一种基于可钻性在线辨识的月面钻进控制方法研究

钻取采样作为一种获取深层月壤的有效方式被应用于地外天体采样任务。不同于地面钻探,无人月面钻取采样面临诸多技术难点,例如遥操作信号延迟、探测器传感资源有限、缺乏采样点地质信息以及月壤力学特性复杂等。为保证采样任务高效可靠地执行,采样装置需充分利用有限的探测器硬件资源,依据钻进工况实时调整钻进工艺参数,对未知的钻进环境具有适应能力。提出一种基于可钻性在线辨识的月面钻进控制方法。利用可钻性指标综合评价当前对象的钻进难易程度,采用模式识别方法辨识钻进对象的可钻性等级并实时匹配最优的钻进工艺参数,从而实现钻进过程的智能控制。为验证所提出控制方法的有效性,开展了模拟月壤月岩交替布置的钻进试验研究。试验结果表明:该方法能够有效控制钻进负载。     

无轴螺旋式模拟月壤主动填充装置研制

针对月面综合钻进试验台模拟月壤利用率和试验效率低的问题,提出一种主动送土试验台的设计方案,满足月面钻采作业机具的取芯特性专项验证需求。该方案利用无轴螺旋作为模拟月壤传送的核心部件,采用集成料斗实现难流动物料连续送料的功能,通过无轴螺旋转动主动将模拟月壤垂直送入取芯机构,代替综合钻进试验台钻取月壤的作用,可以实现多种级配模拟月壤的定量和定压输送。为了验证设计参数的正确性,利用EDEM离散元分析模拟月壤输送特性,并开展了试验验证。结果表明：以无轴螺旋作为主动送土机构的核心单元,可实现主动送土试验台自主、高效率地进行模拟月壤输送模拟多种取芯工况,为工程部门钻采作业机具研制定型提供性能参数验证的依据。     

模拟月面环境钻进过程热特性研究

根据实际月面采样任务需求,月壤钻取采样器须在真空条件下,实现无辅助冷却介质的连续钻进取心工作,这极易导致钻头温度快速升高,影响采样任务的可靠进行。因此,为深入研究钻进过程的热特性,通过分析钻头切削具与孔底月壤的切削和摩擦机理,建立钻头在钻进过程中的温升模型,归纳影响钻头温升的主要因素。根据月面真空条件下的月壤环境,制备真空度低于10 Pa、钻进深度不少于2 m的模拟月壤,并开展钻进过程热特性试验。试验结果表明钻头前端切削具的温升与钻压力存在很强的正相关性,与钻头扭矩相关性较弱。基于试验结果对温升模型中的相关性系数进行修正,拟合出钻头温升曲线,并与试验实测结果进行对比,实现了钻进过程热特性的定性分析。     

宇航员手持式高频冲击采样装置的设计研究

获取具有原态层理信息的月壤剖面样品是我国载人登月人工采样任务的重要目标之一。对比国外地外天体采样技术,提出了一种适合宇航员手持操作的高频冲击式采样装置。采样装置采用高频冲击作用下颗粒的单向运移原理,可保证样品的原态层理信息,降低了采样功耗,提高了取芯率;取芯机构表面的各向异性摩擦形貌增强了颗粒单向运移效果,提高了采样效率;改变冲击频率进行取芯试验,得到了冲击频率与表面形貌对取芯率的影响规律,为我国载人登月人工采样装置的设计研究提供技术参考。     

Performance verification of Lunar Regolith Penetrating Array Radar of Chang’E-5 mission

Lunar Regolith Penetrating Array Radar (LRPR) is one main payload of the Lander for Chinese Chang’E-5 (CE-5) mission. It is used to support the drilling and sampling device and to detect lunar regolith thickness and structure of the landing site. LRPR will only work in situ under static status, so the antenna array is employed. Since the antenna array is about 90?cm high from the ground, the layout is irregular, and the metal structure of the lander seriously interferes with LRPR, these factors make it very difficult to reconstruct the image of the drilling area, so the performance verification must be carried out. We propose a set of methods to process LRPR’s data and reconstruct image. The verification experiments demonstrate that these methods are suitable for LRPR, the thickness and structure of the lunar regolith from zero to two meters can be clearly mapped, the vertical resolution is a few centimeters, and the electromagnetic properties of the subsurface can be estimated. Therefore, the performance of LRPR meets the requirements, and LRPR can successfully support drilling and sampling.     

