Green Solar-to-propellant Water Propulsion

Introduction

Similar to terrestrial photosynthesis, whereby plants convert solar energy into chemical energy through the capture of light energy, the Green SWaP project seeks to harness this potentiality in space by converting water into highly valuable propellants, specifically hydrogen peroxide and hydrogen.

Project Goals

Green SWaP will prove and validate a technology that will use solar energy to produce propellants from water for in-space green propulsion. It will be a crucial building block to enable innovative green propulsion solutions for in-space mobility, resulting in low-cost and eco-friendly innovative concepts.

Novel Approach

It is a novel approach, never developed for in-space mobility. Studies exist for terrestrial applications, but the space environment introduces additional constraints and dedicated challenges that the project will try to solve.

Technological Basis

The new technologies, based on innovative chemical processes, will harvest solar power to enable green propulsion. It is a plausible methodology because underlying technological concepts of producing, concentrating, and storing hydrogen peroxide and hydrogen using solar energy have been proven (separately) even though for different constraints and conditions of use than in-space applications.

Research Gaps

Moreover, the combination of hydrogen peroxide and hydrogen has never been investigated in detail, and the utilization of hydrogen for solar thermal propulsion is theoretically proven to be the most promising but has never been developed as technology.

Future Implications

The combination of these technologies will drastically increase future spacecraft capabilities, facilitating renewable and self-sustainable in-space mobility.

Optimization Focus

Optimization concerning the quality and quantity of hydrogen peroxide and hydrogen produced onboard and the efficiency improvement will be fully explored.