Non-thermal plasma technology offers distinct advantages, including low-temperature startup, rapid transient response, direct electrification, and intrinsic adaptability to the low-pressure CO₂ Martian atmosphere, making it a premier candidate for in situ resource utilization (ISRU) and oxygen production on Mars. However, critical bottlenecks persist: the underlying CO₂ dissociation pathways and energy transfer mechanisms across diverse discharge regimes remain elusive, and a quantitative mapping between key operating parameters and conversion performance is still lacking, thereby impeding the optimal design of plasma-based ISRU systems. Here, we present a unified plasma kinetic modeling framework tailored for Martian CO2 conversion by coupling the electron Boltzmann equation, chemical reaction kinetics, state-to-state vibrational kinetics, gas thermal balance equations, and surface reaction models. This framework systematically captures electron-impact excitation, vibrational kinetics, dissociation, ionization, recombination, thermal-chemical reactions, and surface losses across microwave, radio-frequency, direct-current, nanosecond-pulsed, and high-energy intense pulsed discharges. The model is validated against experimental data spanning CO₂ conversion, product distribution, gas temperature, and electron density under diverse operating conditions, demonstrating robust fidelity and broad cross-regime applicability. Leveraging this unified framework, we investigate the impacts of Martian ambient conditions, discharge operating parameters, reactor geometry, and surface/chemical parameters on dissociation pathways, energy branching, and conversion metrics. The competitive and dominant roles of direct electron-impact dissociation, vibrational ladder climbing, thermal-chemical decomposition, and reverse recombination are comprehensively elucidated. Finally, design guidelines regarding discharge regime selection, operating parameter optimization, product quenching, and surface regulation are formulated for low-pressure Martian CO₂ conversion. This work establishes a solid theoretical foundation and a versatile numerical platform for Martian in situ oxygen generation and carbon–oxygen resource looping.

Martian Atmosphere,In-situ CO2 utilization,Plasma technology,Unified kinetic framework,Reaction pathways