"It's one of those scientific things where it's part of a larger body of work that will continue in many labs. The key here is that the more people that look at this problem from different viewpoints, the better it is,'" Norman Wagner, Unidel Robert L. Pigford Chair of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Delaware, tells IE.
"And the challenges will not only bring new, talented people to the problem but also existing scientists and other engineers who are working in a related field to read about the research and say, 'Oh, I can contribute to this," he continues.
Wagner and his colleagues are also on the bandwagon, with a less peculiar and more feasible concept - using clay-like topsoil materials collected from the moon or Mars as the base for extraterrestrial cement.
This mosaic shows layered sedimentary rocks in the face of a cliff in the delta, as well as one of the locations where the rover abraded a circular patch to analyze a rocks composition.
Space exploration will require infrastructure such as buildings, housing, bases, and rocket landing pads that don't yet exist.
For obvious reasons, including weight and space constraints, we can't take "bags of concrete with us we need to use local resources," Wagner says.
Fortunately, Wagner and his colleagues were already working on a couple of solutions for use on our planet, which proved to be largely helpful in their quest to 'make' concrete in space.
It started with finding a substitute for ordinary Portland cement, which has a "host of problems". "Firstly, it requires limestone, which isn't easy to find. Secondly, and more importantly, converting the limestone into a clinker is used to make concrete, which requires high-temperature processing and oxidation. This releases carbon dioxide. Cement production causes about seven to eight percent of all the carbon dioxide produced by humanity. It's a serious issue," Wagner tells me.
As a sustainable alternative, Wagner considered the idea of geopolymers.
Geopolymers are inorganic polymers formed from aluminosilicate minerals found in common clays everywhere. When mixed with a solvent that has a high pH, such as sodium silicate, the clay can be dissolved, freeing the aluminum and silicon inside to react with other materials and form new solid ceramic-like materials that can be used like cement.
Simultaneously, Wagner was also working with NASA on a couple of projects associated with the lunar and Martian regolith. This refers to a region of loose, unconsolidated rock and dust that sits atop a layer of bedrock - it is found on the Earth, other planets, and asteroids.
"We were working with NASA on regolith from the standpoint of the contamination of the spacesuits, which is a major problem. The Apollo astronauts got a tremendous amount of serious technological and health issues associated with the dust due to the regolith adhering to their clothing. It's very abrasive and is like volcanic ash," he explains.
The Gruithuisen Domes on the Moon are suspected to be formed by a magma rich in silica, similar in composition to granite.
Amid all this, Maria Katzarova, a former associate scientist and member of Wagners lab at UD, wondered if it was possible to activate simulated moon and Martian soils to become concrete-like building materials using geopolymer chemistry. She proposed the idea to NASA and obtained funding via the Delaware Space Grant Consortium. The project included the help and expertise of then-UD doctoral student Jennifer Mills, who studied terrestrial geopolymers for her doctoral dissertation.
"The two of them partnered up and studied the different regolith that you find on the Moon and Mars. And they looked at the literature and realized that there hadn't been a clear scientific sort of standardization of how we approached this problem," says Wagner.
The researchers took a series of the most common materials that NASA has identified through the various missions to the moon. They compared them in a head-to-head manner that hadn't been done before, "as to how we can activate them and how we can create high strength cement structure with the minimum amount of material required because obviously, we can't take a lot with us when we go to the Moon and Mars," says Wagner.
"We realized that the same chemistries we were using here on Earth to create essentially geopolymer cement are the same we need to do on the surface of the Moon and Mars when we go there to build landing pads and habitats," says Wagner, whose team worked on the problem and recently converted simulated lunar and Martian soils into geopolymer cement.
The results were published recently in Advances in Space Research.
A crushed geopolymer cube made from simulated lunar topsoil, inset shows magnification of lunar topsoil particles which have been activated and reacted to form the geopolymer binder.
For their research, the scientists mixed various simulated soils with sodium silicate then cast the geopolymer mixture into ice-cube-like molds and waited for the reaction to occur. After seven days, they measured each cubes size and weight, then crushed it to understand how the material behaves under load. They were intrigued to know if slight differences in chemistry between simulated soils affected the materials strength, according to a press release.
The researchers also calculated how much terrestrial material astronauts would need to take with them to build a landing pad on the surface of the moon or Mars. Fortunately, the estimated amount is well within the payload range of a rocket, anywhere from hundreds to thousands of kilograms.
Most importantly, the samples had to be subjected to different environments, including vacuum and very low and high temperatures.
"Looking at temperature and water are very important aspects of the problem. It is important to understand whether there are significant unexpected problems, or sometimes benefits, of being in an environment that's different than a controlled laboratory environment," Wagner says.
