Blue Origin Constructs Solar Cells Out Of Manmade Lunar Dust

Solar panels, as many know, are a viable option in helping reduce the world’s reliance on fossil fuels. However, making solar panels does contribute to carbon emissions as well. So Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos’ space exploration company, figures that the Moon could actually help us harness power from the Sun in a more sustainable manner.

 
The company is employing a technique called ‘Blue Alchemist’ that uses solely lunar materials to create photovoltaic panels. Essentially, the process smelts Moondust (also known as lunar regolith) and turns its byproducts into solar cells.
 
Blue Origin first created a substance that was similar to lunar dust, before building a reactor to produce iron, silicon, and aluminum from molten regolith electrolysis. With the oxygen they were bonded to being released, it can now be channeled into life support for future colonies on the Moon as well.

From there, only sunlight is used to further purify the silicon extracted during the procedure to a purity of more than 99.999%. 

In order to turn these compounds into solar cells, the molten regolith electrolysis byproducts are used to create cover glass that can protect photovoltaic cells for up to 10 years, and the aluminum is used as wire.
 
The Blue Alchemist opens up the opportunity for Earth to adopt eco-friendly ways of creating solar cells that could lead to more sustainable efforts. On top of this, this also paves the way for electricity to be formed on the Moon, which could benefit the far-off dream of creating lunar colonies.
 
 
 
[via Engadget and PC Mag, images via Blue Origin]