Rocket launches, a €1bn research initiative, and the future of 3D printing

Rocket launches, space experiments, and one of the EU’s biggest scientific research initiatives of all time: all these projects are in fact being coordinated from within the bustling campus of the Chalmers University of Technology, at the heart of Gothenburg.

As well as being one of Sweden’s most reputed universities and an international leader in engineering education, Chalmers is responsible for coordinating the Graphene Flagship, a €1bn EU-funded research initiative investigating the nature and applications of graphene. Graphene is the world’s thinnest known material and is also extremely strong, flexible, and conductive, meaning it has a wide range of current uses and future potential for engineering projects across many sectors. The Graphene Flagship, which was founded in 2013, is working to bring this nanomaterial out of the lab and into commercial applications.

When the Graphene Flagship was founded, however, it was not necessarily anticipated that during its first decade of existence, its researchers would not only work to develop graphene applications on Earth, but also in space.

Over the past several years, Graphene Flagship researchers have been testing how graphene can be used to expand the capabilities of space travel, which could have the effect of enabling humans to explore space further and more safely, as well as even establish habitations on moons or other planets.

Graphene’s current and potential uses in space technology are many. For example, graphene-enhanced hydrogels could create better and more mechanically resistant materials for spacecraft. Graphene and graphene-related materials tend to be both lighter and stronger than other materials, meaning spacecraft constructed using graphene could be both more resistant to the harsh conditions of space than materials currently in use, as well as lighter, which would mean less fuel would be required to propel the spacecraft into orbit.

The Graphene Flagship has been conducting various experiments to test graphene in space as well as in zero-gravity conditions, which has even resulted in certain experiments taking place at the Esrange Space Center in Kiruna, Sweden, in partnership with the Swedish Space Corporation. These experiments include launching research rockets containing experiments that test how graphene and graphene-based inks behave in weightless conditions. The results of these experiments will inform the development of new additive manufacturing procedures in space, such as 3D printing. Such procedures are key for space exploration, during which replacement components are often needed: were 3D printing made possible in space, this innovation could allow astronauts to create tools and materials they need even when far away from Earth.

Another example of space-specific Graphene Flagship research is that of the work being done by project partners Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (Italy), the Centre for Research and Engineering in Space technologies of the Université libre de Bruxelles, and the Cambridge Graphene Centre (UK), in conjunction with partner company Leonardo. Together, these partners are working to create a new low-energy, low-maintenance cooling system using graphene-enhanced loop heat pipes, which could provide a solution to the limitations of thermal management technology currently onboard spacecraft.

A team of students at Delft Technical University (TU Delft) in the Netherlands, meanwhile, have been working to test graphene in space-like microgravity, for potential future use as a light sail in space-craft propulsion. Light sails can be used in space as a means of propelling spacecraft using light from the sun or from Earth-based lasers. When light is reflected from or absorbed by a surface, it exerts a force that pushes the surface away from the light source. Being very light and strong, graphene is an excellent candidate for solar sails.

Other space-related Graphene Flagship projects include seeking to use graphene-based technologies to overcome the current lack of technology for radiation shielding. Astronauts who spend longer periods of time in space – even just a few months – are subjected to dangerous cosmic radiation; and, at present, there is no technology capable of shielding them from this hazard. Graphene, however, has the potential to address this issue by developing better-protected spacecraft, or even through creating better engines, which could enable spacecraft to move more quickly and thereby lessen the amounts of time astronauts are in space and exposed to radiation.

Graphene Flagship researchers are also investigating how graphene can be used specifically on the moon to combat the ongoing challenge posed by regolith, also known as ‘moon dust’. Regolith is highly abrasive and, since the Apollo missions, has been one of the biggest challenges lunar missions have had to overcome. It is responsible for mechanical and electrostatic damage to equipment and is also hazardous for astronauts, clogging spacesuits’ joints, obscuring visors, and eroding protective layers. Graphene and graphene-based composites, with their notable qualities of being lightweight and extremely strongly, could be used to coat equipment and protective layers, thereby better protecting astronauts and their spacecrafts.

Dr Carlo Iorio, Senior Researcher at Université libre de Bruxelles and Graphene Flagship Space Champion, is measured yet candid in his assessment of graphene’s potential to change space exploration.

“A new revolution in space exploration is underway – and I do not use the word ‘revolution’ lightly,” says Dr Iorio. “Over the past seven or eight years, we have seen renewed international interest in space and in its potential to teach us more about the worlds beyond our own, and about how humans might exist and even thrive beyond Earth in the future.

“Space agencies including the European Space Agency, NASA, the Chinese Space Agency, and the Russian Space Agency are currently aiming to create a base on the moon, and then to use this as a base from which to travel to Mars – a planet that could, with the help of (albeit controversial) terraforming, one day support human life. And the space-related research that scientists are conducting into nanomaterials like graphene – a material with immense untapped potential – all forms part of this broader project to help humans explore space and better understand our future place with it.”

Back to Earth – what makes Sweden such a great base from which to launch rockets and conduct space research?

Marcus Lindh, Systems Engineer & Project Manager at the Swedish Space Corporation, explains.

“Sweden is a very strong Space nation with experience of launching rockets since 1961 and has helped with engineering services in basically all major space missions in history. From our rocket base Esrange, above the arctic circle, we have launched close to 700 sounding rockets and many of the experiments onboard have been developed by us together with scientists.

“The remote area far from civilisation is crucial for performing rocket launches due to the danger involved and the sound pollution during the actual launch. Esrange is really a perfect place for conducting space research and rocket launches.

“We have now performed two launches with the graphene experiment ARLES and hope that many more will come. With over 40,000 engineering hours put into developing these graphene experiments, we are confident that we can push the limits even further and perfect them for more microgravity research in the future.”

As for Gothenburg, it makes sense that the city sits at the heart of this research. Not only is the city a hub for the global engineering community due to Chalmers, but it is also heavily involved in sustainability initiatives: indeed, according to the Global Destination Sustainability Index, Gothenburg has at the time of writing been the world’s most sustainable city for four years running. Graphene’s sustainability applications mean the city is a logical home for research into this ground-breaking material.

With the city and its scientists reaching for the stars, this is clearly a special time in history. Wherever Gothenburg and graphene go next, it is bound to be exciting.