This research is a bit brain-taxing! ! The “Machine Chemist” at the University of Science and Technology of China uses Martian meteorites to intelligently create oxygen-producing catalysts

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Recently, a team led by professors Luo Yi and Jiang Jun from the University of Science and Technology of China, along with associate professor Shang Weiwei, in collaboration with researcher Zhang Zhe from the Deep Space Exploration Laboratory, used the university’s “Machine Chemist” “Xiao Lai” platform to effectively integrate artificial intelligence with automated machine experiments, thereby producing practical oxygen-generation electrocatalysts from Martian meteorites. 　　Moving to Mars is humanity’s dream, but first, the problem of lack of oxygen must be solved. The possible existence of water resources on Mars presents an opportunity to produce oxygen using solar-powered electrocatalytic oxygen evolution reactions. Humans cannot survive for long in the anaerobic environment of Mars; therefore, creating catalysts using local materials on Mars represents an insurmountable obstacle. 　　“Thanks to its precise automated operation capabilities, “Xiaolai” can carry out high-throughput experimental tasks. Meanwhile, its “computational brain” conducts quantum chemical simulations in parallel. By integrating large amounts of theoretical data with relatively limited experimental data, it generates machine learning models with predictive capabilities. Ultimately, it employs the Bayesian optimization algorithm to predict and experimentally verify the globally optimal catalyst formulation. 　　This integrated theory-practice research paradigm accelerates the discovery of new materials by enabling the rapid identification of the best combinations from millions of possible formulations. In this study, “Xiao Lai” completed the complex optimization task, which would have taken 2000 years to finish through exhaustive methods, within just 2 months. 　　The Machine Chemist system utilizes Martian meteorites to enable an automated process for creating oxygen-producing catalysts; it consists of mobile robots, a computing brain, cloud servers, and multiple chemical workstations with different functions. The machine automation process for the dual internal and external circulation integrates steps ranging from raw material preparation, sample synthesis, performance characterization to formula optimization. 　　This work successfully demonstrates an intelligent, end-to-end process for synthesizing chemicals tailored to the conditions of extragalactic galaxies, providing new technical approaches for the exploration of extraterrestrial civilizations in the future. It also offers a unique solution for China to achieve in-situ comprehensive utilization of interstellar resources on future lunar and Martian space stations. 　　The research findings were published in the international journal Nature Synthesis. International reviewers commented, “This paper describes an exciting method for synthesizing OER catalysts on Mars using a ‘machine chemist’ system,” and noted that it represents a typical example of the combination of artificial intelligence and automation for designing and manufacturing complex materials in challenging environments.