Study: AI Robot Finds Way to Produce Oxygen from Water on Mars

Study: AI Robot Finds Way to Produce Oxygen from Water on Mars

AI机器人找到了在火星上从水中制造氧气的方法

【原文听力】

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　　By Bryan Lynn

　　19 November 2023

　　Chinese researchers say they have built an artificial intelligence (AI) robot that can carry out chemical reactions to produce oxygen from water on Mars.

　　The system could be another way for space travelers in the future to make much-needed oxygen on Mars. Humans visiting the Red Planet will need oxygen to support life. The gas could also be used to make rocket fuel, which is difficult to transport to space.

　　Scientists have already established from multiple studies that Mars contains large amounts of water. Most of the water exists in the form of ice. Developers of the new robot system in China say it can be used to release oxygen from the planet's water supply.

　　Scientists at the University of Science and Technology of China in Hefei led the research. The team explored whether an AI robot could use materials found on Mars to produce catalysts to break down water and release oxygen. A catalyst is a substance that permits certain chemical reactions to happen.

　　Experiments were carried out on meteorites that either came from Mars or contained materials similar to the Martian surface. The researchers said the "robot chemist" first used an acid and chemical mixture to separate and examine materials contained in the meteorites. It identified several different metallic elements, including iron, nickel, magnesium and aluminum.

　　The machine then worked to identify different molecules that could be produced from meteorite materials. The team said the system found more than 3.7 million possible molecule combinations.

　　The robot used that data to predict which catalysts would be able to split water molecules to produce oxygen. The catalyst chosen as the best fit was able to operate at minus 37 degrees Celsius. This temperature is similar to current conditions on Mars.

　　A press release announcing the experimental findings said the AI chemist was able to complete the whole process without human involvement in just two months. The release claimed such an operation "would take 2000 years for a human chemist" to finish.

　　The publication Nature Synthesis reported the full results of the study.

　　The study's lead writer, Jun Jiang, told the website Space.com that as a boy, he often dreamed of being able to one day travel in space. "So when we finally saw that the catalysts made by the robot could actually produce oxygen by splitting water molecules, I felt like my dream was coming true. I even started to imagine that I, myself, will live on Mars in the future."

　　The researchers said they plan next to test whether their AI system performs well under a series of other conditions – besides temperature – found on Mars.

　　A report explaining the study's results in Nature notes Jiang suggests that for every square meter of Martian material, his group’s system could produce nearly 60 grams of oxygen per hour. The researchers say this level of production could remove the need for future astronauts to transport oxygen from Earth. "The robot can work continuously for years," Jiang said.

　　Jiang told Nature he thinks his team's robotic system could also be used to produce other useful catalysts on Mars. This could include processes for making substances to support the growth of plants that could be used to produce food for astronauts.

　　"Different chemicals can be made by this robot," Jiang said. He noted that Mars might also not be the only place where it could find other uses, suggesting the moon as another possibility.

　　I'm Bryan Lynn.

　　Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English, based on reports from the University of Science and Technology of China and Nature.

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　　作者：布莱恩·林恩

　　日期：2023年11月19日

　　中国的研究人员表示，他们已经构建了一个人工智能（AI）机器人，它可以进行化学反应，从火星上的水中制造氧气。

　　这个系统可能为未来的太空旅行者在火星上制造急需的氧气提供了另一种方式。访问红色星球的人类将需要氧气来维持生命。这种气体也可以用来制造火箭燃料，而火箭燃料很难运送到太空中。

　　科学家们已经通过多项研究确定，火星含有大量的水分。大部分水以冰的形式存在。中国新型机器人系统的开发者表示，它可以用来从火星的水资源中释放氧气。

　　中国科学技术大学的科学家们在合肥领导了这项研究。该团队探索了一个AI机器人是否能使用在火星上找到的材料来生产催化剂，分解水并释放氧气。催化剂是一种能让某些化学反应发生的物质。

　　实验是在来自火星或含有类似于火星表面材料的陨石上进行的。研究人员表示，“机器人化学家”首先使用酸和化学混合物来分离和检查陨石中的材料。它识别出了几种不同的金属元素，包括铁、镍、镁和铝。

　　然后，这台机器开始寻找可以从陨石材料中产生的不同分子。团队表示，该系统找到了超过370万种可能的分子组合。

　　机器人利用这些数据预测哪些催化剂能够分解水分子以产生氧气。被选为最佳匹配的催化剂能在零下37摄氏度的环境下工作。这个温度与火星当前的条件相似。

　　一份公布实验结果的新闻稿表示，AI化学家能在仅仅两个月内完成整个过程，而无需人类参与。新闻稿声称，这样的操作“对于人类化学家来说需要2000年”才能完成。

　　《自然合成》杂志报道了这项研究的全部结果。

　　该研究的主要作者，姜军，告诉Space.com网站，他小时候经常梦想着有一天能够在太空中旅行。“所以，当我们最终看到由机器人制造的催化剂实际上可以通过分解水分子来产生氧气时，我感觉我的梦想正在成真。我甚至开始想象我自己将来会在火星上生活。”

　　研究人员表示，他们接下来计划测试他们的AI系统在火星上发现的一系列其他条件（除了温度）下的表现如何。

　　《自然》杂志上一篇解释研究结果的报告指出，姜军建议，对于每平方米的火星材料，他的团队的系统每小时可以产生近60克的氧气。研究人员表示，这种生产水平可能会消除未来宇航员从地球运送氧气的需要。“这个机器人可以连续工作几年，”姜军说。

　　姜军告诉《自然》杂志，他认为他的团队的机器人系统也可以用来在火星上生产其他有用的催化剂。这可能包括制造支持植物生长的物质的过程，这些植物可以用来为宇航员生产食物。

　　"这个机器人可以制造不同的化学物质，"姜军说。他指出，火星可能也不是唯一一个可以找到其他用途的地方，他还提到了月球作为另一种可能性。

　　我是布莱恩·林恩。

　　布莱恩·林恩为VOA学英语撰写了这篇报道，报道基于中国科学技术大学和《自然》杂志的报告。

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　　这个故事中的词汇

　　meteorite – n. 来自外太空的一块岩石，已经落到了行星的表面。