Experimental and numerical study on the structural behavior of assembled interlocking lunar landing pad

Wenbin Han, Chongfeng Zhang , Jinqiao Sun , Cheng Zhou, Lieyun Ding

Abstract

Lunar landing pad is an important infrastructure on the lunar surface and is used to improve landing safety and mitigate dust problems caused by launch and landing. It will be subjected to the dynamic mechanical loading from the footpads of the spacecraft and the retrorocket plume loading. Only the former was considered in this study, and the latter will be explored in future studies. Prefabricated module assembly method is one of the most feasible construction methods. The assembly pattern, size, and thickness of the prefabricated modules are important factors that affect the structural performance of the lunar landing pad. In this study, three forms of mechanical interlocking were identified for an assembled lunar landing pad (ALLP) according to the interlocking form. In addition, a simple shape was designed for each form. Interlocking concrete blocks were fabricated, and a plate loading test (PLT) was conducted to evaluate the structural performance of the assembled concrete block pavement (ACBP). By comparing the numerical and experimental results, corresponding finite element (FE) models of the plate loading tests were developed and validated. Finally, an FE model to evaluate the structural performance of the ALLP based on the validated ACBP FE model was developed. The effects of the size and thickness of the interlocking modules and load position on the structural performance of the ALLP were further studied. The results indicated that the thickness of the modules had a greater influence on the structural performance than the load position and size of the modules. This study is expected to provide a reference for the design and construction of lunar landing pads.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0094576523001108