Improved Electrostatic Precipitator in Martian Environment

Abstract

An electrostatic precipitator that is suitable for use in the Martian atmosphere has been investigated to remove dust from carbon dioxide gas. It is expected to be used as an in situ resource in the production of oxygen on Mars. This technology has several advantages, including a low drop in pressure, simple configuration, low power consumption, long life, and no required consumables. A prototype with a wire-to-parallel-plate electrode was constructed to investigate the fundamental characteristics of the system in a past study. A preliminary experiment revealed that the performance at low pressure (700 Pa), which simulates the Martian environment, was different from that at atmospheric pressure (101 kPa). The cleaning efficiency was a maximum of 75% at 700 Pa, while it was nearly 100% at 101 kPa. A modified precipitator consisting of multiwire and parallel-plate electrodes was constructed in this study to improve the system performance. The cleaning efficiency improved to approximately 95% after adopting a two-wire configuration with a low applied voltage and no corona discharge in low-pressure (700 Pa) carbon dioxide gas. Dust collected on the surfaces of the wire electrodes, unlike the case when the pressure was 101 kPa (1 atm). It was demonstrated that the deposited dust could be removed by applying mechanical vibration to the wires for a short period, which facilitates long-time operation.