Leonard David's INSIDE OUTER SPACE

Image credit: Huazhong University

Space travelers aboard China’s space station are soon to affix bricks made of Moon simulant to the outside of the station’s Wentian module.

The experiment involves brick samples to test techniques for fabricating lunar housing at the Moon’s south pole region.

According to the Xinhua news agency, future lunar domiciles make use of “mortise-and-tenon” fabrication, joining pieces at right angles without the use of nails.

“The earliest example of this technique dates back 7,000 years to the Hemudu culture in east China’s Zhejiang Province,” the Xinhua report adds.

Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab

Space exposure

Concocted by a team at Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST) in Wuhan, the brick samples weigh 226 grams and are simulated lunar regolith based on authentic samples brought back to Earth from the Moon by China’s Chang’e-5 robotic mission in December 2020.

Ding Lieyun, a professor at HUST, leads the work on interlocking joints on the Moon for assembly of habitats.

Chinese team on lunar habitat construction is led by Ding Lieyun at central China’s Huazhong University.
Image credit: CCTV/nside Outer Space

Once placed outside the Wentian module, the lunar bricks are to provide data about their resilience to temperature extremes and cosmic radiation. They were brought up from Earth to the orbiting outpost by the Tianzhou-8 supply ship last month.

The Wentian module is outfitted with 22 standard payload interfaces outboard for conducting extravehicular exposure experiments, Xinhua notes.

Cylindrical/slab forms

The brick samples in the experiment, divided into three groups, come in cylindrical and slab forms: the cylinders test mechanical integrity, while the slabs appraise insulation and heat resistance.

Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab

These first samples are to be retrieved from their space exposure by the end of 2025. A second retrieval is slated for 2026, followed by the last retrieval in 2027.

According to the Xinhua news story, Ding’s team made use of a brick-making process that uses a caustic soda solution or sulfur to solidify lunar regolith. Volcanic ash from Changbai Mountain in northeast China’s Jilin Province closely mirrors the composition of lunar regolith.

The set of experimental bricks were prepared using three sintering techniques: vacuum, inert gas and air sintering.

Lunar building specialist, Zhou Cheng, a professor at the National Center of Technology Innovation for Digital Construction.
Image credit: CCTV/Inside Outer Space screengrab

Lunar dwelling design

HUST research includes development of a robotic system to handle the assembly, with the final step involving the use of 3D printing to reinforce the structure.

At China’s National Center of Technology Innovation for Digital Construction (NCTI-DC), a center under the HUST, lunar dwelling designs are being evaluated. A building model takes on the look of a vertically oriented eggshell structure, divided into an upper work area and a lower rest area.

Research is also underway for fabricating a Lego-like lunar base and a lunar landing pad, the Xinhua news agency story points out.

Image credit: Huazhong University