公开(公告)号：US20220315497A1

公开(公告)日：2022-10-06

申请号：US17582062

申请日：2022-01-24

Applicant: UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA RESEARCH FOUNDATION, INC.

Inventor： Philip METZGER

IPC: C04B40/00 ,  B03C1/30 ,  B03B4/00

Abstract: A system and associated method constructs a building material from lunar soil. A magnetic sorter magnetically sorts the lunar soil and the system creates a layered surface comprising a microwave susceptible, thermal conductive top layer of lunar soil and a poorly microwave-susceptible and poorly thermally conductive sublayer of lunar soil. A microwave generator generates microwave energy into an antenna and directs the microwave energy onto the top layer of lunar soil to sinter the microwave susceptible, thermal conductive top layer of lunar soil.

公开(公告)号：US20210404338A1

公开(公告)日：2021-12-30

申请号：US17177277

申请日：2021-02-17

Applicant: UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA RESEARCH FOUNDATION, INC.

Inventor： Philip METZGER

IPC: E21C51/00 ,  B04C9/00 ,  B03C1/30 ,  B03C7/02 ,  B64G4/00 ,  B64G5/00

Abstract: The system extracts water from lunar regolith and includes a regolith intake having a digging bucket that collects lunar regolith soil and a gravel separator that separates and discharges gravel and passes a mixture of ice-regolith powder having ice grains that are about 10-100 microns along the conveyor. A pneumatic separator receives the ice-regolith powder and pneumatically splits the ice-regolith powder into streams of different sized lithic fragments and ice particles per the ratio of inertial force and aerodynamic drag force of the lithic fragments and ice particles. Each split stream may include a magnetic separator that separates further the magnetic and paramagnetic lithic fragments from ice particles to discharge up to 80 percent of lithic fragments to slag.