铲挖式表层月壤采样器设计与试验

针对月球表层土壤的采样任务,设计了一种搭载于机械臂末端的采样器。基于离散元手段,利用Scott真实月壤微型三轴压缩试验数据,完成仿真散体颗粒特性参数匹配,开展了采样器铲取、挖取采样过程的仿真分析,获得作业过程采样器的动力学特性。此外,开发了采样器性能测试系统,针对不同模拟月壤对象进行了采样试验,测试获得了采样器采样能力随深度及月壤硬度的变化情况,得到采样器操作参数的可行区域。采样器能够实现铲取、挖取和封装容器转移多重任务,研究工作为中国未来的月面采样任务提供方案借鉴和技术支撑。     

Research on the evaluation method of lunar soil disturbance based on the fitting of Gaussian surface

It is crucial to maintain the layer sequence information on in situ lunar soil during the lunar soil sampling. In this paper, a discrete element model for direct push sampling of the lunar weathering layer is established, and the relationship between the perturbation rate of the lunar soil layer sequence information and the sampling depth is obtained. A quantitative evaluation method of the perturbation rate of the structural information on the lunar soil layer sequence based on the Gaussian curvature is proposed by reconstructing the center-of-mass point cloud model of the marked layer lunar soil particles in MATLAB. The proposed method can accurately describe the perturbation rate of lunar soil layer sequence information and can analyze the degree of lunar soil disturbance according to the displacement of the sampling tube and mechanical parameters in real-time inversion during the sampling process. When the sampling depth is 40 mm, the minimum and maximum perturbation rates of sampling along the penetration direction of the machine are 5.261 % and 27.649 %, respectively. The perturbation rate shows a trend of first decreasing and then increasing. The method proposed in this study could effectively solve the problem that the disturbance of lunar soil bedding information was difficult to evaluate in the sampling process of lunar regolith.     

Gas permeability and flow characterization of simulated lunar regolith

Recent discoveries of water ice trapped within lunar topsoil (regolith) have placed a new emphasis on the recovery and utilization of water for future space exploration. Upon heating the lunar ice to sublimation, the resulting water vapor could theoretically transmit through the lunar regolith, to be captured on the surface. As the permeability of lunar regolith is essential to this process, this paper seeks to experimentally determine the permeability and flow characteristics of various gas species through simulated lunar regolith (SLR). Two different types of SLR were compacted and placed into the permeability setup to measure the flow-rate of transmitted gas through the sample. Darcy’s permeability constant was calculated for each sample and gas combination, and flow characteristics were determined from the results. The results show that Darcy’s permeability constant varies with SLR compaction density, and identified no major difference in permeable flow between the several tested gas species. Between the two tested SLR types, JSC-1A was shown to be more permeable than NU-LHT under similar conditions. In addition, a transition zone was identified in the flow when the gas pressure differential across the sample was less than ∼40 kPa.     

A drilling tool design and in situ identification of planetary regolith mechanical parameters

The physical and mechanical properties as well as the heat flux of regolith are critical evidence in the study of planetary origin and evolution. Moreover, the mechanical properties of planetary regolith have great value for guiding future human planetary activities. For planetary subsurface exploration, an inchworm boring robot (IBR) has been proposed to penetrate the regolith, and the mechanical properties of the regolith are expected to be simultaneously investigated during the penetration process using the drilling tool on the IBR. This paper provides a preliminary study of an in situ method for measuring planetary regolith mechanical parameters using a drilling tool on a test bed. A conical-screw drilling tool was designed, and its drilling load characteristics were experimentally analyzed. Based on the drilling tool-regolith interaction model, two identification methods for determining the planetary regolith bearing and shearing parameters are proposed. The bearing and shearing parameters of lunar regolith simulant were successfully determined according to the pressure-sinkage tests and shear tests conducted on the test bed. The effects of the operating parameters on the identification results were also analyzed. The results indicate a feasible scheme for future planetary subsurface exploration.     

