skip to main content
US FlagAn official website of the United States government
dot gov icon
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
https lock icon
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( lock ) or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Explore Research Products in the PAR
It may take a few hours for recently added research products to appear in PAR search results.


Title: The Ironberry Plan: an Electric and Steel-making Way to Build a Science Station on Mars
This paper introduces the Ironberry Plan. This practical plan leads to the construction of a science station in the iron region of the Meridiani Planum (IRoM), Mars. It also enables the continuation of NASA’s Water Strategy, the beginning of astronomy from Mars, the landing of humans at IRoM and the beginning of continuous human habitation there. A focus of the plan is to provide abundant electricity on Mars through an intense use of local resources. The characteristic early steps of the Ironberry Plan are: 1. The robotic harvesting and processing of a superb iron ore at IRoM; 2. The use of Mars-optimized, robot-controlled steel-making and manufacture of steel parts; 3. At least for some years, a deliberate push for mutually feeding exponential growth in electricity generation, steel-making and steel manufacture, where early steel manufacture is focused on making more electrical generation equipment; 4. Using the rapidly growing power capacity and advanced robotics and processing of local sediments, the start of many more foundational activities (i.e., water liberation, sulfur-concrete construction, multi-material manufacture, agriculture and more); 5. Using 1-4, the building of a science station at IRoM while also converting excavated sediment caverns into underground, radiation protected spaces for the science station. Keywords: Ironberries, Iron Region of the Meridiani Planum (IRoM), Science Station, Abundant Electricity, Steel-making  more » « less
Award ID(s):
2233554
PAR ID:
10579809
Author(s) / Creator(s):
Publisher / Repository:
The British Interplanetary Society
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Journal of the British Interplanetary Society
Volume:
77
Issue:
3
ISSN:
0007-084X
Page Range / eLocation ID:
91 to 99
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. ; ; ; (, Nanoscale)
    Recent efforts towards energy scavenging with eco-friendly methods and abundant water look very promising for powering wearables and distributed electronics. However, the time duration of electricity generation is typically too short, and the current level is not sufficient to meet the required threshold for the proper operation of electronics despite the relatively large voltage. This work newly introduced an electrochemical method in combination with hydro-effects in order to extend the energy scavenging time and boost the current. Our device consists of corroded porous steel electrodes whose corrosion overpotential was lowered when the water concentration was increased and vice versa . Then a potential difference was created between two electrodes, generating electricity via the hydro-electrochemical method up to an open-circuit voltage of 750 mV and a short-circuit current of 90 μA cm −2 . Furthermore, electricity was continuously generated for more than 1500 minutes by slow water diffusion against gravity from the bottom electrode. Lastly, we demonstrated that our hydro-electrochemical power generators successfully operated electronics, showing the feasibility of offering electrical power for sufficiently long time periods in practice. 
    more » « less
  2. (, Arkansas Aerospace Proceedings)
    The study of water adsorption on mineral surfaces is fundamental to soil and atmospheric science. The physiochemical effects of mineral aerosol influence atmospheric chemistry and climate as well as soil moisture. Iron-containing minerals are abundant on Earth as well as Mars, where the existence and location of surface water is uncertain. Experimental water adsorption measurements have been conducted as a function of relative humidity (RH) on goethite (α-FeO(OH)), a common component of atmospheric mineral dust and Martian crustal material. Water adsorption on goethite was monitored using Horizontal Attenuated Total Reflectance Fourier Transform Infrared (HATR-FTIR) spectroscopy equipped with a flow cell and quantified according to Beer’s Law. Water content as a function of RH was analyzed using type II adsorption isotherms to model multilayer water adsorption. Brunauer Emmet and Teller (BET), Frenkel Halsey and Hill (FHH) and Freundlich adsorption isotherms were applied to model the experimental data. Monolayer water coverage was found to be 4.758x1013 molecules/cm2 based on BET analysis. FHH Adsorption Activation Theory (AT) was used to predict cloud condensation nuclei (CCN) activity of goethite under Earth’s atmospheric conditions. Results aid in the effort of climate prediction on Earth as well as locating liquid water on Mars’ surface. 
