A Beneficial Use of Basalt Fibers

<br/>Basalt fibers are easy to produce here on earth. Basalt, a common earth material, is plentiful and has been widely characterized since the 1920s. It has been processed into fiber and used in a variety of commercial products. Basalt regolith is also an abundant resource on the lunar surface and several simulants have been compounded from spectrographic data provided by NASA and the ESA.<br/>Our goal was to investigate the physical and functional properties of basalt fibers made from simulated lunar regolith to see if it might be suitable for constructing lunar habitats. We did multiple tests on the fibers and plan to do many more in future research. Our current study includes electron microscope data and EDS analyses provided by JEOL USA. Our regolith simulants were provided by Exolith Labs and fibers were prepared by the Fiber Lab at RWTH Aachen University.<br/>The properties of our simulants and fibers are consistent with properties of terrestrial basalt products and to the degree that they match what is on the moon, are likely to be able to be processed on the moon in the same way they are on earth. We also believe current technology can be adapted and transported to the moon to provide competent building and insulating material as well as a host of other useful products.