The researchers from the Wrocław University of Science and Technology teamed up with Poland’s mineral exploration company Four Point to develop the technology which will be used to sift and sort moon dust (known as regolith) before being turned into bricks.
By forming a solid mass with pressure or heat in a process known as sintering, the bricks or slabs can then be used for structural bases or for filling bags for building a protective embankment around the landing site.
Project leader Dr Damian Pietrusiak said: “In terrestrial conditions, we use water, air or simply gravity for such a sorting process.
“These are not solutions that we can consider on the Moon – due to the lack of access to water or the lack of atmosphere.
“The idea is to make the most of what is available on site. That is why the lunar regolith is planned as a building material here.”
He added that operating independently of gravity the device will be able to be used on any planet or small asteroids where gravity is practically non-existent.
He continued: “In the future, the separator could also be used in the processes of sifting appropriate fractions of regolith to obtain oxygen from it or produce metals.
“We also see potential applications for it on Earth as a sifting device in places with limited access to water, for example.”
The device, which was commissioned by NASA, has now been bought by American company Astroport Space Technologies which plans to use the technology.
