| Summary: | With NASA’s return to the Moon in 2024, the science community is investigating ways to enhance space travel, including using indigenous materials in additive manufacturing applications. The Artemis Base Camp will most likely be located around the Shackleton Crater on the south pole of the Moon. In-situ resource utilization will be a vital component in lowering costs of upkeep for the base over the years. The problem with ISRU testing is limited real samples remain from the Apollo program over 50 years ago. Simulants are used to mimic properties in rock and soil samples found on the surface of the Moon. LHS-1 and LMS-1 from Exolith Lab at the University of Central Florida are two simulants that are now widely available, but few studies have used them in experiments. This work investigates LHS-1 and LMS-1 under in-situ x-ray imaging laser powder bed fusion experiments. The resulting images were used to calculate standard deviation gray values, RMS values, and Ra values of the individual line scans to compare isotropy and surface roughness. Preliminary results showed similarities between LHS-1, LMS-1, and JSC-1A, but more studies should be run to confirm any further 3D-printing experimentation with LHS-1 and LMS-1. A cost analysis is also included to show the potential benefits of this study. While 3D-printing is mostly being looked at for structure implementation on the Moon, there are many other potential benefits. This means that while the parts built with lunar regolith may not last as long, they would still be useful in the lunar environment. Millions of dollars could be saved by exploring sensible items to print on the Moon instead of transporting them from Earth.
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