    more » « less
  3. ; ; (, Environmental Research Letters)
    Abstract Water consumption from electricity systems can be large, and it varies greatly by region. As electricity systems change, understanding the implications for water demand is important, given differential water availability. This letter presents regional water consumption and consumptive intensities for the United States electric grid by region using a 2014 base year, based on the 26 regions in the Environmental Protection Agency’s Emissions & Generation Resource Integrated Database. Estimates encompass operational (i.e. not embodied in fixed assets) water consumption from fuel extraction through conversion, calculated as the sum of induced water consumption for processes upstream of the point of generation (PoG) and water consumed at the PoG. Absolute water consumption and consumptive intensity is driven by thermal power plant cooling requirements. Regional consumption intensities vary by roughly a factor of 20. This variability is largely attributed to water consumption upstream of the PoG, particularly evaporation from reservoirs associated with hydroelectricity. Solar and wind generation, which are expected to continue to grow rapidly, consume very little water and could drive lower water consumption over time. As the electricity grid continues to change in response to policy, economic, and climatic drivers, understanding potential impacts on local water resources can inform changes. 
    more » « less
  4. ; ; ; (, Water Resources Research)
    Abstract Electricity generation in the United States entails significant water usage and greenhouse gas emissions. However, accurately estimating these impacts is complex due to the intricate nature of the electric grid and the dynamic electricity mix. Existing methods to estimate the environmental consequences of electricity use often generalize across large regions, neglecting spatial and temporal variations in water usage and emissions. Consequently, electric grid dynamics, such as temporal fluctuations in renewable energy resources, are often overlooked in efforts to mitigate environmental impacts. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has initiated the development of resilient energyshed management systems, requiring detailed information on the local electricity mix and its environmental impacts. This study supports DOE's goal by incorporating geographic and temporal variations in the electricity mix of the local electric grid to better understand the environmental impacts of electricity end users. We offer hourly estimates of the U.S. electricity mix, detailing fuel types, water withdrawal intensity, and water consumption intensity for each grid balancing authority through our publicly accessible tool, the Water Integrated Mapping of Power and Carbon Tracker (Water IMPACT). While our primary focus is on evaluating water intensity factors, our dataset and programming scripts for historical and real‐time analysis also include evaluations of carbon dioxide (equivalence) intensity within the same modeling framework. This integrated approach offers a comprehensive understanding of the environmental footprint associated with electricity generation and use, enabling informed decision‐making to effectively reduce Scope 2 water usage and emissions. 
    more » « less
  5. ; ; ; (, Energy Technology)
    There are water consequences across every life cycle stage of coal‐fired electricity consumption, from production and processing to combustion, which have not been studied with regional specificity. There is often a spatial decoupling between where coal is produced and processed versus where it is combusted for power generation, complicating any analysis to estimate the life cycle water implications of electricity consumption. Furthermore, electricity generated by coal‐fired power plants can be consumed within its own balancing authority or exported to another balancing authority. This analysis spatially resolves the water consumed and water withdrawn for coal mining, coal preparation, and power plant cooling from 1) where the coal is mined to where the coal is burned for power production and 2) where the electricity is generated to where the electricity is consumed. Although the largest portion of coal consumed came from the Northern Great Plains province, coal from this region consumes the least amount of water for mining and preparation compared with other provinces. Water withdrawals for cooling power plants within each balancing authority are driven by cooling technology. Due to the interconnected grid, there can be differences between attributing water footprint at the producer level versus the consumer level. 
    more » « less
  • Citation Formats
  • MLA
  • APA
  • Chicago
  • BibTeX
  • Save / Share this Record
  • Send to Email