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By Chul H. Jo

The functions of miner mainly include the pick-up manganese nodules laying on the surface of the seafloor, the separation them from sediments, the crushing the nodules and the covey to the inlet of the flexible hose. The miner is connected with umbilical cable that can supply power, instrument signal, communication data, etc. The major concerns of the system is to monitor and control the launching and retrieval operation, the landing, maneuvering and track keeping, to monitor the pick-up operation and to monitor the hydraulic system. Also as per the seafloor profile the track and pick-up processes need to be controlled. The recent research and development of deep sea miner is mainly focused on the efficient performance and workability in deep water. To communicate and control the miner, navigation and positioning system have been applied. As the miner is being deployed or retrieved, it is very critical to avoid any damage to the device that would be caused by the dynamic behavior of surface vessel or the minor itself with wave and current motion. The fast deployment and retrieve should be considered very important to minimize the possible damage. The paper introduces the various type of deployment devices and recommend the possible system to the miner developed by KRISO.

Jan 1, 2003

By Huaiyang Zhou

It has been long known that manganese nodules occur more or less in some part of marginal seas in West Pacific Ocean. On the other hand, it is difficult to understand their distribution and the genesis as those nodule samples were collected mostly by dredge from the deep basins generally has much higher sedimentation rate than the open ocean. For example, the sedimentation rate in the South China Sea is about three orders of magnitudes than that in region of the Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone. In June of 2013, a small seamount (named as Jiaolong Seamount), consisting of southern part and northern part with a distance of about 3 km each other, was visited by DSV Jiaolong/RV XiangYangHong 9. It is discovered that abundant manganese nodules exist only on the surface sediment in the southern part with a water depth of about 3800 m to 3300m, on the platforms nearby an obvious crater where volcanic rocks exposed on the wall. There are no any nodules be observed on the sediment in the northern part of the seamount (about 100 m deeper than the southern part) and surrounding deep basin (approximately 4000 m in water depth). It is speculated that a source of core for manganese nodule and a dynamic sedimentation environment, are two major governors for the growth and distribution of manganese nodule in the marginal seas.

Sep 14, 2011

By Brian D?Olier

Much of the aggregate that is being exploited at present from these areas is a ?relic? deposit. It was originally eroded from primary source rocks and transported to a depositional centre by processes that are now either greatly reduced in effectiveness or are largely absent at the present time. Following the retreat of the Devensian ice sheet, the subsequent rise of sealevel and the drowning of large areas of the continental shelf along with the lower reaches of many rivers, a fresh sequence of sediment sources, pathways and sinks now exist. Sediment is being eroded from several, pre-existing source areas and transported along different, well - defined pathways to a number of new depositional sinks. Some of the present, licenced, aggregate dredging areas lie close to these sources, pathways and sinks with the consequent dredging activity being perceived by some as interfering with the ?natural process? that links the offshore and the coastal / littoral zones. With this perception in mind, the principal, sources, pathways and sinks between Flamborough Head and Beachy Head will be highlighted and the relationship of dredging activity upon them, evaluated. It will be demonstrated that offshore dredging activity has no effect upon supplies of sediment to coastal beaches.

Jan 1, 2004

By Ning Yang, Yuxiang Chen, Ming Chen

An ultraviolet laser Raman spectrometer was developed to detect and analyze material components of seawater, seafloor sediment and rock at a depth of 7000m maximally. Wave length of the excitation resource of the spectrometer is set to 355nm, which can enhance eigen scattered intensity and detecting sensitivity, and avoid fluorescence interference. Miniaturization design was adopted for deep-sea application. Design of the optical system and pressure cartridge, material selection and seal design of the observation window, and design of the Lithium batteries are the key technologies in the procedure of research and development. The spectrometer was carried by a Lander sank to sea bottom of the Pacific's Mariana Trench for verification. During the sea trials, data acquisition for Raman spectra was conducted for analyzing seawater in the detection area, and the spectrometer was verified synthetically. According to the data, the spectrometer is stable and practicable with high resolution and precision, and it is appropriate to detect and analyze composition of substance under the tremendous ocean.

