Researchers are developing a new type of water-free 3D printed concrete, first designed for lunar construction but which could prove useful on Earth. And that’s good since NASA plans to establish a permanent base on the satellite with the Artemis III mission, whose launch is scheduled to take place in September 2026 at the earliest.
Settling on the Moon with a base requires numerous infrastructures: landing areas, shelters and protection against radiation. Except that transporting materials from Earth requires a lot of money, approximately $1.2 million per kilo according to Ali Kazemian, a robotic construction researcher at Louisiana State University (LSU). NASA is therefore seeking to manufacture materials from lunar soil, to then adapt it to Mars, whose life seems to be confirmed by a meteorite.
3D printable concrete without the need for water
LSU researchers have developed a new concrete based on molten sulfur which allows materials to be bonded without watera rare and valuable resource on the Moon. By mixing this cement with simulated lunar and Martian soil, the team designed a 3D printable material to form walls and beams. Which could meet NASA’s need for automated construction of lunar infrastructure.
This concrete has several advantages: resist extreme temperatures and harden faster than traditional cement. On the Moon and Mars, astronauts could extract sulfur directly from the ground. Vacuum chamber tests demonstrate the stability of the material in the face of the extreme conditions of the lunar South Pole. Researchers were initially concerned that concrete would turn directly into a gas under these conditions, as dry ice does.
Low lunar gravity could even help with construction. According to Ali Kazemian, the concrete layers thus maintain their shape during 3D printing, which reduces the deformations observed on Earth with larger structures.
This special concrete can also be used on Earth
The technology was transferred to NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville for larger-scale testing. Concrete will likely be used for vertical structures like habitats and radiation shields. Flat surfaces, such as landing areas, will be constructed by laser fusion of lunar soil.
Philip Metzger, a planetary physicist at the University of Central Florida and former NASA researcher, points out, however, the limits of terrestrial tests. The transition from the simulated ground to the Moon’s ground could cause unforeseen events which will require technological adjustments.
The innovation of this waterless, 3D printed concrete is not limited only to the Moon. On Earth, it could be useful in areas where water is scarce or with excess sulfursuch as certain areas of the Middle East with by-products of the oil and gas industry. Philip Metzger also suggests its use in disaster zones with disrupted supply chains or for rapid military construction.