Upwards migration phenomenon on molten lunar regolith: New challenges and prospects for ISRU

As part of our research on the feasibility of producing commodities from lunar regolith by thermal-driven processes with minimal terrestrial precursors we need to characterize, reproduce, and understand thermophysical properties of the molten regolith still unforeseen under the lunar vacuum conditions at a scalable sample size. Two unanticipated phenomena, apparently caused by lunar melt’s surface tension under vacuum, have been revealed in our research work, vacuum void formation and upwards migration. In this paper we present our findings and thinkable explanation on the upwards migration phenomenon experimentally observed and consistently replicated as JSC-1A lunar regolith simulant melted at high vacuum. Upwards migration of molten lunar regolith will make future lunar ISRU’s melting processes both challenging as molten bulk material would migrate upwards along the container’s walls, and also promising on new opportunities for alternative ISRU’s sustainable processes as regolith’s upwards migration takes place in uniformed thin-film pattern. Among the potential ISRU’s processes that might use controlled thermal thin-film-based migration without the necessity of terrestrial precursors are production of feedstock for 3D printing, fractional separation of regolith’s component’s (O₂, metals, and alloys) via pyrolysis, film coating, purification of valuables solid crystals including silicon, and fabrication of key elements for microfluidic, and MEMS devices. Thermal upwards migration phenomenon on JSC-1A’s melt is formulated and explained by the authors as due to thermal Marangoni effect (also known as thermo-capillarity) in which temperature gradients within the melt’s bulk and along the crucible’s wall yield the surface tension large enough to supersede the gravitational force and yield the experimentally observed upwards thin-film migration. As far as the authors know, upwards thermal migration of molten JSC-1A (or other lunar simulant regolith) under vacuum has not been reported in the literature. A thermal mathematical model accounting for thermal Marangoni effect on molten JSC-1A agrees with what experimentally was observed, the formation of the meniscus on the melt-wall surface interface along with an incipient upwards migration in thin-film pattern along the crucible wall that, according to the model, experiences large temperature gradient, an important factor to trigger the thermal Marangoni effect along with the fact that surface tension of the molten lunar regolith material is temperature dependent.     

月面钻进真空环境模拟装置的设计与验证

探月工程（三期）项目提出了在月面进行至少2 m深度的钻取采样任务,前期需要在地面进行模拟月面钻进过程热特性的研究,为此本文发明了一套月面真空环境模拟装置。根据模拟月壤钻进试验的要求,设计了一种可从底部抽气的三段式可多次拆装的真空罐结构。考虑到模拟月壤的颗粒大小和快速抽真空的要求,设计了一种筛网状具有多层过滤结构的月壤筒。根据在真空度不变的条件下可进行连续多次钻进试验的要求,设计了可从外部操作的具有缺齿结构的月壤筒转动机构。由真空度要求和可耐粉尘的特性要求,选取了三级扩散泵组。实验表明,在不放置模拟月壤的情况下,本环境模拟装置中的真空度可达10-1 Pa,在放置模拟月壤的情况下,真空度可达7 Pa,能够满足模拟月面钻进过程热特性试验的要求。此外,通过测量抽真空过程中真空度随时间的变化情况还得出了模拟月壤出气量曲线,对模拟月壤真空系统的实验应用具有重要价值。      

