| About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
2025 TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition
|
| Symposium
|
Nano and Micro Additive Manufacturing
|
| Presentation Title |
Enhancing In-Situ Resource Utilization: Additive Manufacturing of Lunar Highlands Regolith with Graphene Nanoplatelets |
| Author(s) |
Katrina Rodriguez, Brandon Aguiar, Ambreen Nisar, Tony Thomas, Arvind Agarwal |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Katrina Rodriguez |
| Abstract Scope |
The present study shows remarkable potential in simulating geophysical aspects of the lunar interior through the three-dimensional (3D) printing of lunar regolith (LR) reinforced with graphene nanoplatelets (GNP) to enhance its electrical conductivity and wear resistance. Greenland Anorthosite LR simulant, composed mainly of Al2O3, SiO2, and Al2SiO5, was combined with 0.5 wt.% GNP and 3D printed using Digital Light Processing (DLP). The slurry’s composition was optimized based on rheological measurements, ensuring suitable flowability during 3D printing. 3D printed samples underwent a two-step debinding process to remove resin while avoiding oxidation of GNP, followed by sintering in an Argon environment. Solid loading of 49.5 wt.% LR with 0.5 wt.% GNP showed dimensional shrinkage of 7% in pyrolyzed and 45% in sintered samples. Microstructural, electrical, and wear characterizations were performed to establish the structure-property correlation. This research marks a significant step toward evaluating the functionality of 3D-printed lunar regolith parts with GNP. |
| Proceedings Inclusion? |
Planned: |
| Keywords |
Additive Manufacturing, Other, Other |