EXPERIMENTAL REDUCTION OF LUNAR MARE SOIL AND VOLCANIC GLASS

We have reduced high-titanium lunar mare soil and iron-rich lunar volcanic glass with hydrogen at temperatures of 900-1100 degrees C. Ilmenite is the most reactive phase in the soil, exhibiting rapid and complete reduction at all temperatures. Ferrous iron in the glass is extensively reduced concurrent with partial crystallization. In both samples pyroxene and olivine undergo partial reduction along with chemical and mineralogical modifications. High-temperature reduction provides insight into the optical and chemical effects of lunar soil maturation, and places constraints on models of that process. Mate soil and volcanic glass ate attractive feedstocks for lunar oxygen production, with achievable yields of 2-5 wt%.