Making solar panels from Moon dust

BLUE Origin, Jeff Bezos' aerospace company, has unveiled a unique process for making solar cells using lunar regolith, or Moon dust, with zero carbon emissions and with no toxic products.

To do this, Blue Origin used simulated regolith, recreating the dirt found on the surface of the Moon. Since no resources from the Moon are currently available, Blue Origin had to start by making regolith simulants in its laboratory, maintaining the composition and properties of the real thing.

Using this, it was then possible to obtain all the components of a solar cell, by means of electrolysis.

This technology, called Blue Alchemist, uses electrolysis at more than 1,600 degrees Celsius to obtain iron, aluminum and silicon -- all elements necessary in the manufacture of solar cells -- from regolith simulants.

Not only does this process make it possible to obtain silicon, but this is over 99.999% pure. It is precisely this purity that will enable the creation of truly efficient solar cells. Until now, to obtain silicon as pure as possible, large quantities of toxic chemicals have generally been used.

As a result, these solar cells are manufactured with zero carbon emissions, without water and without polluting ingredients.

In the future, Moon regolith could be used to produce solar cells with optimized efficiency, for use both on Earth and on the Moon, to supply energy to future stations on-site, for example.

In a lunar setting, a special cover glass would be required to ensure that these cells function correctly, without wearing out too quickly.

This discovery comes at a time when NASA is in the midst of reclaiming the Moon with its manned Artemis program, which is expected to send a crew to the Moon in 2025 for the first time in over 50 years. Note that Blue Origin hopes to play a role in the program with its new lunar lander project.