Feasibility of additive manufacturing processes for lunar soil simulants

Combination of In-situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) and on-site Additive Manufacturing (AM) is one of the “outer space applied technologies” candidates where free shape fabrication from micro (e.g., tools) to mega scale (e.g. lunar habitats) will allow in coming future to settle the Moon or potentially other celestial bodies. Within this research, Selected Laser Melting (SLM) of lunar soil (regolith) simulants (LHS-1 LMS-1 and JSC-2A) using a continuous wave 100 W 1090 nm fiber laser was applied. The resulting samples were mechanically and optically characterized. A numerical multiphysics model was developed to understand the heat transfer and optimize the SLM process. Results obtained are in good agreement with the numerical model. The physical and chemical characteristics of the various materials (granulometry, density, composition, and thermal properties) have a strong impact on the AM parameters.