SBIR Phase II: Portable Production Process for Icy Regoliths by Vapor Deposition

SBIR 第二阶段：通过气相沉积生产冰风化层的便携式生产工艺

• 批准号: 2231348
• 负责人: Vincent Roux
• 金额: $ 99.67万
• 依托单位: OFF PLANET RESEARCH L.L.C.
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Cooperative Agreement
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-07-15 至 2025-06-30
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2231348&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SBIR; Phase; II; Portable; Production

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project will enable research and development on simulated moon surface materials that resemble the icy regolith on the Moon and other worlds by a large number of organizations that currently do not have access to such materials. Making realistic icy regolith simulants is beyond the reach of most organizations because they are produced by replicating the natural formation processes, that is they are produced under conditions that approximate the environment within the ultra-cold, permanently-shadowed areas in the polar regions of the Moon. Utilizing the resource potential of icy regoliths is a key to an enduring human presence in space. Accurate simulants of these materials are necessary to develop the technologies for studying, prospecting, and utilizing this resource. Greater access to these simulants will increase academia/industry partnerships and allow more rapid technology development through higher fidelity testing.This SBIR Phase II project provide a location-dependent, custom production method to produce icy regolith simulants in large enough quantities in locations where they are needed by students, researchers, and engineers. Currently, the difficulty and cost of making realistic icy regolith simulants is preventing the higher fidelity testing required to reduce the risk and facilitate the development of in situ extraction technologies for critical resources. These simulants must be produced by re-creating the natural formation processes on the Moon and other worlds as closely as possible under very controlled conditions. Icy simulants must be custom-made and can include hazardous gases so they are expensive and can only be produced slowly in small batches. Cryogenic shipment after production is expensive, difficult, and limited to small amounts. This project will produce new equipment and methods of production that are portable. The solution will also make more realistic and complete icy regolith simulants in quantities large enough for effective research and development to take place. The equipment will be designed to be adaptable and have the capacity to make various physical forms of icy simulants with differing ingredients.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

该小企业创新研究（SBIR）第二阶段项目的更广泛影响/商业潜力将使许多目前没有研究和开发类似月球和其他世界冰冷风化层的组织能够研究和开发模拟月球表面材料。获取此类材料。 制作逼真的冰冻风化层模拟物超出了大多数组织的能力范围，因为它们是通过复制自然形成过程来生产的，也就是说，它们是在接近极地地区超冷、永久阴影地区环境的条件下生产的。月亮。 利用冰冻风化层的资源潜力是人类在太空持久存在的关键。 这些材料的精确模拟物对于开发研究、勘探和利用这种资源的技术是必要的。 更多地获得这些模拟物将增加学术界/工业界的合作伙伴关系，并通过更高保真度的测试实现更快速的技术开发。这个 SBIR 第二阶段项目提供了一种依赖于地点的定制生产方法，可以在其所在地点生产足够数量的冰冻风化层模拟物。学生、研究人员和工程师需要。 目前，制作真实的冰冻风化层模拟物的难度和成本阻碍了降低风险和促进关键资源原位提取技术开发所需的更高保真度测试。这些模拟物必须通过在非常受控的条件下尽可能重现月球和其他世界的自然形成过程来生产。 冰模拟物必须定制，并且可能含有有害气体，因此价格昂贵，并且只能小批量缓慢生产。 生产后的低温运输昂贵、困难，而且数量有限。该项目将生产便携式的新设备和生产方法。 该解决方案还将制造出更真实、更完整的冰冻风化层模拟物，其数量足以进行有效的研究和开发。 该设备将被设计为具有适应性，并且能够用不同的成分制造各种物理形式的冰模拟物。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。