模拟月壤铺粉过程DEM数值仿真

空基激光选区熔化（SLM）技术与原位资源利用（ISRU）概念结合,有望解决地外大规模基地建设的工程难题。SLM铺粉过程对成形件性能和质量有重要影响。基于非球形粒子叠加球模型方法,建立模拟月壤颗粒几何模型;基于线性弹簧-阻尼接触作用模型、Hamaker理论及牛顿运动定律,建立颗粒动力学模型;采用三维离散单元方法（DEM）及软球模型,进行不同工况下模拟月壤在铺粉过程中的流变特性研究。结果显示:所提模型和方法能开展指定工况和环境参数的模拟月壤颗粒系统流动性和堆积行为数值仿真研究;月面低重力环境导致粉床表面粗糙度变大、堆积密度和平均配位数变小;通过降低铺粉速度和优化刮刀型面,可以有效改善月基铺粉的粉床质量,获得更密实和均匀的粉床结构。      

Ground experiments of Chang’e-5 lunar regolith penetrating radar

The Lunar Regolith Penetrating Radar (LRPR) is an Ultra-Wideband (UWB) array-based Ground penetrating radar (GPR) onboard the lander of Chang’e-5 (CE-5) mission. The primary scientific objectives of the LRPR are to probe the thickness and structure of lunar regolith of the landing site, and support the drilling and sampling process. In order to evaluate the performance of the LRPR, a series of ground experiments are performed using the LRPR prototype mounted on a CE-5 lander model. The performance of the LRPR is evaluated by comparing the experimental data with the simulated data. Data processing and imaging method are verified, and the interferences from the lander and other aspects are analyzed. The results of the ground experiments and simulation demonstrate that the LRPR is able to meet the design requirement of 2-m detection depth. They also indicate that the upper and lower interfaces of the stratified structure in the lunar regolith can be well distinguished by the LRPR when the dielectric constant difference is greater than 0.3, and the imaging effect of the location under the dense antennas is better than that of other positions. However, the identification capability of the LRPR to the independent blocky objects is relatively poor mainly due to the clutters caused by the lander, the sparsity of the antenna elements compared to the size of the basalt block, the limited aperture of the antenna array, and the tail of the transmitted waveform.     

Use of lunar regolith as a substrate for plant growth.

Regenerative Life Support Systems (RLSS) will be required to regenerate air, water, and wastes, and to produce food for human consumption during long-duration missions to the Moon and Mars. It may be possible to supplement some of the materials needed for a lunar RLSS from resources on the Moon. Natural materials at the lunar surface may be used for a variety of lunar RLSS needs, including (i) soils or solid-support substrates for plant growth, (ii) sources for extraction of essential, plant-growth nutrients, (iii) substrates for microbial populations in the degradation of wastes, (iv) sources of O2 and H2, which may be used to manufacture water, (v) feed stock materials for the synthesis of useful minerals (e.g., molecular sieves), and (vi) shielding materials surrounding the outpost structure to protect humans, plants, and microorganisms from harmful radiation. Use of indigenous lunar regolith as a terrestrial-like soil for plant growth could offer a solid support substrate, buffering capacity, nutrient source/storage/retention capabilities, and should be relatively easy to maintain. The lunar regolith could, with a suitable microbial population, play a role in waste renovation; much like terrestrial waste application directly on soils. Issues associated with potentially toxic elements, pH, nutrient availability, air and fluid movement parameters, and cation exchange capacity of lunar regolith need to be addressed before lunar materials can be used effectively as soils for plant growth.     

考虑相互碰撞影响的月壤颗粒运动轨迹计算方法研究

针对登月着陆器下降过程扬起月壤颗粒的运动轨迹及空间分布问题, 提出了考虑月壤颗粒发生完全弹性碰撞和非完全弹性碰撞两种情况的月壤颗粒运动轨迹计算方法. 根据质量守恒和能量守恒定律确定月壤颗粒相互碰撞后的速度, 通过羽流场与月壤颗粒的流固耦合相互迭代计算方法, 获得被扬起的月壤颗粒在羽流场和相互碰撞共同作用下随时间的运动轨迹和空间分布. 基于美国Apollo 11登月过程实测数据, 采用数值模拟对该方法进行验证. 结果表明, 考虑月壤颗粒相互碰撞的影响后, 其运动规律出现较明显的扩散趋势. 进一步考虑月壤颗粒相互碰撞引起能量损失的影响后, 月壤颗粒的扩散趋势有所减弱, 并且扬起的高度随着恢复系数的减小而降低.      

