My work was instrumental in the team’s development of the proposal. When we were in the brainstorming stages, I was assigned to the ‘Extravehicular Activities (EVA) Suit’ team. We threw around ideas such as a dust-removing laser and a magnetic brush. However, a group of my friends and I did a lot of research on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and their use as electrodes. I focused on researching the electrical properties of the dust, how electrodes will affect it, and the safety concerns of attaching electrodes to a suit. We proposed to the team as a whole that CNTs can create an electric field, and implementing them onto a suit would be an efficient way to mitigate dust.

The team ultimately took up the idea and it became the focus of our 2021 submission. While the pitch as a whole would be an entire suit, we decided that if we got funding, we would design a glove as a prototype. The glove will consist of a replica glove of the xEMU suit, the suit that NASA designed for the Artemis missions. The glove will have several CNT electrodes that will create an electric field. These will be in several different patterns, as seen in the picture above. The varying patterns will assist in reducing issues when joints bend. The glove will also have a control unit and user interface, allowing the user to control power settings and an on/off switch. Because the Artemis missions will occur at the south pole of the Moon, where temperatures range between -49° C to -243° C, a thermal system will be implemented to ensure the system operates as need. 

After finalizing our idea, the next step was to write a proposal. I did an extensive amount of writing and research on the CNTs and lead the effort in the safety sections. My research ultimately resulted in the development of an emergency release strap that would cut electricity in the event of electrical arching. Also, my investigation of carbon nanotube properties, variations, and production instituted a promising outline of the technology. Also, my safety section outlined both previously known and self-determined safety concerns, such as electrical arching, CNT toxicity, and interference with life support systems. 

The results of this competition were announced on January 29th, 2021. Unfortunately, our team was not selected for further funding. We were up against some tough competition, as the selected projects look phenomenal. Either way, I am unbelievably proud of my team and of the winning teams.

If the project got funding and we continued its development, I would have been involved in the structures subsystem. Structures would have created the housing and physical assembly of the glove. We would have additionally collaborated with the other subsystems to ensure that everything came together as planned.