China will soon test bricks made from artificial lunar soil on its Tiangong space station. The bricks will be sent to the station next month, where they will undergo a three-year experiment. The goal is to observe how the bricks degrade under radiation and temperature changes in space.
Ding, who heads the National Centre of Technology Innovation for Digital Construction at a Chinese university, said the bricks can be baked to a strength of 100 megapascals on Earth. This is significantly harder than concrete. However, more research is needed to see if these bricks can withstand the harsh lunar environment.
The experiment is an important step in China’s plan to build a research base on the moon. The results could help inform future construction methods on the lunar surface. China’s lunar exploration project, the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), is expanding.
By 2050, the ILRS will grow into a network of research facilities on the moon. These facilities will be located at the south pole, equator, and far side of the moon. China and Russia first proposed the ILRS in 2017.
The goal is to create a comprehensive platform for scientific research and resource use on the moon. The project will have long-term autonomous operations with occasional human participation. This makes it different from other lunar exploration initiatives.
The ILRS is often seen as a competitor to the US-led Artemis Programme. Despite this rivalry, the ILRS has received a lot of positive attention, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA). Dozens of state and sub-state entities have signed agreements to work with China on this groundbreaking lunar research project.
This collaboration is a milestone in international space exploration.
Testing lunar brick durability in space
It promises new opportunities for scientific discovery and technological advancement.
It also strengthens global partnerships in space development. China will send samples of bricks made from lunar soil simulant to its space station in the coming months. The goal is to test their durability in extreme conditions and potential use in building moon bases.
The bricks will be launched to the Tiangong space station on the upcoming Tianzhou 8 cargo mission. The bricks will be exposed to ultraviolet light, cosmic rays, and temperature differences for three years. This will test the strength and durability of the bricks in extreme environments.
It will also show how the materials behave in the vacuum of space. The experiment will give insight into which composition and methods of producing bricks from lunar soil will be best for building structures on the moon. One method for creating these bricks involves heating the simulant to over 1,830 degrees Fahrenheit (1,000 degrees Celsius) using electromagnetic induction in a sintering furnace.
This process fuses the material into solid structures, creating a 7-inch-long (18 centimeters) brick in just 10 minutes. Launching materials to the moon is very expensive. Using lunar resources locally could greatly reduce costs and increase possibilities for lunar exploration.
This is known as in-situ resource utilization (ISRU). China plans to build a moon base with partners in the 2030s, known as the ILRS. To prepare, the country will test 3D printing bricks on the moon with its Chang’e 8 lunar south pole lander and rover.
The mission is expected to launch around 2028. Both NASA and the European Space Agency have been working on creating bricks from lunar regolith simulants. NASA has previously tested cement-mixing tech aboard the International Space Station, focusing on creating materials for potential space habitats.
However, China’s experiment is expected to be the first to directly test the resilience of lunar soil bricks in space.
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