Question

Discuss how oxygen is used in spacecraft's air supplies in at least 3 paragraphs.

Answer 1

Short-duration spacecraft typically have one backup system and carry their own supply of oxygen. A large portion of the required oxygen is produced on long-duration missions, such as the International Space Station (ISS), which has been in orbit since 1998. Different sources provide the oxygen utilized on the ISS. The water electrolyzer is the primary source of metabolic oxygen. As an alternative to the electrolyzer, oxygen candles (also known as SFOGs) can produce metabolic oxygen. Additionally, oxygen is carried up whenever a cargo ship docks and stored in two tanks on the ISS Airlock. The electrolyzer electrolyzes water to create oxygen by running an electric current through it. Since water is a poor electrical conductor by itself, a little quantity of common salt is dissolved in the water to improve its electrical conductivity. Water is split into hydrogen and oxygen throughout the process.

We must keep in mind that oxygen by itself cannot be inhaled; it must be combined in the proper ratio with nitrogen to make it breathable. Two tanks aboard the ISS are used to store nitrogen, and the cargo ships that travel by from time to time also transport nitrogen cylinders. Through the electrical grid of the station, the solar panels on the station supply the necessary electricity for the oxygen generators. The majority of the required water is transported to the station by cargo supply ships. Condensers, which draw water vapor even from the station's air, ensure that not a drop of water is wasted. Using the proper equipment, water is also recycled from the astronauts' urine.

Through a suitable vent, the hydrogen gas produced during the electrolysis process is released into space. Pressurized tanks at the airlock nodes at the space station are pumped with oxygen when the cargo vehicles arrive there. Pressurized tanks there are also pumped with nitrogen. It goes without saying that the station's atmospheric controls combine the gases in the right amounts for the atmosphere of Earth and then distribute the combination throughout the cabin. The production of oxygen in space is impossible.