Ultra-rapid direct dissociation of CO₂ with dense pulsed plasma jets for Martian oxygen production

Intense pulsed plasma jets with electron densities of in excess of 10²¹ m⁻³ and temperatures of ∼13 eV were used to dissociate CO₂ under Martian pressure conditions at 1–5 Torr for in-situ oxygen production. Our method demonstrated 20–50 times greater temporal efficiency than an RF plasma, which achieved a 23 % conversion in ∼450 s. This advantage stems from our method’s reduced sensitivity to non-thermal back reactions and thermal recombination, as well as its notably short CO₂ dissociation time of just 5 nanoseconds. A peak conversion rate of 33.29 % was reached at 1 Torr, with an O₂ produced mass of 5.5 mg per pulse at 5 Torr. Energy efficiency reached 7.2 % at a low specific energy input (SEI) of less than < 11 eV/molecule, surpassing RF and DC plasmas which feature 1.6 %, although all plasma systems exhibit reduced efficiency at low pressures due to high SEI from low molecular density. These findings highlight pulsed plasma jets as a promising, scalable solution for rapid oxygen generation on Mars, with optimization via larger chambers and possibly catalysts approach.