NSF Award
2328383
With the democratization and commercialization of space poised to springboard the next generation of space technologies, scientific discoveries, and explorations, distinct advantages will be realized by whichever nation first establishes these “factories-in-space” for manufacturing, assembly, repair, and reclamation in non-terrestrial environments. Recent advances in the space industry have brought humanity closer to exploring potential ways to utilize space resources and protect the Earth’s environment. With the emerging interests and technological progress in in-space manufacturing (ISM), it is of utmost importance to conceptualize the fundamental principles of ISM sustainability and to guide its technological development through these principles to ensure that the pursuit of progress aligns with the goals of environmental stewardship and long-term viability. There is a significant national need to advance sustainable ISM to be a world leader in such knowledge and technologies, as is reflected in national budget priorities and critical emerging technologies list. The long-term Earth and humanity benefits from ISM are immense, especially in the context of globally pressing challenges related to climate change, resource depletion, environmental pollution, and population growth. The overarching goal of this project is to enable a sustainable space industry that minimizes its impact on the Earth and space environments. The project integrates research, education, and workforce development to provide career awareness and preparation in support of a future diverse and inclusive workforce knowledgeable in technical and societal best practices for ISM. The project is supported by the Division of Materials Research (DMR) in the Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS), and co-funded by the Division of Translational Impacts (TI) in the Directorate for Technology, Innovation and Partnerships (TIP), the Division of Engineering Education and Centers (EEC) in the Directorate for Engineering (ENG), and the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) in the Office of Integrated Activities (OIA) in the Office of the Director (OD).<br/><br/>The proposed work converges multi-process and multi-material interfacial manufacturing, sustainable engineering, and participatory science to serve as a benchmark to re-imagine a new form of space commerce that manufactures at the point-of-need. The team will investigate how existing resources in space, such as metallic space debris and lunar regolith, can be used to manufacture products for use in space and reduce the supply from Earth. Mechanisms by which variables akin to multi-material and multi-process interfacial engineering influence the sustainability and quality of ISM products will be identified. The vision is to realize a flexible hybrid ISM platform allowing the fabrication of an array of specialty, one-off parts using resources available in space with the Earth and space environmental impacts and benefits clearly and accurately assessed and attained. This research integrates approaches and tools, including participatory modeling, hybrid asynchronous additive and forming process design and modeling, experimental verification of ISM with simulated space conditions, post-process mechanical performance evaluation, prospective life cycle assessment, scenario analysis, and multi-objective decision-making, to pioneer the development of a sustainability framework for ISM.<br/><br/>This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.
