Localized Microwave Thermal Posttreatment of Sintered Samples of Lunar Simulant
Publication: Journal of Aerospace Engineering
Volume 32, Issue 4
Abstract
Microwave heating has emerged as a feasible sintering and melting method for lunar regolith simulant. Unlike conventional heating methods, microwaves operating at 2.45 GHz penetrate the material and drive a dielectric heating process within the material volume itself. This property makes microwave sintering a viable and ideal candidate for localized, potentially targetable material properties modification. In this feasibility study, the impact of microwave thermal postprocessing as a fast, localized heating source to influence porosity, microstructure, crystal formation, mechanical properties, and macrocrack formation of conventionally presintered samples is investigated.
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Acknowledgments
This project is a result of a collaboration between the Spaceship EAC initiative and the German Aerospace Center (DLR). The authors are grateful for the great support of Dr. Masato Adachi and David Yelbert from the Institute of Materials Physics in Space-DLR Cologne.
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Published In
Journal of Aerospace Engineering
Volume 32 • Issue 4 • July 2019
Copyright
©2019 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Aug 23, 2018
Accepted: Jan 30, 2019
Published online: May 6, 2019
Published in print: Jul 1, 2019
Discussion open until: Oct 6, 2019
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