Researchers Develop Lunar Regolith Composites for Sustainable Manufacturing on the Moon

Efforts to establish a permanent human presence on the Moon are moving forward. One of the major projects aiming to accomplish this feat is, for example, NASA’s Artemis program. As you can imagine, this goal brings with it countless challenges, one of them being the logistics of building with materials from Earth. Since the program’s launch, there have been several proposals, and today we present the most recent. This is a study from Concordia University in Canada that proposes using regolith as a raw material for building on the Moon.

The scientific article presenting this solution was recently published in the arXiv repository. In it, scientists explore the manufacture of a 3D printing material based on PEEK (polyetheretherketone) reinforced with a lunar regolith simulant. This could be used to produce parts, tools and even infrastructure directly on the Moon, taking advantage of local resources.

Example of the filament with some thickness inconsistencies. (Credit: arXiv)

When considering 3D printing on the Moon, one must consider factors like temperature, radiation and low gravity. Previous attempts to combine regolith with PEEK had failed due to extrusion complications. The harder regolith particles increased the torque (moment of force) in the extruder and limited the mineral content to a maximum of 30%. Furthermore, the parts were more porous, which reduced tensile strength and increased fragility.