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Featured article: Sintered regolith

Sintered regolith falls into the category of ceramic materials as sintering is the process most common to ceramics. When bricks are made from clay on Earth, first the bricks are heated long enough and hot enough to drive out the water. Then the heating is increased to cause partial melting or vitrification which results in the edges of adjacent grains being bonded together once they have cooled. The unmelted particles provide a stable shape and size during the process which involves some shrinkage and a decrease in porosity.

Experiments in radiant heating of regolith simulant have been carried out by NASA Johnson Space Center and Lockheed Engineering & Sciences Co.(read more)