Selective Laser Melting (MSLM) for the Construction of Infrastructures on the Moon

When setting up a lunar station, technologies for the use of locally available materials are crucial. Such technologies drastically reduce the need for transportation from Earth. This project idea aims to provide proof of a key technology, namely Mobile – Selective Laser Melting (M-SLM) for building large structures on the Moon. A mobile high power laser beam is directed on lunar regolith leading to its melting and after cooling to solid structures. In an independent study, we designed the MOONRISE payload up to an engineering model (EM). This consists of a high-power laser capable of melting regolith at a fixed spot. This project explored beam deflection concepts and their suitability for space applications with the goal to produce 2D-printed parts made of laser sintered lunar regolith simulant. A laser setup based on the parameters derived from the MOONRISE EM was used as a basis and was upgraded with a galvanometer scanner, which made it possible to deflect the laser beam without the need for an external motion system (e.g. a robotic arm). The Laser Zentrum Hannover e.V. (LZH) carried out laser processing tests in a vacuum chamber with the lunar regolith simulants from TU Berlin (TUB). Multiple parameters for the generation of 1D and 2D regolith structures were tested by LZH and analysed by TUB. Overall, the project showed that it is possible to build continuous 2D structures with different lunar regolith simulants. Furthermore, this study investigated state-of-the-art scanning technologies and their potential use in space projects.