Chinese scientists say AI chemist can create catalysts to make oxygen from Martian meteorites
- Robot found optimal formula that was tested in simulated low-temperature conditions of Mars, according to researchers
- They hope it will be able to help produce oxygen and other chemical elements needed for long stays on the red planet
The researchers said the robot found an optimal catalyst formula from more than 3.7 million possibilities in less than two months. They estimated that screening process would take some 2,000 years for humans to carry out.
The catalyst produced was tested in simulated low-temperature Martian conditions, according to the team led by the University of Science and Technology of China in Hefei, Anhui province.
Oxygen is rare on Mars. Its atmosphere – which is much thinner than Earth’s – is mainly composed of carbon dioxide. Oxygen only makes up 0.13 per cent of the air there, compared to 21 per cent on our planet.
While it cannot be replenished from the Martian atmosphere, oxygen is a “top priority for any human activity on Mars because rocket propellants and life support systems consume substantial amounts of oxygen”, the scientists wrote in an article published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature Synthesis on Tuesday.
“Here we demonstrate a robotic artificial-intelligence chemist for automated synthesis and intelligent optimisation of catalysts for the oxygen evolution reaction from Martian meteorites,” the team said.
“The entire process, including Martian ore pre-treatment, catalyst synthesis, characterisation, testing and, most importantly, the search for the optimal catalyst formula, is performed without human intervention.”
