A xerogel-based lunar brick and its in-situ preparation device and method

Abstract

The present invention belongs to lunar building materials, and relates to a lunar brick based on dry gel, an in-situ preparation device and method thereof. The raw materials of the lunar brick are composed of the following components in parts by mass: 3-5 parts of hydrophilic dry gel powder, 15-25 parts of water, and 60-100 parts of lunar soil. When using dry gel materials as lunar concrete binders, due to their extremely strong hydrophilicity, they can combine tightly with water, thus making the most of the in-situ water ice resources on the lunar surface. In addition, during preparation, the cross-linking of the polymer in the gel material can occur spontaneously at a relatively low temperature, and only a small amount of additional energy needs to be input compared with the construction and production methods of other lunar building materials. Most importantly, the method can directly carry out the freezing and curing of concrete bricks based on dry gel materials by using the low temperature conditions during the lunar night, thereby greatly improving the production efficiency on the lunar surface.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the field of lunar building materials, and more specifically, relates to a dry-gel-based lunar brick and its in-situ preparation device and method. Background Art

[0002] With the increasing interest in lunar exploration, especially the exploration of practical scenarios for lunar habitat construction, during the process of lunar construction, problems such as the time-consuming and costly transportation of materials from the Earth, certain transportation risks, the harsh temperature and climate conditions on the moon, and the insufficient performance of construction products are often faced. For example, commonly used sintering or melting technologies require high-temperature conditions of up to thousands of degrees Celsius, which are difficult to continuously achieve on the moon.

[0003] Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop a preparation method suitable for lunar conditions that can make the most of in-situ resources, and its final product should meet the performance requirements for lunar construction. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In view of the above deficiencies or improvement requirements of the prior art, the present invention provides a dry-gel-based lunar brick and its in-situ preparation device and method, aiming to utilize the low temperature conditions during the lunar night to achieve the preparation of lunar concrete bricks, and reduce the requirements and costs of lunar construction conditions.

[0005] To achieve the above object, according to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a dry-gel-based lunar brick, and the raw materials of the lunar brick are composed of the following components in parts by mass: 3 - 5 parts of hydrophilic dry-gel powder, 15 - 25 parts of water, and 60 - 100 parts of lunar soil.

[0006] Further, the hydrophilic dry-gel is natural gel or synthetic gel.

[0007] Further, the natural gel is gelatin or jellyfish gel, and the synthetic gel is polyacrylamide gel.

[0008] According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for preparing a dry-gel-based lunar brick, including the following steps:

[0009] Step 1: Mix 3 - 5 parts of hydrophilic dry-gel powder and 15 - 25 parts of water, and then stir the mixture while heating to form a uniform sol;

[0010] Step 2: Mix the sol obtained in Step 1 with 60 - 100 parts of lunar soil according to the mass ratio of its raw materials, and stir to form a uniform mixture;

[0011] Step 3: Freeze-dry and solidify the mixture obtained in Step 2 at low temperature to obtain the lunar brick.

[0012] Further, the lunar soil is the lunar soil collected in-situ and processed by screening, and / or the low temperature is the natural low temperature during the lunar night.

[0013] Further, the particle size of the lunar soil after screening treatment is 0.5 mm to 1.5 mm.

[0014] According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a preparation device for lunar bricks based on dry gel, comprising:

[0015] A heating and stirring tank for mixing a hydrophilic dry gel powder with water, and then stirring the mixture while heating to form a uniform sol; the heating and stirring tank includes a heating and stirring tank body, a dry gel powder inlet, a water inlet, a gel stirring column, a gel stirring fan blade, a heater, a temperature sensor, and a sol discharge port; the dry gel powder inlet and the water inlet are provided on the heating and stirring tank body, and the sol discharge port is provided at the bottom of the heating and stirring tank body; the stirring column drives the stirring fan blade to rotate and stir inside the heating and stirring tank body, the heater is used for heating during the stirring process, and the temperature sensor is used for monitoring the mixing temperature;

[0016] An aggregate stirring tank for mixing the sol with the lunar soil and stirring to form a uniform mixture; the aggregate stirring tank includes an aggregate stirring tank body, a sol inlet, an aggregate inlet, an aggregate stirring column, an aggregate stirring fan blade, and a discharge port; the sol inlet and the aggregate inlet are provided on the aggregate stirring tank body, and the sol inlet is connected to the sol discharge port through a delivery pipe; the aggregate stirring column drives the aggregate stirring fan blade to rotate and stir inside the aggregate stirring tank body;

[0017] A forming unit for forming the mixture; the forming unit includes a brick mold and a pressing forming plate, and the mixture is injected into the brick mold through the discharge port and pressed into bricks by the pressing forming plate.

