4 ms·
New method for 3-D printing extraterrestrial materials
- jjcm 10y agoVery cool work, but one thing that comes to mind is that this approach is still 30% "evaporant, surfactant, and plasticizer solvents, [and] polylactic-co-glycolic acid" by volume[1]. Good for simple tools and fixes that need to be rebuilt, but a long ways off from being self sustainable. Needing to ship 30% of the materials with you means this probably wont be usable for habitat creation or anything long term. I'm curious to see how low we can get that percentage down while still maintaining structural integrity. [1] https://www.nature.com/articles/srep44931 https://www.nature.com/articles/srep44931
- the8472 10y ago> Needing to ship 30% of the materials with you It's 30% by volume, the article mentions 10% by mass.
- logfromblammo 10y agoIt's not as much of a problem if you ship enough raw materials for an evaporant, surfactant, plasticizer solvent, and polylactic-co-glycolic acid factory as the first thing you print.
- delbel 10y agowhat about just terrestrial material here on earth? sounds like a good idea. Is there a 3d dirt printer?
- lucky_cloud 10y agoThere's a sand->glass 3D printer: http://www.markuskayser.com/work/solarsinter/ http://www.markuskayser.com/work/solarsinter/