NEEP602 Course Notes (Spring 1996)
Resources from Space
Next: Exploration Beyond Tranquillitatis Up: Plan of Exploration Previous: Stage 2 -
Stage 3 -- Determining Percentages of Gases Recoverable from Regolith
In most mining operations the amounts of valuable mineral or minerals actually recovered per unit of material mined and processed are less than the amounts originally present, and mining for the volatile elements on the Moon will certainly be no exception. There is some concern that portions of the volatile elements may be lost during excavation and other physical handling. There will be losses during heat treatment of the regolith to release the volatiles and in the processes for recovery of gases. No final evaluation of the potential of the regolith as a source of volatiles can be made until probable losses can be estimated with reasonable precision. Neither mining nor processing procedures can be satisfactorily evaluated on the basis of experiments on Earth. It will be necessary to establish pilot-scale operations on the Moon. Mining systems can then be tested against regolith material under the severe conditions of the lunar environment. Processing methods can then be tested with large bulk samples, again under actual lunar conditions.
WCSAR-TR-AR3-9301-1
Eugene N. Cameron
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