TA2 Facility 23 – Open University Flow Through Chambers
Average visit: 5 days
The environmental simulation chambers at the Open University are capable of sustaining a range of pressures and temperatures to simulate the near- and sub-surface environments of Mars and the icy moons of Europa and Enceladus. The novel characteristic of these high-pressure chambers is their capability of continuously flowing fluid through the chamber whilst simultaneously sampling chamber fluids (under anaerobic conditions), making them an open-system and more realistic to natural environments. The facility currently consists of two chambers:
- Chamber 1 – has a chamber volume of 300 ml, a temperature range going from ambient to 350 °C and a pressure range of 0 to 50 bar.
- Chamber 2 – has a chamber volume of 600 ml, a temperature range of -10 to 150 °C and a pressure range of 0 to 300 bar.Each chamber also possesses a magnetic stirrer and a temperature logging function.
The facility also has the capacity to make bespoke gas mixtures, which can be flushed into the chambers. These chambers are suitable for investigating, water-rock and water-rock-atmosphere reactions, and microbial growth experiments.
Contact:
Karen Olsson Francis, The Open University, Walton Hall, Milton Keynes, MK7 6AA, UK. Karen.Olsson-Francis@open.ac.uk
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