[0018] Further, it further includes a base, a conveying device, and a pressing forming plate controller; the aggregate stirring tank and the pressing forming plate controller are provided on the base, one end of the conveying device is located below the discharge port, and the pressing forming plate controller is used to control the pressing forming plate to perform the pressing operation.

[0019] Generally speaking, compared with the prior art, the above technical solutions conceived by the present invention can achieve the following beneficial effects:

[0020] 1. The amount of raw materials required for off-earth transportation in the present invention is small. When the dry gel material is used as a binder for lunar concrete, due to its extremely strong hydrophilicity, it can combine tightly with water, thus maximizing the utilization of in-situ water ice resources on the lunar surface.

[0021] 2. The energy input required in the preparation process of the present invention is less. Since the cross-linking of the polymer in the hydrophilic gel material can occur spontaneously at a relatively low temperature, the self-curing process of the concrete bricks is completed. Compared with common lunar building material preparation methods such as melting and sintering, the method of the present invention only requires a relatively small amount of additional energy.

[0022] 3. The method of the present invention can be carried out under the natural low temperature environment of the lunar night. The gel material can directly carry out freeze-curing of the concrete bricks by using the low temperature conditions of the lunar night, so as to realize production and manufacturing during the lunar night and improve the lunar construction efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0023] Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of an in-situ preparation device for lunar bricks based on dry gel according to the present invention;

[0024] Figure 2 is a schematic structural diagram of the heating and stirring tank of the device of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 3 is a top view structural diagram of the heating and stirring tank of the device of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 4 is a schematic structural diagram of the aggregate stirring tank of the device of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 5 is a side view structural diagram of the base of the device of the present invention.

[0028] In all the drawings, the same reference numerals are used to represent the same elements or structures, where:

[0029] 1 - Dry gel powder inlet, 2 - Solar panel, 3 - Stirring column control knob, 4 - Water inlet, 5 - Heating and stirring tank, 6 - Gel stirring column, 7 - Gel stirring fan blade, 8 - Heater, 9 - Temperature display and control screen, 10 - Sol discharge port, 11 - Temperature sensor, 12 - Feed pipe, 13 - Aggregate inlet, 14 - Aggregate stirring tank, 15 - Stirring control knob, 16 - Aggregate stirring column, 17 - Aggregate stirring fan blade, 18 - Control discharge port, 19 - Pressing and forming plate controller, 20 - Telescopic slider, 21 - Brick mold, 22 - Pressing and forming plate, 23 - Conveyor device, 24 - Base, 25 - Lower bolt component, 26 - Upper bolt component, 27 - Support column, 28 - Brick forming groove. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0030] In order to make the objectives, technical solutions and advantages of the present invention clearer and more understandable, the present invention will be further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present invention and are not used to limit the present invention. In addition, the technical features involved in the various embodiments of the present invention described below can be combined with each other as long as they do not conflict with each other.

[0031] Embodiment 1:

[0032] This embodiment provides an in-situ preparation method of lunar bricks based on dry gel, using dry gel materials, water, and in-situ obtained and processed lunar soil as raw materials, and carrying out the preparation process under low-temperature conditions on the lunar surface;

[0033] The dry gel material is gelatin powder, which is made from proteins partially hydrolyzed from collagen in animal connective or epidermal tissues, has extremely strong hydrophilicity, and the cementation process can occur spontaneously at low temperatures.

[0034] The method includes the following steps:

[0035] Step 1: Mix gelatin powder and water at a mass ratio of 0.2, and then stir the liquid mixture for two hours while heating (60 - 80 °C) to form a uniform gelatin sol;

[0036] Step 2: Mix the gelatin sol with the processed (particle size sorted, 0.5 - 1.5 mm, if the quality of the in-situ lunar soil resources at the location is good, this treatment can be omitted) lunar soil aggregate at a sol-aggregate mass ratio of 0.3, and stir for five minutes to form a uniform mixture;

[0037] Step 3: Pour the mixture obtained in Step 2 into a mold of a cubic concrete brick, let it stand for two hours and then demold to obtain a concrete brick blank, and freeze-dry and solidify the concrete brick blank spontaneously at low temperature during the lunar night for five days.

