RegoLight
Sintering Regolith with Solar Light
This Horizon 2020 project, enhances the additive layer manufacturing (ALM) technique of solar sintering lunar regolith advancing the Technology Readiness Level from TRL3 (demonstrating the ability to sinter regolith in a laboratory set-up, with a moving table, in a solar furnace), to a TRL5 (demonstrating a movable printing head with accurate pointing of a concentrated solar beam, and incremental deployment of regolith on the printing surface). In addition, a near TRL6 is achieved demonstrating solar sintering in a vacuum chamber. Based on the Finite Element Model produced in the project and the mechanical properties of solar sintered regolith, architectural scenarios and applications are developed.
Project Year
2015 -2018
Team Members
German Aerospace Centre (DLR), Cologne – Germany, Space Applications Services – Belgium, LIQUIFER Systems Group – Austria, COMEX – France, Bollinger Grohmann Schneider – Austria
Credits
Photos and Renderings: LIQUIFER Systems Group, Photo of printed sample: DLR
