The UD spacesuit shell textiles are treated with multiple nanotechnologies, including shear thickening fluid, a revolutionary material co-developed by UD and STF Technologies that normally behaves like a liquid, but becomes a solid under impact, a useful feature when puncture resistance is a priority. The hope is that beyond puncture protection, the STF-infused spacesuit textiles will offer greater dust deterrence, increasing the material’s lifespan in space.

Other RAC experiments will test materials for solar cells, optical systems, coatings and sensors. 

Repurposing moon dust for building materials

In other related work, the Wagner lab currently has experiments aboard the International Space Station (ISS) through a NASA collaboration to develop new construction materials for lunar exploration. 

These ISS experiments, part of a Materials International Space Station Experiment (MISSE) that launched last November, extend Wagner’s previous work on ways to make concrete in space, for such items as rocket landing pads, buildings, roads, habitats and other structures. More recent work in the Wagner lab by undergraduate researchers and doctoral students focuses on methods for curing 3D-printed materials in space, including using microwave technology.

“Here we aren’t trying to get rid of the moon dust — we are trying to leverage it to create extraterrestrial cement through additive manufacturing on the moon,” said Wagner, Unidel Robert L. Pigford Chair in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering.

Flying in the lower orbits above the Earth outside the ISS, the UD experiments currently are testing the durability of geopolymer construction materials made from lunar regolith (moon dust). The idea is to better understand how exposure to the environment in space affects the material’s structural and chemical composition over time. Answers to these and other questions will be critical for future NASA Artemis missions. Additionally, as with much of NASA’s funded research, such advances in materials technology find important terrestrial applications, such as sustainable construction materials, in this case so called “geopolymers.”

Meanwhile, back on Earth …

Wagner and colleagues from STF and Huantian Cao, a professor in UD’s Department of Fashion and Apparel Studies, are continuing work on the latest version of their shear-thickening infused spacesuit fabric, which holds potential to better prevent regolith particles from infiltrating spacesuit fabric and causing damage. 

“The Apollo era suits we currently use were severely damaged on the lunar surface by the regolith in only a few days of use. We need to develop much more robust outer layers for the spacesuit that will function on the lunar surface for the planned, long duration habitation. It's important for us to get this right,” said Wagner, referring to the societal “we” focused on solving this problem.

While this terrestrial work continues, Wagner is hoping for a soft moon landing on Sunday, March 2.

“A lot of things have to go right between now and then, but it's exciting,” he said. “We'll be among the first of this generation to do experiments on the surface of the moon.”