Vacuum sintering behavior and magnetic transformation for high-Ti type basalt simulated lunar regolith

Lunar regolith in-situ utilization receives increasing attentions due to development of lunar exploration research. The complex composition of lunar regolith leads to its complicated phase reaction and composition evolution at high temperature, whereas few studies focus on the alteration of physicochemical properties for simulated lunar regolith at high temperature. This paper focuses on physicochemical variation characteristics and magnetic transformation for high-Ti type basalt lunar regolith simulant CLRS-2 during vacuum sintering process. Importantly, the effect of heat-treatment on magnetic properties of CLRS-2 and the magnetic properties difference between high-Ti and low-Ti type basalt lunar regolith simulant have been investigated. The results would help us understand how the micro-morphology and chemical composition of ilmenite change in lunar regolith during sintering process. What can be inferred is that the ions substitution between ilmenite and other minerals or amorphous phase would occur during sintering process of lunar regolith at high temperature in vacuum, which would lead to the evaporation of Fe-containing components. Besides, the results of micro-hardness indicate that the ilmenite content difference between CLRS-1 and CLRS-2 have no influence on the micro-hardness of the sintered samples, while the density of samples and the sintering condition such as temperature have a greater influence. •First demonstration of unique micro-morphology variation of high-Ti type basalt lunar soil simulant.•First demonstration of weak ferromagnetic property for vacuum sintered basalt lunar regolith simulants.•First certification of the effect of ilmenite amount on composition evolution for lunar soil simulants.•First demonstration of small influence by ilmenite amount on micro-hardness of sintered samples.