Penn team turns everyday Mylar into insulation for lunar bases

Engineers at the University of Pennsylvania have developed HyLIFS, stacks of ultrathin Mylar sheets coated with aluminum oxide, as insulation for long-term lunar missions. The material survived 10 consecutive cycles of 20 MPa compressive stress while retaining thermal performance, making it a candidate for habitats, spacesuits and rovers.

• HyLIFS consists of hundreds of ultrathin Mylar sheets with a thin alumina coating
• The stacks survived 10 consecutive cycles of 20 MPa compressive stress
• Prototypes are about 1 cm² and hand-assembled; scaling up needs roll-coating manufacturing
• Findings were published in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces