Date of Award
2025
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science in Textiles, Fashion Merchandising and Design
Specialization
Textile Research
Department
Textiles, Fashion Merchandising and Design
First Advisor
Izabela Ciesieska Wrobel
Abstract
During human space travel, oxygen (O2) must be stored and carried aboard the shuttle for the entire journey; compressed O2 is highly flammable and combustible, thus doing so puts the crew’s lives at risk in the event of a fire (Mandel, 2019). By creating O2 onsite, the necessity of compressed O2 canisters and the associated risks can be reduced or erased entirely. Photosynthesis, the process through which plants convert atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) into O2, is one method of creating O2 (Lorch, 2020). The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has experimented with photosynthetic O2 systems since its inception but has not yet been able to develop a fail-safe, bioregenerative O2 system (Aronowsky, 2018; Hanrahan & Bushnell, 1960; Settles, 2024). The purpose of this experiment series was to explore the technical O2 output of photosynthetic textile surfaces in low-O2 environments such as space.
Previous NASA experiments relied on algae species from the Chlorella genus (CH Algae) (Aronowsky, 2018). In 2019, textile researcher Roya Aghighi created the first photosynthetic textile using Chlamydomonas reinhardtii (RH Algae) as its main photosynthetic source (Aghighi, 2019). The cyanobacteria, Spirulina major (SP Cyanobacteria), has also been favored for experimental textile development as well as for current experiments studying photosynthetic O2 production for space (Karaduman et al, 2022; Settles, 2024). These three microorganisms were evaluated for O2 output in initial single-factor pilot studies which showed RH Algae, CH Algae, and SP Cyanobacteria all have significant impacts on O2 levels within the chamber when exposed to the same controlled environment; SP Cyanobacteria produced significantly more O2 than either RH or CH algae during the testing period (Campbell, 2023). These findings indicated that there is merit to exploring the use of SP Cyanobacteria for O2 production at a technical level.
In this thesis experiment, SP Cyanobacteria was bonded to a woven cotton textile using the biocompatible polysaccharide, Sodium Alginate (SA), and re-evaluated for any negative impact to its photosynthetic ability. The purpose of this final set of experiments is to evaluate the photosynthetic O2 output of SP Cyanobacteria when embedded into a textile base compared to its raw biomass source, and to observe whether the photosynthetic properties of the cyanobacteria had been preserved. The bonded samples were each introduced into a decompression chamber which was then flooded with CO2 gas to remove all preexisting O2. The sealed chamber as then placed under a white, visible spectrum light to induce photosynthesis.
The O2 levels in the chamber were monitored over the course of an hour using a gas sensor. The experiment was repeated using samples of the SP Cyanobacteria alone, SA on cotton fabric alone, unbonded SP Cyanobacteria, and an empty chamber. The results of each test were then compared to determine if the coating produced a significant amount of O2 and if it produced as much as the raw biomass samples. The results indicate that the bonded cyanobacteria material is an equivalent photosynthetic agent to raw cyanobacteria, producing a significant amount of O2 over the course of the experiment. Further research and development of photosynthetic technical textiles is merited as the coating created for this study was successful in producing O2, but not yet to the extent that it can passively generate a breathable atmosphere.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Campbell, Morgan, "LITTLE PROBLEMS: PHOTOSYNTHETIC TEXTILE TREATMENTS AS A SOURCE OF OXYGEN" (2025). Open Access Master's Theses. Paper 2654.
https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/theses/2654