Under vacuum, some of the material samples did form cement, while others were only partially successful. While the geopolymer materials didnt react at all under low temperatures of about -80 degrees Celsius, at high temperatures, of about 600 degrees Celsius, the researchers found that every moon-like sample got stronger.
Based on their results, the researchers figured that chemical composition and particle size were likely to play an important role in material strength.
But, due to the complex chemistry involved, the problem comes with a unique set of challenges every time.
"The molecular chemistry of these materials is so rich, and there are so many variations - a single method could produce two different samples, one of which will never lead to a viable engineering solution. And so we need to use tools like machine learning and artificial intelligence to accurately and rapidly process the materials. Unfortunately, where we are right now, the challenge is that we don't have a Ph.D. understanding of the problem from a scientific perspective, and that's what we're working on," says Wagner.
Wagner's team currently has a partnership with Georgetown University and Northeastern University funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), under the division of materials research, owing to their work on sustainable materials.
The advances in machine learning and artificial intelligence will aid the researchers in developing rules and engineering solutions to this problem as the science is too "big" and it isn't technologically viable from an economic and techno-economic standpoint.
"If you go anywhere in the world and put a shovel in the ground and dig up clay, you will find different chemistry. The question is how much work do you need to do so that you don't have to do a lot of work to successfully make the best geopolymer cement out of that local material? Also, when the astronauts go to the moon, they won't have a gigantic laboratory or analytical tools to do experimental testing and determine the right way to make the best cement. So we need to have a better understanding of the variations and local chemistry of aluminum silicate materials, such that we can more effectively convert them into cement," explains Wagner.
The researchers will continue to study how to process the materials, including the use of microwaves to enhance the formation of these materials, "which we've already proved. It's interesting because it can aid in the ability to make materials, especially in places where you have extreme environments like on the Moon and Mars," says Wagner.
They're also broadening the understanding in terms of the complex chemistries involved.
"Our collaboration with the NSF is geared towards taking an unknown material and properly converting it to this geopolymer cement with high strength and durability in a sustainable manner, such that we can make a viable material, put it in a 3D printer, and print a house or something. It's not a challenge that can be solved by the traditional methods that have been used in the past - we need new ways of thinking about the problem. And that's what we're trying to do," Wagner continues.
The team hopes that NASA will be interested in the technology and will consider adapting some of it in their actual plans for the habitation of the Moon and Mars.
"But that's ongoing work," Wagner adds.
Read more from the original source:
Space cement could be used to build houses on Mars and the Moon - Interesting Engineering
- Industry coalition forms to protect GPS - POLITICO - Politico [Last Updated On: July 3rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 3rd, 2020]
- 'The Expanse' Is the Best Sci Fi on TV - The Mary Sue [Last Updated On: July 3rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 3rd, 2020]
- The Bare Minimum Number of Martian Settlers? 110 - Universe Today [Last Updated On: July 3rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 3rd, 2020]
- How many humans are needed to start a colony on Mars? - CTV News [Last Updated On: July 3rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 3rd, 2020]
- This Is How Many People You'd Need to Colonize Mars, According to Science - ScienceAlert [Last Updated On: July 3rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 3rd, 2020]
- According to New Equations, a Mars Colony Would Need This Many People - Futurism [Last Updated On: July 3rd, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 3rd, 2020]
- Space Outside, Sexism Inside: Mary Robinette Kowals The Relentless Moon - Den of Geek [Last Updated On: July 13th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 13th, 2020]
- Here are the three missions to Mars that are happening this month - CTV News [Last Updated On: July 13th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 13th, 2020]
- Bad weather may delay 1st UAE Mars mission on Japan rocket - CTV News [Last Updated On: July 13th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 13th, 2020]
- Alyssa Carson: The teenager on a mission to Mars - Siliconrepublic.com [Last Updated On: July 27th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 27th, 2020]
- TWITTER POLL: Arab world should invest in space exploration - Arab News [Last Updated On: July 27th, 2020] [Originally Added On: July 27th, 2020]
- A haunted train, a comedy show and karaoke: Entertainment in Calgary this weekend - CBC.ca [Last Updated On: October 20th, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 20th, 2020]
- The Expanse Is Basically Game of Thrones in Space - but Better - CBR - Comic Book Resources [Last Updated On: October 20th, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 20th, 2020]
- UK Space Agency hopes first woman on moon mission will make it key player - The Guardian [Last Updated On: October 20th, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 20th, 2020]