Jan 1, 2017

By Wenbin Ma, Cees van Rhee, Dingena Schott

Since the concept of deep sea mining (DSM) was proposed by J. L. Mero with his book, The Mineral Resources of the Sea, in the 1960s, many research and significant developments have been implemented. However, its commercial mining process still has not yet commenced. One of the most important issues is that a sustainable DSM transport plan is difficult to determine, taking into consideration the DSM technological, economic, and environmental aspects simultaneously. The objective of this paper is to propose a method to determine the sustainable DSM transport plan utilizing a fuzzy analytic network process method, which is a typical multi-criteria decision making method (MCDM). The DSM transport plans evaluating major criteria consist of technological, economic, environmental, and social aspects with both qualitative and quantitative attributes. Different major criteria include several sub-criteria, respectively:  Technological aspect: energy consumption, proven technology, technology reliability, production rate, technology availability;  Economic aspect: gross income, capital cost, operation and maintenance cost, investment recovery period;  Environmental aspect: species disturbance variance, severity of ill effect, turbidity of ocean water, total organic carbon content, sedimentation thickness;  Social aspect: social acceptability, policy support; The weights for all evaluating criteria and sub-criteria are determined through a questionnaire survey interviewing experts at different research fields. All the transport plan candidates are ranked based on a comprehensive index. The conducted research in this paper is meaningful to promote the DSM commercialization process.

Jan 1, 2018

By Jung-Keuk Kang

Recently, the Korean government prepared a strategy for deep seabed mining, which consists of three stages for 20 years until 2010. The first step of the program is focused to conduct deep seabed exploration until 1993. The apparent "hurry-and-spend to catch-up" policy that the Korean government has shown in deep seabed mineral exploration was motivated by an effort to qualify a prerequisite requirement to be a pioneer investor as a developing country under the terms of Resolution II and the New York Understanding. Since 1983, KORDI (Korea Ocean Research and Development Institute) under the auspices of the Korean government has carried out deep seabed mineral exploration. The KORDI had a joint exploration program with USGS from 1989 to 1991 aiming to evaluate the potentiality of manganese nodule in the western part of Clarion-Clipperton Zone as well as that of manganese crusts in the western Pacific. In 1992, Korean government accelerates its program by the confirmation of national policy and the equipment of new built research vessel, Onnuri-Ho. The RIV Onnuri-Ho is about 1400 G/T, which is equipped with various advanced instruments including GPS, multi-beam echosounder (Seabeam 2000), multi-channel seismic system, and MDM system.

Jan 1, 1992

By Yoshitaka Hosoi

The survey of the cobalt-rich crust of the Republic of the Marshall Islands was carried out in 1996 and 1998, as the cooperative study project between Japan and SOPAC member countries, and at the thirteen seamounts, seafloor topographic maps and acoustic reflection intensity distribution images by MBES were obtained, and the collection of samples by dredging was conducted. On the basis of the previous results, three seamounts, MS01, MS11 and MS12 were selected for the 2002 year survey, and drilling by BMS (deep sea boring system) was conducted there, to understand the occurrence of cobalt-rich crust. At the same time, environmental survey was carried out to make clear the environmental characteristics of the area. The summary of the survey will be reported.

Jan 1, 2003

By Hunsoo Choi

Internal textures of manganese nodules from Clarion-Clipperton zone of northeastern Pacific Ocean are classified into five textural zones: columnar-textured layered zone, cuspate-textured layered zone, cuspate-textured massive zone, cuspate-textured porous zone and massive- textured massive zone. Vernadite is the main constituent mineral in the columnar- and cuspate-textured layered zone. Buserite sometimes occurs in the cuspate-textured layered zone. The cuspate-textured massive zone is mainly composed of buserite. Todorokite is also associated with buserite in the massive-textured porous zone, where cuspates and globes are partially replaced by massive texture. In the massive-textured massive zone, todorokite, buserite and birnessite occur together. The analyzed elements of all zones are also classified into four elemental groups by the cluster analysis of correlation coefficients: Mn group, Cu-Ni-Mg group, Fe group and Si group. Mn group consists of Mn and K. Cu-Ni-Mg group consists of Cu, Ni, Zn, Mg and/or Ca, Na. Fe group consists of Fe, Co, Ti and/or Ca, P. Si group consists of Si and Al. Each textural zone is composed of three or four elemental groups. These four elemental groups are correlated with mineral composition, such as, Mn group with todorokite, Cu-Ni-Mg group with buserite, Fe group with Co-bearing iron-oxyhydroxide minerals, and Si group with silicates.

