Production of continuous glass fiber using lunar simulant

NASA has sponsored considerable research in processing of materials in the high vacuum and low gravity of space. Its Space Exploration Initiative had the primary emphasis of developing a permanent lunar base. One approach under consideration is to process lunar materials on the Moon to support lunar base operations, maintenance, and growth. Processing of lunar materials in situ has the advantage of eliminating the considerable costs of launch from Earth and transport to the Moon. However, it remains to be determined whether lunar materials can be processed reliably under 1/6-gravity (1/6-g) conditions. On the lunar surface there is an abundance of basaltic material. It has been shown that for torrestrial basalts, continuous glass fibers with diameters of 5 to 25 micrometers readily form. The tensile strength and Young's modulus are comparable to E-glass fibers. In this study, the processing parameters and mechanical properties of glass fibers pulled from simulated lunar basalt are tested. The simulant was prepared (Space Science Center, University of Minnesota) using a plasma technique. The composition is representative of a low titanium mare basalt (Apollo sample 10084). Lunar gravity experiments are to be performed utilizing parabolic aircraft free-fall maneuvers which yield 30 seconds of 1/6-g per maneuver.