[0038] As Figures 1-5 shown, this embodiment also provides an in-situ preparation device of lunar bricks based on dry gel, including: a base (24), a conveying device (23) and a brick mold (21) are installed on the base (24), an aggregate stirring tank (14) is arranged above the brick mold (21), the aggregate stirring tank (14) is connected to a heating and stirring tank (5) through a feeding pipe (12), and a feeding port is installed at the upper end of the heating and stirring tank (5).

[0039] The heating and stirring tank (5) includes a dry gel powder feeding port (1), a solar panel (2), a stirring column control knob (3), a water inlet (4), a stirring column (6), stirring fan blades (7), a heater (8), a temperature sensor (11), and a temperature display and control screen (9) on the outside, and a sol discharge port (10) is at the bottom of the stirring tank.

[0040] The aggregate mixing tank (14) includes an aggregate inlet (13), a mixing control knob (15), a horizontal spiral mixing column (16), and mixing fan blades (17). A feeding pipe (12) is connected to the right side of the aggregate mixing tank (14), and a control discharge port (18) is installed on the lower side.

[0041] The base (24) includes a conveying device (23), a support column (27) for supporting the aggregate mixing tank (14), upper and lower bolt components (26 and 25) for fixing, a pressing forming plate (22), a telescopic slider (20), and a brick mold (21). The brick mold (21) is placed on the base conveying device (23), and there are cube brick forming grooves (28) inside the mold.

[0042] Furthermore, the working process of the device in this embodiment includes:

[0043] 1. Add a certain mass of dry gelatin powder and water in proportion through the gel material inlet 1 and the water inlet 4 respectively. Turn on the mixing column control knob 3 and use the energy collected by the solar panel 2 and the power generation device to cooperate to power on the heater 8. At the same time, confirm in real time through the temperature display screen 9 on the outside that the temperature environment in the box is suitable for gelatin dissolution, so that the heating and mixing tank 5 operates normally;

[0044] 2. After obtaining a uniform gelatin sol in the heating and mixing tank 5, open the sol discharge port 10 at the bottom of the heating and mixing tank 5 so that the gelatin sol enters the aggregate mixing tank 14 through the feeding pipe 12. At the same time, add a certain mass of aggregate in proportion through the inlet 13, and start the mixing fan blades 17 through the mixing control knob 15 to make the aggregate mixing tank 14 operate normally;

[0045] 3. After obtaining a uniform mixture in the aggregate mixing tank 14, open the bottom discharge port 18, pour the concrete mixture into the lower cube brick mold 21. After pouring, control the telescopic slider 20 to move the pressing forming plate 22 to directly above the brick mold 21 and press it parallel to the upper surface of the brick mold 21, so that the concrete mixture is evenly spread in the brick mold 21, and then it is transported to the curing area through the conveying device 23 for demolding and subsequent freeze-drying and curing processes.

[0046] Embodiment 2:

[0047] A method for in-situ preparation of lunar bricks based on synthetic gel in this embodiment is mainly different from that in Embodiment 1 in that the gel material is a polyacrylamide gel material. The lunar bricks in this embodiment are prepared from polyacrylamide gel material, water, and in-situ obtained lunar soil as raw materials under low temperature conditions on the lunar surface.

[0048] The method includes the following steps:

[0049] Step 1: Mix the polyacrylamide material and water in a certain mass ratio, and then stir the liquid mixture while heating to form a uniform polyacrylamide sol;

[0050] Step 2: Mix the polyacrylamide sol and lunar soil in a certain sol-aggregate mass ratio, and stir to form a uniform mixture;

[0051] Step 3: Pour the mixture obtained in Step 2 into the mold of a cubic concrete brick, let it stand for several hours and then demold to obtain a concrete brick blank, and freeze-dry and cure the concrete brick blank spontaneously at the low temperature of the lunar night.

[0052] The relevant device technical solutions are the same as those in Example 1 and will not be elaborated here.

[0053] Example 3:

[0054] A method for in-situ preparation of lunar bricks based on synthetic gel in this example, the main difference from Example 1 is that the gel material is jellyfish glue. The jellyfish glue can be obtained through the following steps:

[0055] (1) Treat the jellyfish umbrella plate with a mixture of salt and alum, and wash it thoroughly with deionized water to remove the salt therein;

[0056] (2) After removing the outer skin of the jellyfish umbrella, only leave the middle layer as the raw material (JF glue), and cut it into cubic or cylindrical blocks;

[0057] (3) Grind the dried sample and pass it through a sieve, and the obtained jellyfish powder is stored in a polyethylene bag at room temperature before use.