Jan 1, 2002

By L. B. Khershberg

According to geochemical specialization, cobalt-manganese crusts (CMC) of the Magellan Seamounts are rich in cobalt and manganese and are complex in composition. Besides cobalt, manganese, and nickel, they contain such components, as platinum, copper, molybdenum, and rare earth elements, which enhance the value of this material. Factors and conditions responsible for Co-Mn ore-genesis and processes of cobalt-manganese crust formation are described in a number of Russian and foreign geological papers. The study of ore-concentrating processes in the Magellan Seamounts helped to solve an important applied problem, namely to reduce the time needed to reveal the factors of CMC formation mechanism. The authors of this research found seawater over the described area of Magellan Seamounts to be stratified and to contain high concentrations of manganese, iron, cobalt, nickel, copper, lead, and zinc. Diagrams of suspended Co, Mn, Ni, and other components in seawater (0-5500 m), as well as medium concentrations of basic elements (Co, Mn, and Ni) in ore deposits of metallogenic levels of Magellan Seamounts, were found to coincide both on guyots and abyssal plains. Detailed geological study of guyots in the Magellan Seamounts (Dalmorgeo, IOAN, Roskomnedra, and others) revealed that medium Co-Mn crusts cover bedrock rocks in narrow ribbon-like bodies along the edges of bathymetric intervals 1300-1600 m, 1400-2000 m, 2000-2500 m, and 2500-3000 m.

Jan 1, 2004

By Fredrik Søreide

Several potential marine mineral deposits of various types have been identified within the Norwegian EEZ. The Norwegian University of Science and Technology has recently designed and built a new remotely operated vehicle (ROV) system for scientific investigations of the deep-ocean and seafloor. A program to locate and investigate the most interesting of the identified marine mineral deposits using the new ROV system is underway. The ROV has been designed for detailed survey and sampling tasks. Although initially built for a major marine archaeology project, the design is equally suited to locate and investigate marine mineral deposits. The ROV is equipped with a high precision multi-sensory package that consists of various high quality cameras and lighting systems (together with state-of-the-art video and photo mosaic systems), several sonar systems, magnetometer and various other sensors. The ROV is also equipped with a 7-function manipulator arm and an excavation system. Internal collection baskets are used to store material for retrieval to the surface. A closed-loop control dynamic positioning system is used for detailed positioning of the ROV. Position data and other information are stored in a digital data management system. The ROV will also be used together with a specially developed remotely operated tool (ROT). The size and shape of this benthic lander can be adjusted before it is carefully lowered to the seafloor. The ROV can be docked on a moving platform on the ROT, to do detailed scientific investigations. The ROT can also be equipped with a separate sensor and system package, including drilling, excavation and coring units. This paper will present the new remotely operated system and the planned projects in Norway.

Jan 1, 2004

By V. Soloviev

The world?s data available on near sea-bottom gas-hydrate accumulation and deep-water fluid-discharge areas are presented in this paper. Gas-hydrate accumulation associated with fluid discharge (mud volcanoes, gas seeps, gas-saturated water seeps) is characterized by the following. First, the largest hydrate accumulations in sediments are located at shallow subbottom depths and have well-defined limits, especially in the upper subbottom part. Second, gas-hydrate formation in fluid-discharge areas is a present-day process, with the global occurrence of deep-water fluid-discharge areas numbering up to about ten thousand, and with all the seep areas being favorable for the formation of near-sea-bottom gas-hydrate accumulation. Third and principal, gas resources in the hydrates can be considered as renewable. Estimates of possible gas volume in single accumulations of hydrates and the global budget, as well as possible methods of gas utilization from such gas-hydrate accumulations are discussed in the paper.

Jan 1, 2005

By S. Rajendran

Much advance has been made in offshore hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation in India. But the same amount of success could not be achieved in the case of other offshore minerals which are amenable for mining. However, employing present technology, there should not be any difficulty in successful exploitation with minimum environmental hazards. A demonstration is provided by considering the conditions prevailing in the Kerala offshore (southwest coast of India) scenario of monazite, ilmenite, phosphatic mud and calcareous deposits. Mud banks are unique phenomenon of the Kerala coast during monsoon season. Acting as barriers to waves, mud banks protect portions of the beaches from being eroded and trap sediments from either side facilitating growth of adjacent beach. The easy minable possibilities of the phosphatic mud during non-monsoon season with less pollution hazards and dumping back the waste material after processing for phosphate at the breaker zones to reduce the erosional effects on the coast make the exploitation economic and ecofriendly unlike the benefication of the lowgrade phosphate ores on land on a comparatively larger area and subsequent crushing, transport and resulting pollution.

