Design Process Intended to Protect xEMU Components from Lunar Dust

The xEMU is being developed to supply astronauts with a safe environment during terrestrial exploration. Lunar dust has been identified as one of the greatest challenges to the xEMU during lunar exploration. Fine, glass like dust particles proved detrimental to Apollo hardware operation and has the potential to cause significant performance degradation to manned flight hardware. Lunar Dust Mitigation Devices (LDMD) were designed, fabricated and tested in fulfillment a NASA SBIR Phase I to protect xEMU venting components, during lunar exploration (EVA/IVA), from the threat lunar dust particles presented against six xEMU venting component operations. A structured approach was developed, during a SBIR Ph II, to better understand how electrostatically charged lunar dust could impact dust protection designs. Following preliminary fluid and magnetic force analysis a complex simulation tool will be developed to predict the cohesive strength of lunar dust to LDMD surface and the ability of xEMU component purge gas to clean these surfaces. The cohesive analysis will be based on lunar dust triboelectric/adhesion properties, predicting cohesive forces between the dust and LDMD surfaces. Developed code will then be coupled within an existing ParaEllip3d-CFD, coupled Computational Fluid-Dynamics and Discrete Element Method (CFD/DEM) simulation model. This integrated tool intends to predict if the purge gases offer adequate shearing forces to clean LDMD surface of lunar dust. LDMD designs will be modified to enhance the self-cleaning approach and prototypes will then be fabricated. Testing at Auburn University intends to challenge LDMD prototypes by replicating Dusty Plasma, which contains electrostatically charged, simulated lunar dust as floats in clouds above the lunar surface. Ideally, results from this testing will validate the prediction models offer a guide to allow the design of LDMD, and other protection devices, to be effective.