[0058] The relevant device technical solutions are the same as those in Example 1 and will not be elaborated here.

[0059] Generally speaking, when using dry gel materials as lunar concrete binders, due to their extremely strong hydrophilicity, they can combine tightly with water, thus making the most of the in-situ water ice resources on the lunar surface. In addition, the cross-linking of the high molecular polymers in the gel material can occur spontaneously at a relatively low temperature during preparation, and only a very small amount of additional energy needs to be input compared with the construction and production methods of other lunar building materials. Most importantly, the method can directly carry out the freezing and curing of concrete bricks based on dry gel materials by using the low temperature conditions of the lunar night, thereby greatly improving the production efficiency on the lunar surface.

[0060] Those skilled in the art can easily understand that the above are only the preferred embodiments of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent replacements, and improvements made within the spirit and principle of the present invention should be included within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A xerogel-based lunar brick, characterized in that, The raw materials of the lunar bricks are composed of the following components in parts by mass: 3 - 5 parts of hydrophilic dry gel powder, 15 - 25 parts of water, and 60 - 100 parts of lunar soil. The dry gel powder is used as a binder for lunar concrete; The hydrophilic dry gel is a natural gel or a synthetic gel; The natural gel is gelatin or jellyfish glue, and the synthetic gel is polyacrylamide gel; the jellyfish glue is obtained by using the middle layer left after removing the outer skin of the jellyfish umbrella as the raw material.

2. A preparation method of a xerogel-based lunar brick for preparing the xerogel-based lunar brick according to claim 1, characterized in that, It includes the following steps: Step 1: Mix 3 - 5 parts of hydrophilic dry gel powder and 15 - 25 parts of water, and then stir the mixture while heating to form a uniform sol; Step 2: Mix the sol obtained in Step 1 with 60 - 100 parts of lunar soil according to the mass fraction of its raw materials, and stir to form a uniform mixture; Step 3: Freeze-dry and solidify the mixture obtained in Step 2 at the natural low temperature during the lunar night to obtain lunar bricks.

3. The preparation method of a lunar brick based on xerogel according to claim 2, characterized in that, The lunar soil is in-situ collected lunar soil after screening treatment.

4. The preparation method of a lunar brick based on xerogel according to claim 3, characterized in that The particle size of the lunar soil after screening treatment is 0.5 mm - 1.5 mm.

5. A preparation device for dry gel-based lunar bricks, which is used to prepare the dry gel-based lunar bricks described in claim 1, and is characterized in that, It includes: A heating and stirring tank (5) for mixing hydrophilic dry gel powder and water, and then stirring the mixture while heating to form a uniform sol; the heating and stirring tank (5) includes a heating and stirring tank body, a dry gel powder inlet (1), a water inlet (4), a gel stirring column (6), a gel stirring fan blade (7), a heater (8), a temperature sensor (11), and a sol discharge port (10); the dry gel powder inlet (1) and the water inlet (4) are arranged on the heating and stirring tank body, and the sol discharge port (10) is arranged at the bottom of the heating and stirring tank body; the stirring column (6) drives the stirring fan blade (7) to rotate and stir inside the heating and stirring tank body, the heater (8) is used for heating during the stirring process, and the temperature sensor (11) is used for monitoring the mixing temperature; An aggregate stirring tank (14) for mixing the sol and lunar soil and stirring to form a uniform mixture; the aggregate stirring tank (14) includes an aggregate stirring tank body, a sol inlet, an aggregate inlet (13), an aggregate stirring column (16), an aggregate stirring fan blade (17), and a discharge port (18); the sol inlet and the aggregate inlet (13) are arranged on the aggregate stirring tank body, and the sol inlet is connected to the sol discharge port (10) through a conveying pipe (12); the aggregate stirring column (16) drives the aggregate stirring fan blade (17) to rotate and stir inside the aggregate stirring tank body; A forming unit for forming the mixture; the forming unit includes a brick mold (21) and a pressing forming plate (22), and the mixture is injected into the brick mold (21) through the discharge port (18) and pressed into bricks by the pressing forming plate (22).

6. The preparation device of a lunar brick based on xerogel according to claim 5, characterized in that, It also includes a base (24), a conveying device (23), and a pressing forming plate controller (19); the aggregate stirring tank (14) and the pressing forming plate controller (19) are arranged on the base (24), one end of the conveying device (23) is located below the discharge port (18), and the pressing forming plate controller (19) is used to control the pressing forming plate (22) to perform the pressing operation.

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