月壤剖面冲击贯入式探测方案研究

以月壤剖面的原位探测为目标,提出一种利用土体结构侵彻原理的冲击式贯入器设计方案。重点阐述了冲击式贯入器的工作原理和机构实现方案,并开展多方案设计与分析。研制了原理样机并开展实验验证,证明利用冲击式贯入方法实现月壤剖面自动潜入的可行性,并对我国未来开展月壤剖面原位探测提出了相关建议。     

地外天体潜入式探测典型案例分析及展望

针对地外天体星壤剖面的潜入式探测任务,对星球表面热场、星壤剖面原位力学特性等科学目标探测的基本原理、实现方案和典型案例进行了资料调研与分析,并阐明了国际上开展地外天体星壤剖面潜入式探测活动的目的和科学意义。在此基础上,提出了我国月面采样科学目标拓展方案以及我国开展潜入式探测的预先研究规划,对蠕动掘进和冲击贯入式探测方案的基本原理和应用前景进行了分析。     

CAS-1 lunar soil simulant

Lunar soil simulant is a geochemical reproduction of lunar regolith, and is needed for lunar science and engineering researches. This paper describes a new lunar soil simulant, CAS-1, prepared by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, to support lunar orbiter, soft-landing mission and sample return missions of China’s Lunar Exploration Program, which is scheduled for 2004–2020. Such simulants should match the samples returned from the Moon, all collected from the lunar regolith rather than outcrops. The average mineral and chemical composition of lunar soil sample returned from the Apollo 14 mission, which landed on the Fra Mauro Formation, is chosen as the model for the CAS-1 simulant. Source material for this simulant was a low-Ti basaltic scoria dated at 1600 years from the late Quaternary volcanic area in the Changbai Mountains of northeast China. The main minerals of this rock are pyroxene, olivine, and minor plagioclase, and about 20–40% modal glass. The scoria was analyzed by XRF and found to be chemically similar to Apollo 14 lunar sample 14163. It was crushed in an impact mill with a resulting median particle size 85.9 μm, similar to Apollo soils. Bulk density, shear resistance, complex permittivity, and reflectance spectra were also similar to Apollo 14 soil. We conclude that CAS-1 is an ideal lunar soil simulant for science and engineering research of future lunar exploration program.     

Mechanical behavior of the metal parts welded with extraterrestrial regolith simulant by the solar concentrator in ISRU & ISRF application

The use of in-situ resources plays an important role on future extraterrestrial human activities for the facility repair and habitat construction, especially in sustainable space exploration of Moon and Mars. A method of the metal welded with extraterrestrial regolith simulant using solar processing under ambient conditions is presented. Metal parts are made of Q235B ferroalloy and TA2 titanium alloy into standard tensile members according to the ASTM code. They are disconnected from the middle in advance, and then welded together with lunar and Martian regolith simulant under ambient conditions, respectively. The entire welding process and precautions are detailed. Additionally, the mechanical behavior of weldments is characterized regarding their tensile strength. Furthermore, the fusion zone of weldments is studied by Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements. The results show that it is possible to weld metal parts together with extraterrestrial regolith simulant by the solar concentrator. The average ultimate tensile strength of ferroalloy specimens welded with lunar and Martian regolith simulant is 2.94 MPa and 1.66 MPa; The average ultimate tensile strength of titanium alloy specimens welded with lunar and Martian regolith simulant is 4.95 MPa and 2.59 MPa. Moreover, the failure mode of all weldments was brittle failure. The welding joints strength derives from the phases that the regolith as the solder fusing into ferroalloys in a homogeneous way and titanium alloys in an inhomogeneous way. The presented method may provide a new thought for astronaut assistance associating with repairing and fabricating in subsequent Moon and Mars missions.