| Developers: | Honda Motor |
| Date of the premiere of the system: | 2022/05/04 |
| Branches: | Space industry, Power |
Main article: Alternative power
2022: Renewable Energy System Announcement Based on Recycling Process
On May 4, 2022, Honda announced the release of a renewable energy system based on the recycling process.
According to the company, almost fifty years have passed since people first landed on the moon, and this event excited the whole world. In 2024, people will try to repeat the flight again. This time it is planned to build a base for long-term and continuous human activity on the planet. Honda is technologically developing a key system responsible for supplying breathable oxygen, hydrogen for fuel and electricity for a range of applications. Honda is working to implement a plan to adapt the biosphere of Earth's natural satellite: the moon should become suitable for humans, using only the available resources of sunlight and water.
When humans first landed on the moon in 1969, astronauts were there for less than a day. The United States wants to land on the moon again by 2024, and for this it has established the Artemis program, which aims to return people to the moon, as well as build a base on the surface of the satellite.
In order to remain on the surface of the moon for a long period of time, humanity must create the infrastructure necessary for this. Honda is conducting joint research with the Japan Aerospace Research Agency (JAXA), an international partner member of the Artemis program. The focus of the collaborative research is to create a renewable energy system based on a recycling process that would be able to use sunlight and water, which is expected to be available on the lunar surface to produce oxygen for breathing and its subsequent recycling, and to generate electric and hydrogen energy.
The recycling-based renewable energy system includes a high pressure drop water electrolysis system. Due to pressure and under the influence of electricity, water is split into hydrogen and oxygen. Some of the oxygen can be used to breathe people, while the rest can be stored in fuel cells for subsequent power generation. From the fuel cells, water returns to the high pressure drop water electrolysis system, completing an energetically closed cycle.
The renewable energy system based on recycling processes Honda is working on is part of the infrastructure that will allow humanity to survive on the lunar surface, where most conventional resources other than sunlight and water will not be available.
Water circulation in various forms can produce both hydrogen and electricity energy and oxygen to breathe humans. The circulation process takes place with constant efficiency.
Hydrogen can be derived from various types of resources. It attracts attention as a next-generation energy source that does not emit carbon dioxide. Honda uses this energy source in its development called Power Creator. In turn, this development makes it possible to electric water to produce hydrogen adapted for use in fuel cells of vehicles and for hydrogen stations that supply hydrogen to households. Honda has developed a high pressure drop water electrolysis system, which is the main technology for the Power Creator.
A hydrogen molecule consists of two hydrogen atoms. Hydrogen gas has such a low density that it rapidly evaporates even when stored at low pressure. In order to retain sufficient hydrogen for use, it is necessary to store a large number of hydrogen molecules at high pressure in the reservoir. While mechanical compressors are commonly used for this task, Honda has independently developed a pressure differentiation design capable of storing hydrogen at high pressure without the use of a compressor.
Block electrolysis of water with a high pressure drop, it produces hydrogen and oxygen from water, and the fuel cell unit on the right generates electricity from hydrogen and oxygen, while discharging water.
The cost of transporting an object into space is usually 100 million yen per kilogram. Therefore, equipment designed for use in outer space must be light and compact.
JAXA was interested in Honda's high pressure drop water electrolysis system, which allows hydrogen to be stored at pressures up to 70 MPa, which is about 700 times the atmospheric pressure on Earth. They were also interested in its light weight and compact size, as well as the low frequency of necessary maintenance, since the system lacks a mechanical compressor. This was the reason for the development of Honda.
The height of the entire high pressure drop water electrolysis system is only 980 mm. The water electrolysis plant itself is a compact structure with a height of 420 mm and a width of 210 mm.
The principle underlying the electrolysis of high pressure drop water is well known. Hydrogen ions produced by electrolysis are concentrated at high pressures through the electrolytic membrane. This membrane is ion-permeable, allowing hydrogen ions (H +) produced by the electrolysis of water to pass through the electrolytic membrane, where pairs of hydrogen atoms join together to form hydrogen molecules (H2). Hydrogen molecules continue to accumulate because they cannot pass back through the membrane, and the pressure increases.
The thickness of the electrolytic membrane is only about 0.1 mm. A pressure of 70 MPa, about 700 times the Earth's atmospheric pressure, is so high that it exerts a force of 700 kg per square centimeter, resulting in rupture of the membrane. Honda has developed a support structure that equalizes the force applied to the electrolytic membrane, as well as a porous material capable of withstanding such high pressure. This allowed such a high pressure to be maintained without loss of membrane integrity. Using models developed by Honda to conduct simulation tests, materials were repeatedly created and tested, as a result of which a material suitable for the project was created.
Honda was engaged in the development and development of an electrolytic membrane in the research facilities of Honda R&D Co., Ltd. A research process involving the manufacture of real materials and substances directly at the research site, as well as the use of trial and error, resulted in the creation of the technology.
The environment on the moon is extremely harsh. Temperatures fluctuate significantly between 110 ° C during the day and -170 ° C at night. Gravity is only one sixth of the earth. Without air, the lunar surface is exposed to radiation. Extreme development conditions in space mean humans must tackle the complex challenges that technology faces beyond harsh environmental factors. It is also important to improve fuel efficiency and efficiency in general and on Earth. On the moon, however, the slightest reduction in efficiency could directly lead to more solar panels and other materials to be transported from Earth, which would mean an increase in costs of 100 million yen per kilogram.
The technologies needed on the moon and in other space spheres where extreme stability is needed will become an integral part of sustainability on Earth as well. Honda is convinced that it is important to develop circulating renewable energy systems as they are the technology that will lead to carbon independence and neutrality. The main components of the high pressure drop water electrolysis system also include a high pressure drop water electrolysis unit.
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