Laser welding study of vacuum sintered HUST-1 lunar regolith simulant

作     者：HAN WenBin DING LieYun ZHOU Cheng ZHOU Yan DANG Fen 

作者机构：National Center of Technology Innovation for Digital ConstructionHuazhong University of Science and TechnologyWuhan 430074China School of Civil and Hydraulic EngineeringHuazhong University of Science and TechnologyWuhan 730074China 

出 版 物：《Science China(Technological Sciences)》 (中国科学（技术科学英文版）)

年 卷 期：2024年第67卷第9期

页      面：2905-2918页

核心收录：

学科分类：080503[工学-材料加工工程] 08[工学] 0805[工学-材料科学与工程（可授工学、理学学位）] 0802[工学-机械工程] 0825[工学-航空宇航科学与技术] 080201[工学-机械制造及其自动化] 

基　　金：supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China(Grant Nos.2023YFB3711300 and 2021YFF0500300) the Strategic Research and Consulting Project of the Chinese Academy of Engineering(Grant Nos.2023-XZ-90 and 2023-JB-09-10) 

主　　题：lunar regolith vacuum sintering laser welding weld shear strength lunar base 

摘      要：Efforts are underway to establish a permanent lunar base on the Moon. In situ lunar regolith is anticipated to be useful as a building material after sintering. However, sintering lunar regolith into a large-scale structure presents challenges. Therefore, the key to lunar construction lies in assembling multiple small-sized sintered modules into a stable, large-sized structure. This study explored the feasibility of welding the sintered HUST-1 lunar regolith simulant(HLRS) using a laser device and conducted experiments using lasers of varying power. The microstructure, mineral composition, element distribution, and shear strength of the welded joint were investigated. A few low-melting minerals were fused and vaporized during welding, leading to the generation of thermal decomposition gas. Furthermore, the welded joint exhibited numerous micro-cracks, pores, and bubbles,resulting in reduced weld shear strength. Finally, the influence of laser power on weld shear strength was investigated, revealing that the highest shear strength(15.69 N/cm) was achieved at a laser power of 1000 W. This study demonstrates the feasibility of laser welding of sintered HLRS for the first time, with potential applications in lunar base construction.