Jan 1, 1993

By Lénaick Menot, Anne-Sophie Alix, Charline Guérin, Sébastien Ybert, Ewan Pelleter, Florian Besson

Ifremer, on behalf of the French government, holds an Exploration Contract with the ISA for polymetallic nodules in the CCFZ. As part of its exploration activities, the NODULE (2015) cruise was conducted to acquire a 50 m resolution bathymetric coverage of the eastern sectors of the Contract. In 2017, Ifremer initiated an update of the Contract’s mineral resource estimate. Metal grades and nodule abundance were modelled using ordinary kriging. The inferred mineral resource is 436 Mt (wet) of polymetallic nodules at an average abundance of 10.7 kg/m² with a cut-off grade of 7 kg/m². Based on the geological data, seamounts, sedimentary basins and steep slopes contain no nodules. Technical studies of most of the contractors have determined that nodule collectors could not maneuver on slopes above 5 to 10°. Thus, Ifremer has selected a quite conservative slope threshold of 7 % (about 4°) and a backscatter threshold of -29.5 dB to delineate nodule-free areas. This has a significant impact on the resource estimate, as about 54 % of the eastern Contract areas are excluded. Near-seafloor high-resolution mapping and photographic transects, associated with finer-spaced box-core sampling could constitute a next step to better constrain the mineable areas and to get a higher level of confidence in the resource estimation.

Jan 1, 2018

By Kurt Aasly, Przemyslaw B. Kowalczuk, Rolf Arne Kleiv

Seafloor massive sulphides (SMS) can serve as a potential resource of metals such as Cu, Zn, Au and Ag. SMS rock samples from the Loki’s Castle area at the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge are comprised of sulphide bearing minerals such as pyrite, chalcopyrite, isocubanite, galena, sphalerite, whereas the gangue consists mainly of barite and silica. Sphalerite, chalcopyrite and isocubanite show complex intergrowth textures on the nano- to microscale. Various mineral processing tests were conducted in order to recover copper, zinc and silver. It was shown that sensor-based sorting can be efficiently used for preconcentration of SMS rock samples. A significant amount of waste (i.e. barite and silica) was removed in the preconcentration stage with very low losses of copper and zinc to the waste fraction. The upgraded samples were sent to the next processing stages. The results showed that the complex mineralogy of the SMS material provided challenges to conventional mineral processing methods. Hydrometallurgical processing was applied as an alternative method for extraction of metals from SMS. Leaching experiments were conducted using solutions of different lixiviants, and it was shown that leaching of SMS together with manganese nodules would facilitate efficient recovery of metals from these resources.

Jan 1, 2018

By R. K. H. Falconer, Wood R. A., C. D. Castle

"A deposit of phosphate nodules is on the Chatham Rise approximately 450 kilometres to the east of Christchurch in the South Island of New Zealand. The deposit contains sufficient rock phosphate to supply New Zealand’s phosphate fertilizer needs for at least 20 years. It was first investigated commercially 50 years ago by Global Marine, followed by JBL Minerals in the early 1970’s. NZ and German government research and industry groups then took it up again, with major field programs in 1978 and in the early 1980s.Due to difficult global and local economic conditions the project ground to a halt in 2004.The project was resurrected in 2007 when Chatham Rock Phosphate applied for a prospecting licence. This was granted in 2010 and a successful subsequent mining permit approval followed in 2013. The initial application for the separately required environmental permit was declined in February 2015.A lot has changed then and the significance of this will be the subject of the presentation. Chatham Rock Phosphate is confident that an environmental permit will be successfully granted next time."

Jan 1, 2017

By Lénaick Menot, Anne-Sophie Alix, Charline Guérin, Sébastien Ybert, Ewan Pelleter, Florian Besson

Ifremer, on behalf of the French government, holds an Exploration Contract with the ISA for polymetallic nodules in the CCFZ. As part of its exploration activities, the NODULE (2015) cruise was conducted to acquire a 50 m resolution bathymetric coverage of the eastern sectors of the Contract. In 2017, Ifremer initiated an update of the Contract’s mineral resource estimate. Metal grades and nodule abundance were modelled using ordinary kriging. The inferred mineral resource is 436 Mt (wet) of polymetallic nodules at an average abundance of 10.7 kg/m² with a cut-off grade of 7 kg/m². Based on the geological data, seamounts, sedimentary basins and steep slopes contain no nodules. Technical studies of most of the contractors have determined that nodule collectors could not maneuver on slopes above 5 to 10°. Thus, Ifremer has selected a quite conservative slope threshold of 7 % (about 4°) and a backscatter threshold of -29.5 dB to delineate nodule-free areas. This has a significant impact on the resource estimate, as about 54 % of the eastern Contract areas are excluded. Near-seafloor high-resolution mapping and photographic transects, associated with finer-spaced box-core sampling could constitute a next step to better constrain the mineable areas and to get a higher level of confidence in the resource estimation.

