Solar-Powered Device Turns Moon Dirt Into Bricks for Lunar Construction
Both the United States and China have articulated ambitious plans to establish permanent lunar bases within the coming decade. While no legal framework currently exists to claim territory in space, the nation that first achieves a sustained presence on the Moon stands to gain a significant first-mover advantage, potentially influencing future norms and activities in the lunar domain.
Yet, reaching the Moon is merely the initial step; sustaining a human presence there presents formidable logistical and engineering hurdles. One of the most significant challenges involves the efficient and affordable transportation of building materials from Earth to construct a lunar outpost. However, a team of scientists at China’s Deep Space Exploration Laboratory (DSEL) in Hefei, Anhui Province, may have found a groundbreaking solution.
In a significant development this past July, DSEL researchers published test results for a prototype lunar regolith forming system in the journal Acta Astronautica. This innovative device functions much like a 3D printer, capable of fabricating robust construction bricks directly from lunar regolith, commonly known as moon dust. Yang Hoglun, a co-author and senior engineer at DSEL, explained to Chinese state media that the ability to produce building materials using resources readily available on the Moon would dramatically reduce the dependency on Earth-sourced materials. “This printing breakthrough has validated the feasibility of using lunar soil as the sole raw building material, enabling true in-situ resource utilization and eliminating the need to transport any additional materials from Earth,” Yang stated.
The system operates by harnessing solar energy. It employs a parabolic mirror—a reflective dish—to concentrate solar radiation, focusing it into a single, intensely hot point. This concentrated light is then channeled through bundles of fiber optic cables. At its focal point, the light intensity surpasses 3,000 times the standard intensity of sunlight on Earth’s surface, generating temperatures exceeding 2,300 degrees Fahrenheit (1,300 degrees Celsius). This extreme heat is sufficient to melt lunar regolith.
During a series of laboratory tests, the prototype successfully melted artificial lunar regolith, which was created from basalt, using a xenon lamp to simulate sunlight conditions. The device demonstrated its capability to form various solid shapes, including lines, surfaces, three-dimensional bodies, and intricate structures. Yang asserts that this prototype could manufacture materials essential for constructing lunar roads, equipment platforms, and buildings, thereby facilitating large-scale, sustainable lunar exploration and resource utilization.
While these preliminary tests mark a major stride toward in-situ manufacturing of lunar construction materials, certain limitations remain. Yang noted that bricks made from lunar soil may not be able to withstand the immense pressure of the Moon’s vacuum and low-gravity environment on their own. However, they could serve as crucial protective layers, shielding pressure-retaining habitat modules made of more rigid or inflatable structures.
China’s advancements in this field predate the DSEL researchers’ latest test results. In November 2024, the nation launched a cargo rocket carrying brick prototypes, also made from lunar regolith simulant, to its Tiangong space station. These bricks are slated to remain exposed outside the space station for three years, allowing scientists to assess their long-term durability in the harsh conditions of space.
Other spacefaring nations, including the United States, are also actively developing methods to utilize lunar regolith for construction purposes. Nevertheless, China’s progress in this domain over the past few years has been particularly noteworthy. Indeed, the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program has not only kept pace with but, in certain aspects, even surpassed NASA’s Artemis program, intensifying the competitive pressure on the U.S. in the burgeoning race back to the Moon.