Fashioning Bricks out of Bedrock

As an alternative to the harvesting surface regolith to sinter into bricks, Allyn Shell suggests directly quarrying larger pieces of solid rock to be fashioned into blocks, or more complex shapes.

It seems likely that useful quarry sites for such solid rock would be available near the lunar base. Lunar bedrock is one obvious source for such solid rock, although it is usually found at least 5-10 metres below the surface. The Lunar Sourcebook states that bedrock material may be found where "young lava flows or impact melt sheets are present, on steep slopes within the walls of rille, or in crater walls and central peaks."

The bulk regolith near the surface is an aggragate of rocks and smaller particles, and thus requires the cohesion sintering provides. However, another approach might be to experiment with vibration frequencies which prevent the regolith particles from interlocking to move bulk, uncohesive material into moulds, then to change the vibration frequency to encourage interlocking. This technique has been used by Russian engineers on dams in Egypt, where they invented the technique of vibrating sand.