- Elon Musk getting a TV show that will reveal how he became genius space billionaire and Channing Tatum is - The Sun [Last Updated On: October 20th, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 20th, 2020]
- Huawei negotiating the sale of parts of Honor's smartphone business - comments - GSMArena.com [Last Updated On: October 20th, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 20th, 2020]
- Space 2069 - back to the Moon, to Mars and beyond - Room: The Space Journal - ROOM Space Journal [Last Updated On: October 20th, 2020] [Originally Added On: October 20th, 2020]
- Warface Has Released The Swarm Season Intro The Game - Bleeding Cool News [Last Updated On: November 29th, 2020] [Originally Added On: November 29th, 2020]
- How Our Technologies Are Shaping the Future We Live In - Programming Insider [Last Updated On: November 29th, 2020] [Originally Added On: November 29th, 2020]
- Visualizing the Human Impact on the Earth's Surface - Visual Capitalist [Last Updated On: November 29th, 2020] [Originally Added On: November 29th, 2020]
- The first Thanksgiving night sky: What did the Pilgrims see when they looked up? - Space.com [Last Updated On: November 29th, 2020] [Originally Added On: November 29th, 2020]
- Doctor Who: Where the 'Time Lord Victorious' Title Comes From - CBR - Comic Book Resources [Last Updated On: November 29th, 2020] [Originally Added On: November 29th, 2020]
- Gee whiz! An uppity-alien tells us how to live. - Johnson City Press (subscription) [Last Updated On: November 29th, 2020] [Originally Added On: November 29th, 2020]
- Mitochondria may be responsible for astronauts' health woes - The Burn-In [Last Updated On: November 29th, 2020] [Originally Added On: November 29th, 2020]
- Two motorbike concepts for riding on the Moon and Mars - Domus [Last Updated On: November 29th, 2020] [Originally Added On: November 29th, 2020]
- Astronauts experience these key changes in space that could impact their health, new research shows - WAAY [Last Updated On: November 29th, 2020] [Originally Added On: November 29th, 2020]
- SpaceX tests rocket that will 'SAVE humanity' by shuttling us to Mars - The Sun [Last Updated On: November 29th, 2020] [Originally Added On: November 29th, 2020]
- The best space board games of 2020 - Space.com [Last Updated On: November 29th, 2020] [Originally Added On: November 29th, 2020]
- Everything You Need to Know About the Mass Effect Timeline Before ME: Legendary Edition - GameRant [Last Updated On: December 30th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 30th, 2020]
- Trump will suffer from a mysterious disease, assassination attempt on Putin: Here are Bulgarian Blind Baba Vangas predictions for 2021 - OpIndia [Last Updated On: December 30th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 30th, 2020]
- The Midnight Sky Takes Us Into Spaceand a Bleak Near-Future - tor.com [Last Updated On: December 30th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 30th, 2020]
- This 27-course bundle can help you learn to code this new year for just $60 - The Next Web [Last Updated On: December 30th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 30th, 2020]
- On a planet where you cannot breathe, is living on Mars the best idea? - Florida Today [Last Updated On: December 30th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 30th, 2020]
- Elon Musk believes future Mars economy is going to be based on cryptocurrencies - Republic World [Last Updated On: December 30th, 2020] [Originally Added On: December 30th, 2020]
- This Brown University graduate may be the first woman to land on moon - IBTimes India [Last Updated On: January 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 19th, 2021]
- Starlink: Elon Musks space internet comes to UK as SpaceX CEO says it will help get people to Mars - The Independent [Last Updated On: January 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 19th, 2021]
- 'The Expanse' exclusive: Naomi and Filip have a heated family chat in new clip from season 5, episode 7 - Space.com [Last Updated On: January 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 19th, 2021]
- 14 Mars facts weve only learned in recent years - ZME Science [Last Updated On: January 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 19th, 2021]
- Martian Music: NASA to Record Mars' Ambient Sound Through Perseverance Mission for First Time Ever | The Weather Channel - Articles from The Weather... [Last Updated On: January 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 19th, 2021]
- Humans could move to this floating asteroid belt colony in the next 15 years, astrophysicist says - Livescience.com [Last Updated On: January 19th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 19th, 2021]
- Mass Effect Timeline Explained: The Classic Trilogy's Story and Yes, Andromeda, Too - Collider.com [Last Updated On: January 29th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 29th, 2021]
- New kind of space station detected - Alton Telegraph [Last Updated On: January 29th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 29th, 2021]
- Phosphine in Venus' clouds could be biosignature of life, rekindling idea of floating city - Daily Express [Last Updated On: January 29th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 29th, 2021]
- Team Behind Space Probe Headed To Mars Includes Staff From CU Boulder - Yahoo News [Last Updated On: January 29th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 29th, 2021]
- Mass Effect: 10 Things You Must Know About the Systems Alliance - TheGamer [Last Updated On: January 29th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 29th, 2021]
- Humans could be living in a 'floating asteroid belt colony' in 15 years' time, scientist says - New Zealand Herald [Last Updated On: January 29th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 29th, 2021]
- Elon Musk's plan to send one million people to Mars boosted with colonisation 'solution' - Daily Express [Last Updated On: January 29th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 29th, 2021]
