A new photovoltaic lunar dust removal technique based on the coplanar bipolar electrodes

Abstract

Lunar dust removal is one of the most important issues to be solved in lunar exploration. A lunar dust removal method based on the anomalous photovoltaic effect of lanthanum-modified lead zirconate titanate has been developed in our previous research which could be used for conductor surface dedusting. In this study, a novel lunar dust removal technique utilizing a couple of coplanar bipolar dust-removing electrodes is proposed. With this technique, lunar dust on different kinds of surface (conductor and nonconductor) can be reliably debrided. The working principle of this technique is introduced first, followed by a series of simulations and experiments which demonstrate that this technique can generate an adequate absorbing force on the lunar dust lying on the insulating or conducting surface and can provide ideal dedusting performance. Effects of electrode area and dust particle size on the dust removal efficiency are investigated. A crawler-type autonomous dust-removing device is developed in which a couple of flexible coplanar bipolar electrodes are designed as the crawler belts of the device. By controlling the path and velocity of the dust-removing device, a 95.3% dust removal rate was achieved in a dedusting test on a 500 × 400 mm2 plank. This study provides a new feasible method for future lunar dust removal mission.