Jan 1, 2018

By William D. Siapno

Mining the deep ocean by the year 2000 may seem far fetched. The year 2000 is but a decade away, a scant 10 years. Remember, the youngsters of today will grow up in a little more than a decade and rebut the wisdom of the ages, especially the traditions of their elders. Rude perhaps, but none the less a fact of life. Ocean mining exhibits many of these same traits. We should all brace ourselves for some rude shifts in our rapidly moving society. Major shifts in economics, politics, and social orders are the rule of the day. Communism is in retreat, our own economic structures chaotic. So in this moment of cataclysmic change, a shift in the international market place of mineral resources should not be a great surprise.

Jan 1, 2011

By Robert Ditchburn

Within New Zealand?s extended EEZ there exists a vast submarine hydrothermal mineral resource associated with the Kermadec intra-oceanic arc. Along this arc more than thirty submarine volcanoes have been explored by GNS-lead researchers and, of these, c. 60% are known to be hydrothermally active and a site of active seafloor mineralisation. Assessment of whether this mineralisation is economically viable in terms of grade and tonnage is now underway. A key aspect of these investigations is determining the age of the mineralization which will have a direct bearing on its mode of formation, the time elapsed to amass an economic deposit and, ultimately, its capacity for sustainable extraction. Intact barite-rich ?black-smoker? chimneys similar to that depicted here (86 cm long) have been recovered from Brothers volcano in the southern part of the arc. These and other hydrothermal deposits provide evidence of active volcanic massive sulphide (VMS) mineralisation along the arc, the age of which can be determined from the disequilibrium between isotopes within the thorium or uranium decay chains. A chimney from Mariana arc has also been dated using these radiometric methods. The principle dating technique for chimneys up to 15,000 years old uses the decrease in 226Ra/Ba due to radioactive decay after the VMS was deposited. An initial ratio is obtained from chimneys that are proven to be less than 100 years old and this involves dating with 210Pb, 228Ra and 228Th that have short half-lives compared with 226Ra.

Jan 1, 2005

By Carl H. Hobbs

The beach at the resort city of Virginia Beach, Virginia has been and increasingly will be dependent upon artificial nourishment for maintenance and for hurricane protection. Both existing base-level maintenance operations and planned substantial enhancement programs out strip the capabilities of traditional terrestrial resources to provide the required quantities of sand. Our research program, an amalgam of projects from several funding sources, has located and defined suitable quantities of beach quality sand for use on the city's beaches. The work also has furthered our understanding of the region's Quaternary history. Initially, reconnaissance level, high-resolution, sub-bottom profiles and surficial grab samples taken on the basis of sub- marine geomorphology identified two geographically and geologically separate areas worthy of further exploration. Further profiling supplemented with some cores further defined the potential sand reserves. The Sandbridge Shoal site is a large and discrete Holocene sandbody atop late Pleistocene strata. The sands in region offshore of the commercial area known as the Resort Strip appear to be recent fill within fluvial(?) channels cut into the older subsurface. Each of these resources is within roughly 5 km of major sites targeted for beach nourishment and/or hurricane protection and contains sand with appropriate geotechnical properties. Ongoing work will better define the dimensions and limits of the sand bodies and provide data to enable determinations to be made concerning exploitation. Ultimately decisions concerning the overall beach enhancement-hurricane protection projects will involve economic, environmental, technical, and social considerations.

Jan 1, 1995

By Youngtak Ko

The northeastern Pacific shows the highest nodule abundance among the oceans in the world, and thus has been drawing international attention for deep-sea manganese nodule development. The objectives of this study are to construct database using geostatistics and geographic information system (GIS), to quantify rating value using probability and statistical methods, to suggest suitable sites for manganese nodule development, and to verify results using three statistical approaches. The copper and nickel contents of the nodules were determined by chemical analysis. Factors related to slope, aspect, water depth, and topography were obtained from multi-beam echo sounding data. The transparent layer thickness was determined using a sub-bottom profiler. The probability method was used to calculate each factor's rating, and the layers for different factors were summed to produce the development potential index (DPI). Result maps were constructed for manganese nodules development. The distribution pattern of DPI showed to be controlled of nodule abundance and metal contents. Verification was performed by comparing the results with sampling data in three ways: success and prediction rate, linear regression, and test of independence.

Sep 14, 2011