
New method for 3-D printing extraterrestrial materials - wolco
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/04/170412145217.htm
======
jjcm
Very cool work, but one thing that comes to mind is that this approach is
still 30% "evaporant, surfactant, and plasticizer solvents, [and] polylactic-
co-glycolic acid" by volume[1]. Good for simple tools and fixes that need to
be rebuilt, but a long ways off from being self sustainable. Needing to ship
30% of the materials with you means this probably wont be usable for habitat
creation or anything long term. I'm curious to see how low we can get that
percentage down while still maintaining structural integrity.

[1]
[https://www.nature.com/articles/srep44931](https://www.nature.com/articles/srep44931)

~~~
the8472
> Needing to ship 30% of the materials with you

It's 30% by volume, the article mentions 10% by mass.

------
delbel
what about just terrestrial material here on earth? sounds like a good idea.
Is there a 3d dirt printer?

~~~
lucky_cloud
There's a sand->glass 3D printer:
[http://www.markuskayser.com/work/solarsinter/](http://www.markuskayser.com/work/solarsinter/)

