Carbothermal Reduction Demonstration (CaRD)

The Carbothermal Reduction Demonstration (CaRD) project was an effort to develop a prototype system that could demonstrate the extraction of oxygen from lunar regolith using concentrated solar energy and a carbothermal reaction in a way that could work on the surface of the Moon.  The prototype consisted of a deployable solar concentrator capable of tracking the sun, optical shutter, carbothermal reactor, fluid system, avionics, gas analysis, and software. The solar concentrator developed at Glenn Research Center was designed to be stowed for a launch environment then deployed on the lunar surface. It included two lightweight mirrors developed by Composite Mirror Applications. At the core of the system was a carbothermal reactor developed by Sierra Space through a separate project called the Carbothermal Oxygen Production Reactor (COPR) where it successfully demonstrated a fully automated process in a thermal vacuum environment in 2024. The CaRD and COPR teams worked together on requirements and interfaces to demonstrate an integrated solar carbothermal process. The fluid system needed for the carbothermal reaction was also developed by Sierra Space and successfully demonstrated in a thermal vacuum. The gas analysis system was developed at Kennedy Space Center and was required to determine the amount of oxygen extracted during each test. The gas analysis system was based on the Mass Spectrometer Observing Lunar Operations (MSOLO) instrument that was recently operated on the Moon as part of the PRIME-1 mission.  Avionics and software for the CaRD prototype were also developed at Kennedy Space Center and based on experience with MSOLO avionics and software. The prototype system was integrated and tested at Johnson Space Center's Energy Systems Test Area. A heliostat was used to track the sun and aim sunlight toward the solar concentrator where the light was then redirected and focused into the reactor. When concentrated sunlight was focused on simulated lunar regolith within the reactor, the gas analysis team observed the presence of carbon monoxide gas, which confirmed that a solar carbothermal reaction took place and extracted oxygen from the lunar regolith simulant. A similar demonstration took place in Mauna Kea Hawaii in 2010 as part of a “dust to thrust" field demonstration supported by the Constellation program. However, the first generation system did not include requirements to be launched on a rocket or operate in a vacuum. The goal of the CaRD project was to produce a flight-like solar carbothermal system that could withstand launch and lunar environments. The prototype design recently tested at JSC could be delivered to the lunar surface and collect data on the yield and efficiency of the solar carbothermal process using real lunar regolith, the solar flux conditions on the Moon, and in lunar gravity. With lunar data, engineers would be able to design a scaled-up system capable of extracting oxygen from regolith at useful quantities for crew life support and to fuel rockets. On the long term, this method of In-Situ Resource Utilization could be used to drastically reduce the cost and risk of a sustained human presence on the Moon by making oxygen readily available anywhere on the lunar surface. Over time, this technology could produce several times its own weight in oxygen which would mean less oxygen shipped from earth, significantly reducing the cost of a sustained human presence.        Many methods of oxygen extraction from regolith have been demonstrated at a small scale in laboratory environments, but this is the first time that a fully integrated and automated prototype, capable of operating in space, has ever been demonstrated. Another benefit of the solar carbothermal method is that the downstream systems needed to convert carbon monoxide into breathable O2 gas, are the same systems that would be needed on Mars to convert the CO2 atmosphere and water into methane and oxygen propellants. By implementing this technology on the Moon, we would also be advancing technology needed for Mars. 

The near term benefit of the design that is being developed through this project is that it can be proposed as a flight demonstration that will address strategic knowledge gaps (SKGs). Once the SKGs are addressed, this technology can be scaled up to make useful amounts of oxygen on the lunar surface. ​This technology has the potential to produce several times its own weight in oxygen per year. Any amount of oxygen that can be produced from the lunar surface will reduce the cost of landing oxygen propellant, which will be a signifant mass/cost of any crewed lunar mission.  Further, this process has benefits over alternative Oxygen from Regolith (O2FR) processes because it involves technologies that can be applied to Mars and ECLSS , such as the production of methane from CO/CO2 and hydrogen, as well as water electrolysis. This technology also has the potential benefit of making a more effective use of hydrogen derived from lunar water. If lunar water is fed into a full-scale carbothermal reduction plant, it can be combined with carbon to produce methane, a fuel that requires much less energy to liquefy than hydrogen.

This is a mature technology (TRL 7+) — the realistic path in is usually NASA's Technology Transfer Program: licensing an existing NASA patent, or a Space Act Agreement to use NASA facilities/expertise directly. NASA also runs a startup licensing program with no upfront fee for companies formed to commercialize a specific NASA technology.

None of these are guaranteed paths for this specific project — TechPort itself doesn't have an "apply" button. Reaching out to the contact(s) above with a specific question is usually the fastest way to find out what's actually open.