The surface of the Moon, both highland and mare regions, experiences collisions from meteorites and solar flares constantly. As a result, regolith particles have ever rotating positions, sizes, and angularity that alter the ability of human activity to be possible without understanding the mechanical properties of the regolith structure that will be built upon. Lunar regolith simulants, based on precious samples of the Apollo missions, are necessary for creating a baseline of how lunar regolith will behave under increased activity. The inconsistencies across the lunar surface due to the raw environment make it difficult to accurately plan the built conditions of a permanent structure. Testing compression and settlement of simulants at varying densities provides a better comprehension of what can be expected regarding the foundations for lunar transportation, building infrastructure, and the large machinery that will have a significant presence during the construction phase building these permanent residences on the face of the Moon. This paper assesses the regolith simulant, OPRH2N, recently developed in 2017, with very similar angularity to lunar regolith in the highland regions. Material properties of specific gravity, and compressibility, were performed and void ratio-stress parameters were developed and compared to estimates from other simulants. The compressibility parameters of these simulants agree with those determined from other simulants and with those of returned lunar regolith. Further, testing and analysis are necessary to establish strength parameters for detailed synopsis of settlement and bearing capacities.
Compressibility Behavior of a Nearside Highland Regolith Simulant
17th Biennial International Conference on Engineering, Science, Construction, and Operations in Challenging Environments ; 2021 ; Virtual Conference
Earth and Space 2021 ; 1326-1334
2021-04-15
Conference paper
Electronic Resource
English
Lunar Regolith Simulant User's Guide
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|Lunar Regolith Simulant User's Guide
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|NASA Lunar Regolith Simulant Program
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