- Starships Will be Launching From These Oil Drilling Platforms Bought by SpaceX - Universe Today [Last Updated On: January 29th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 29th, 2021]
- Humans could move to a floating asteroid belt colony within 15 years, top scientist suggests - pennlive.com [Last Updated On: January 29th, 2021] [Originally Added On: January 29th, 2021]
- Opinion | Why Biden must pursue space diplomacy with Russia and China - Politico [Last Updated On: February 2nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 2nd, 2021]
- Newly Invented Fusion Rocket Thruster Concept Might be Our Ticket to Mars and Beyond! - Tech Times [Last Updated On: February 2nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 2nd, 2021]
- Jeff Bezos Renews Focus on Blue Origin, Which Has Been Slower to Launch - The New York Times [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2021]
- Attention foodies: $500,000 on offer if you find a way to feed astronauts [details] - IBTimes India [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2021]
- NASA and CSA Will Give $500,000 To The Best Idea of Food Production In Space - Science Times [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2021]
- "The Expanse" shows the dangers of treating extremism as a joke - Salon [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2021]
- Elon Musk opens up about Mars, Gamestop and Dogecoin | Heres everything he said - Republic World [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2021]
- How Elon Musk And A Mission To Mars Might Boost Internet Speeds In The Rural Midwest | netnebraska.org - NET Nebraska [Last Updated On: February 6th, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 6th, 2021]
- College student with Lumberton ties starts company focused on removing oil from wildlife - The Robesonian [Last Updated On: February 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 21st, 2021]
- Mars is an example of something that's useless. There are others - Real Change News [Last Updated On: February 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 21st, 2021]
- A Spanish startup is offering trips to space in helium balloons as a cheaper alternative to SpaceX - Business Insider [Last Updated On: February 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 21st, 2021]
- Elon Musk, once again the world's richest person, is selling all his possessions so people know he's serious about colonizing Mars - Business Insider... [Last Updated On: February 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 21st, 2021]
- UAE's Hope probe beams back its first picture of Mars - New Atlas [Last Updated On: February 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 21st, 2021]
- The geopolitics of NASA's Perseverance mission to Mars - Quartz [Last Updated On: February 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 21st, 2021]
- 'Glitch in the Matrix' director on simulation theory - Los Angeles Times [Last Updated On: February 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 21st, 2021]
- Were Still Dreaming of Mars and Martians - The Wall Street Journal [Last Updated On: February 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 21st, 2021]
- Why are there so many missions to Mars? - The Economist [Last Updated On: February 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 21st, 2021]
- Space Foundation Discovery Center hosts Mars Week as NASAs Perseverance rover set to land Thursday - FOX21News.com [Last Updated On: February 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 21st, 2021]
- The Quest to Live on Mars: Could Humans Really Survive? - Interesting Engineering [Last Updated On: February 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 21st, 2021]
- This is the first image taken by NASAs Perseverance Mars rover. Now the hunt for life begins. - MIT Technology Review [Last Updated On: February 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 21st, 2021]
- 100 artists find inspiration at Manship during the pandemic - Gloucester Daily Times [Last Updated On: February 22nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 22nd, 2021]
- Stromatolites Fossils of Earliest Life on Earth May Owe Their Very Existence to Viruses - SciTechDaily [Last Updated On: February 22nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 22nd, 2021]
- Mars landing 'essential' if we want to send humans to the Red Planet 'Robotic companions' - MSN UK [Last Updated On: February 22nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 22nd, 2021]
- Hitting the Books: How NASA survived the Reagan era 'Dark Ages' - Engadget [Last Updated On: February 22nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 22nd, 2021]
- How will Nasa rover look for aliens on Mars? Cameras, helicopter and more revealed - The Sun [Last Updated On: February 22nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 22nd, 2021]
- Why Turkey's race to space is a good thing - TRT World [Last Updated On: February 22nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 22nd, 2021]
- Perseverance goes to Mars with equipment needed to gather new information - The Robesonian [Last Updated On: February 22nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 22nd, 2021]
- The race to live on Mars - Conversations - ABC News [Last Updated On: February 22nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 22nd, 2021]
- Nasa to reveal stunning first footage of Mars Perseverance rover touching down on the Red Planet - The Sun [Last Updated On: February 22nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 22nd, 2021]
- Mars rover could answer questions here on Earth - The Union Leader [Last Updated On: February 22nd, 2021] [Originally Added On: February 22nd, 2021]
- Nasa releases first recording of rover DRIVING on Mars but mystery noise leaves them baffled... - The Sun [Last Updated On: March 21st, 2021] [Originally Added On: March 21st, 2021]