When I saw the high Magnesium region on Mercury, the idea appeared on my mind. Using Magnesium and Silicon to construct on Mercury. The high Magnesium region has high magnesium and silicon concentration.
The melting point of Magnesium is 650 °C and the boiling point is 1091 °C.
The melting point of Silicon is 1,414 °C and the boiling point is 3265 °C.
The maximum temperature measured on the surface of Mercury is 430 °C.
These values indicate a straightforward approach to separate Magnesium from the ground and process it. The construction robot send to Mercury would be made of highly reflective material to stay cool from the heat of the sun. Due to lack of atmosphere, the places in shadow would stay cool. The construction robot would first find magnesium deposits with minimal impurities. Then using a special hot wire cutter, the robot would cut away a chunk of Magnesium. This process would be conducted when the sun is shining strong. The heat would already soften the low melting Magnesium. The wire cutter does not need to reach very high temperatures to cut away a Magnesium chunk.
The cut away chunk would then be shaped using the concentrated solar rays. Much stronger solar rays on Mercury compared to Earth would do the job quickly. The shaped parts would then be melted on the edges and merged.
Magnesium is a light weight and strong material. Very low concentrations of humidity and oxygen on Mercury would keep the material strong for a long duration.
The silicon deposits on the surface would also be processed like that to create glasses and insulators.
Non mechanical cut away and shaping process would allow a light weight and long-lasting construction compared to using drill bits and cutting wheels that would wear out quickly on other planets and moons.
By delegating the high energy part of a construction to the sun, a much simpler and low powered robot can be utilized for the construction. Which would mean low weight payload for the mission that would increase the feasibility of the idea.
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