Granular Regolith Induced Tribology (GRIT)

Lunar regolith poses a significant and persistent threat to the reliability of mechanical systems required for sustained surface operations. Fine, abrasive dust infiltrates moving components such as bearings, accelerating wear and degrading performance. Despite decades of mitigation research, no established methodology exists to detect regolith-induced degradation from operational data before functional failure occurs. This gap leaves long-duration lunar architectures dependent on conservative scheduled maintenance or reactive failure response, neither well-suited to crewed sorties far from base infrastructure. This proposal seeks to establish a foundation for health management of regolith-exposed mechanical systems. We will develop a repeatable experimental framework that couples controlled regolith simulant exposure with synchronized multimodal data acquisition on a representative rolling-element bearing assembly, capturing the progression of damage rather than a single failure endpoint. A deliberately broad sensor suite — vibration, motor current, torque, temperature, and borescope imagery — enables data-driven down select of the modalities and features most diagnostic of regolith-induced wear. Deliverables include a documented test fixture and protocol, a publicly releasable run-to-degradation dataset, and recommendations for sensing strategies in future lunar surface mechanisms. The work directly supports NASA's transition from short-duration sorties to sustained crewed lunar presence

Develop a repeatable experimental framework that couples controlled regolith simulant exposure with synchronized multimodal data acquisition on a representative rolling-element bearing assembly, capturing the progression of damage rather than a single failure endpoint. 

This is a mature technology (TRL 7+) — the realistic path in is usually NASA's Technology Transfer Program: licensing an existing NASA patent, or a Space Act Agreement to use NASA facilities/expertise directly. NASA also runs a startup licensing program with no upfront fee for companies formed to commercialize a specific NASA technology.

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