Stability of Scaffoldless Dry Stone Vaults Under Microgravity and Seismic Loading

Vaults assembled from regolith-based components offer a compelling solution to the need for protective infrastructure in future off-Earth settlements. We have studied the stability and seismic performance of a novel pitched-brick vault geometry, which could shield various assets from radiation or other Space hazards. The dry stone scaffoldless vault was modeled as an assembly of mechanically interlocking components using geometric constraint solving. A novel methodology was developed to produce distinct element models with complex, non-convex rigid block geometries. The stability of these models was assessed in 3DEC, a distinct element modeling program, using quasi-static and dynamic time history analyses representative of expected loading in the Lunar context. For quasi-static pushover-type analysis, the proposed vault geometry was stable under its self-weight and exhibited favorable resistance to lateral acceleration. The vault’s dynamic response to an artificial ground motion time history suggests that the structure effectively dissipated energy, and that progressive collapse is unlikely in this type of structure.