Abstract DGP2026-41

Predicting the Clog: Flow Behaviour of Lunar Regolith in Partial Gravity

Oliver Gaida (1), Olfa D'Angelo(2,3), Jonathan Kollmer(4) and Jens Teiser (1)

(1) Universität Duisburg-Essen, Germany, (2) Institut Supérieur de l'Aéronautique et de l'Espace (ISAE-SUPAERO), Université de Toulouse, France , (3) Van der Waals-Zeeman Institute, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands , (4) Institute of Frontier Materials on Earth and in Space Functional, Granular and Composite Materials, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Germany

The Moon is the gate way and test laboratory for planetary exploration. To establish a human presence on a different celestial body, we have to be able to utilize the local resources. On the Moon the most important resource will be the lunar regolith.

But lunar regolith is a challenging material, and handling it in an environment with reduced gravity and no air pressure will be even more challenging. Frequent instrumental failure like clogging of pipelines can be the consequence, if the behaviour prediction is incorrect.

To avoid this, we simulate the lunar environment in laboratory experiments and analyse the flow behaviour of lunar regolith analogue materials, depending on the environment and material properties.

We present a generalised approach to predict the increased clogging probability induced by reduction of gravity.