timcal TIMREX® SLS graphite (SSA: ~1.5 m2 g−1 , particle size: 15 µm) was used as active material for the negative electrode.
- LiFePO4 (particle size: 2 µm) was used as active material for the positive electrode.
- Poly(ethylene glycol) dimethyl ether average Mn~500 (PEGDME500), employed here as plasticizer, was supplied by Sigma-Aldrich, USA.
- Carbon black Timcal Super-P (CSP), (SSA: 62m2 g−1 ) and SiO2 nanopowder (diameter: 7nm) were supplied by Sigma-Aldrich, USA.
- Copper power (20um) was used as active materials in current collector which was supplied by Sigma-Aldrich.
What problems and achievements did your team have?
So far, our team has created positive, negative, electrolyte, separator, current collector filament which is applicable for Fused filament fabrication (FDM) 3D printer. We can produce batteries by 3D printer by using these composite filaments. However, such process cannot be used directly on the surface of the Moon or Mars as the filament formulation step is particularly challenging. Moreover, it generally requires a polymer matrix such as Polylactic acid or polypropylene that is not directly available at the surface of the Moon or Mars.
To go further and prove the feasibility of such a project with Selective Laser Sintering 3D printing process, we must now go on the surface of the Moon or Mars! Unfortunately, our team did not have that chance....yet!
How We Used Space Agency Data in This Project
In order to produce batteries using resource available in lunar or planetary surface, it is very important to know what resources are available on Moon and Mars and how much of it. From Lunar Nautics: Designing a Mission to Live and Work on the Moon An Educator’s Guide and in situ resource utilization NASA project [1][2], we found data compelling which resources are available on Moon and Mars and their respective quantities.
Lunar regolith which is unconsolidated material on the Moon contains oxygen, silicon, magnesium, iron, calcium, aluminum and titanium. There are anorthite (CaAl₂Si₂O₈), Ilmenite (FeTiO ₃), and bauxite which consist of Aluminum. Oxygen, silicon, aluminum, calcium can be extracted from anorthite (CaAl₂Si₂O₈) by using thermal, chemical or electrical process such as smelter to remove chemical bond of the mineral. Likewise, pure Iron, titanium, and aluminum can be produced from ilmenite and bauxite by separating metal from the mineral. Furthermore, hydrocarbons such as ethylene (C2H4), Methane (CH4), and methanol (CH3OH) have been found on the moon. According to the data from NASA, Silicon, which is particularly abundant on the Moon could for example be employed at the negative electrode.Batteries based on a sodium-ion technology could be envisaged rather than LIB, due to the presence of Na on the Moon.
On the other hand, atmosphere of the Mars consist of 95% of carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrogen 2.7% (N2), and 1.6% Argon (Ar). Plenty of aluminium, titanium, iron, magnesium, and chromium have been found. Furthermore, Lithium, cobalt, nickel, copper, niobium, molybdenum, zinc, tungsten, gold, europium, and lanthanum present on the Mars. Li[NiCoAl]O2 (NCA) or LiCoO2 (LCO) can be considered for positive electrode and Lithium titanate anode or graphite will be considered as negative electrode in the Mars.
Project Demo
Preliminary demonstrator has been done by means of the thermoplastic material extrusion (FDM) 3D-printing technique. Here is a short summary video:
Data & Resources
[1] Nasa's Space Resources: https://isru.nasa.gov/SPACERESOURCES.html
[2] Nasa's Mars Exploration Program- https://mars.nasa.gov/
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