Latest news with #LolanNaicker
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Gloucestershire scientists win prize for inventing ‘lunar microwave' to purify moon water
UK scientists have won a £150,000 prize for creating a device inspired by a microwave - which can create drinkable water on the moon. Gloucestershire-based Naicker Scientific built a cutting-edge system to purify water buried underneath the lunar surface. Inspired by technology found in a kitchen microwave, the SonoChem System uses microwaves and ultrasound to defrost and break down contaminates in water extracted from the Moon's frozen soil. The technology can create clean drinking water for astronauts - a crucial step in supporting long-term lunar missions. 'Imagine digging up the soil in your back garden in the middle of winter and trying to extract frozen water to drink,' said Lolan Naicker, the technical director of Naicker Scientific. 'Now imagine doing it in an environment that is -200°C, a nearly perfect vacuum, under low gravity, and with very little electrical power. That's what we will have to overcome on the Moon. 'If we can make the SonoChem System work there, we can make it work anywhere, whether that's on Mars' glaciers, or here on Earth in regions where accessing clean water is still a challenge'. The SonoChem System uses groundbreaking core technology to purify water from lunar ice. Harnessing powerful sound waves, it forms millions of tiny bubbles in contaminated water. The extreme temperature and pressure created within each micro bubble generates unstable atoms which are highly chemically reactive, which effectively removes contaminants. The invention won the Aqualunar Challenge, a £1.2 million international competition. The competition was set up between the UK and Canadian space agencies in the hopes it would drive innovation in water purification technologies for lunar exploration. Meganne Christian, chair of the Aqualunar Challenge judging panel, said the challenge was set up as NASA set a goal of establishing a permanent crewed base on the Moon by the end of the decade. 'Astronauts will need a reliable supply of water for drinking and growing food, as well as oxygen for air and hydrogen for fuel,' she said. '5.6 per cent of the soil (known as 'regolith') around the moon's south pole is estimated to be water frozen as ice. 'If it can be successfully extracted, separated from the soil and purified, it makes a crewed base viable.' Naicker Scientific was awarded the £150,000 first prize, with two runners up winning £100,000 and £50,000 respectively. Half the prizes were awarded to UK-led teams, and the other half were awarded to Canadian-led teams. UK Science Minister, Lord Vallance said: 'The Aqualunar Challenge was set up to overcome one of the most significant obstacles to humans surviving on the moon or other planets – the availability of clean drinking water. 'By teaming up with our Canadian partners and harnessing the wealth of talent and creativity found across the UK, the challenge has uncovered a range of new ideas, including Naicker Scientific's SonoChem system.'
The Independent
28-03-2025
- Science
- The Independent
Gloucestershire scientists win prize for inventing ‘lunar microwave' to purify moon water
UK scientists have won a £150,000 prize for creating a device inspired by a microwave - which can create drinkable water on the moon. Gloucestershire -based Naicker Scientific built a cutting-edge system to purify water buried underneath the lunar surface. Inspired by technology found in a kitchen microwave, the SonoChem System uses microwaves and ultrasound to defrost and break down contaminates in water extracted from the Moon 's frozen soil. The technology can create clean drinking water for astronauts - a crucial step in supporting long-term lunar missions. 'Imagine digging up the soil in your back garden in the middle of winter and trying to extract frozen water to drink,' said Lolan Naicker, the technical director of Naicker Scientific. 'Now imagine doing it in an environment that is -200°C, a nearly perfect vacuum, under low gravity, and with very little electrical power. That's what we will have to overcome on the Moon. 