Mars Li-CO2 Batteries

Recently, Lithium (Li)-air batteries have attracted significant attention for energy storage in electric vehicles/aircraft because this system utilizes O2 in the air as the cathode reactant (i.e., Li-O2 battery; Li + O2 \u2194 Li2O2) and is projected to attain ultrahigh, cell specific energy that is substantially higher than conventional Li-ion batteries (1000 vs. ~260 Wh/kg at the cell level). The Mars Air Battery (MAB) is envisioned to have analogous benefits for Mars surface applications, exploiting the abundant CO2 present in the Martian atmosphere. This Mars Air Battery (MAB) concept is a Li-CO2 battery that reacts atmospheric CO2 with lithium metal to produce electric power. This enables dramatically high specific energies because the CO2 reactant is not included in the upmass of the battery system. Significantly, the MABs electrodes may also function effectively in an oxygen-rich environment (habitats, spacesuits, etc.) with no loss in battery performance. This provides the potential to design flexible, multi-use battery systems. The goal is to quantify the system-level benefits of the Mars "Air" Battery (MAB) technology at Mars atmospheric conditions (-60°C, 0.6 kPa) over a range of power requirements.

This technology could lead to a novel in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) energy concept which efficiently utilizes abundant CO2 in the Mars atmosphere as the cathode reactant for lithium-based batteries (Li-CO2 batteries). This rechargeable energy storage system has been projected to enable significant weight savings for Mars exploration missions, because a large amount of the total reactant mass (~80%) comes from the Martian CO2 atmosphere. High energy density batteries operable in various space environments are needed for space exploration missions. Additionally, technologies that leverage in-situ resources to dramatically reduce launch mass and cost of human exploration missions are also desirable.

This is early/mid-stage (TRL 3) — the most realistic path in is NASA SBIR/STTR, which funds small businesses and research institutions to develop technology aligned with NASA's needs (equity-free, phased funding). Check whether a current SBIR/STTR solicitation topic overlaps with this project's technology area, or contact the project directly (above) to ask.

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