'If we can make the SonoChem System work there, we can make it work anywhere, whether that's on Mars' glaciers, or here on Earth in regions where accessing clean water is still a challenge'. The SonoChem System uses groundbreaking core technology to purify water from lunar ice. Harnessing powerful sound waves, it forms millions of tiny bubbles in contaminated water. The extreme temperature and pressure created within each micro bubble generates unstable atoms which are highly chemically reactive, which effectively removes contaminants. The invention won the Aqualunar Challenge, a £1.2 million international competition. The competition was set up between the UK and Canadian space agencies in the hopes it would drive innovation in water purification technologies for lunar exploration. Meganne Christian, chair of the Aqualunar Challenge judging panel, said the challenge was set up as NASA set a goal of establishing a permanent crewed base on the Moon by the end of the decade. 'Astronauts will need a reliable supply of water for drinking and growing food, as well as oxygen for air and hydrogen for fuel,' she said. '5.6 per cent of the soil (known as 'regolith') around the moon's south pole is estimated to be water frozen as ice. 'If it can be successfully extracted, separated from the soil and purified, it makes a crewed base viable.' Naicker Scientific was awarded the £150,000 first prize, with two runners up winning £100,000 and £50,000 respectively. Half the prizes were awarded to UK-led teams, and the other half were awarded to Canadian-led teams. UK Science Minister, Lord Vallance said: 'The Aqualunar Challenge was set up to overcome one of the most significant obstacles to humans surviving on the moon or other planets – the availability of clean drinking water. 'By teaming up with our Canadian partners and harnessing the wealth of talent and creativity found across the UK, the challenge has uncovered a range of new ideas, including Naicker Scientific's SonoChem system.'
The National
28-03-2025
- Science
- The National
Aqualunar Challenge: Lunar microwave purifies ice to create drinking water for astronauts
A technology that uses microwaves to melt lunar ice has been developed to provide clean, drinkable water for astronauts. The technique, which also uses ultrasound to break down contaminants, has won the UK Space Agency-funded Aqualunar Challenge, an international prize for technologies seeking to make human habitation on the lunar surface possible. Countries around the world are planning lunar missions and the UAE's next goal in space is to place an Emirati astronaut on the surface of the Moon within 10 years. About 5 per cent of the soil around the Moon's south pole is estimated to be water frozen as ice. If it can be successfully extracted, separated from the soil and purified, it would make a crewed base viable. SonoChem System by Naicker Scientific, based in Gloucestershire, England, was named the winner for its innovative use of microwaves and ultrasound to generate millions of microbubbles in melted lunar ice. The extreme temperature and pressure created within each micro bubble generates free radicals (unstable atoms which are highly chemically reactive) which effectively removes contaminants. The Aqualunar Challenge is a £1.2 million international prize funded by the UK Space Agency's International Bilateral Fund. Nasa has set the goal of establishing a permanent crewed base on the Moon by the end of the decade. Its Artemis programme is supported by the UK Space Agency through its membership of the European Space Agency. Panel chairman Meganne Christian of the UK Space Agency said the challenge was required as "astronauts will need a reliable supply of water for drinking and growing food, as well as oxygen for air and hydrogen for fuel". Lolan Naicker, technical director of Naicker Scientific said: "Imagine digging up the soil in your back garden in the middle of winter and trying to extract frozen water to drink. Now imagine doing it in an environment that is -200°C, a nearly perfect vacuum, under low gravity, and with very little electrical power. That's what we will have to overcome on the Moon. "If we can make the SonoChem System work there, we can make it work anywhere, whether that's on Mars' glaciers, or here on Earth in regions where accessing clean water is still a challenge." The UK's Science Minister, Lord Patrick Vallance, has said many of these ideas suggested during the challenge could not only fuel future space exploration, but also help improve lives and solve water shortages on Earth. Naicker Scientific was awarded the £150,000 first prize. Frank, by father-and-sons team RedSpace, and AqualunarPure, from a team at Queen Mary University – both from London – were named runners-up. AqualunarPure's system would use a reactor to melt lunar ice to separate the dust and rock particles, then heats it to more than 373°C at 220 bars of pressure to turn it into 'supercritical water' – not a solid, liquid or gas, but a fourth state that appears like a thick vapour – in which oxidation will remove all the contaminants in one step.
