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Deep sea mining is the extraction of minerals from the seabed of the deep sea. The main ores of commercial interest are polymetallic nodules , which are found at depths of 4–6 km (2.5–3.7 mi) primarily on the abyssal plain .
Polymetallic nodules, also called manganese nodules, are mineral concretions on the sea bottom formed of concentric layers of iron and manganese hydroxides around a core. As nodules can be found in vast quantities, and contain valuable metals, deposits have been identified as a potential economic interest. [ 1 ]
Model of seabed mining technology. Seabed mining, also known as Seafloor mining [1] is the recovery of minerals from the seabed by techniques of underwater mining. The concept includes mining at shallow depths on the continental shelf and deep-sea mining at greater depths associated with tectonic activity, hydrothermal vents and the abyssal plains.
Marine geology has several methods of detecting geological features below the sea. [2] [13] [14] [15] One of the economic benefits of geological surveying of the seafloor is determining valuable resources that can be extracted. [42] The two major resources mined at sea include oil and minerals.
Epithermal — mineral ore deposits formed at low temperatures (50–200 °C) near the Earth's surface (<1500 m), that fill veins, breccias, and stockworks. [ 2 ] Telethermal — mineral ore deposits formed at shallow depth and relatively low temperatures, with little or no wall-rock alteration, presumably far from the source of hydrothermal ...
Marine sediment, or ocean sediment, or seafloor sediment, are deposits of insoluble particles that have accumulated on the seafloor.These particles either have their origins in soil and rocks and have been transported from the land to the sea, mainly by rivers but also by dust carried by wind and by the flow of glaciers into the sea, or they are biogenic deposits from marine organisms or from ...
Rock core samples, the product of a diamond rig. A pied butcherbird perches nearby. A core sample is a cylindrical section of (usually) a naturally-occurring substance. Most core samples are obtained by drilling with special drills into the substance, such as sediment or rock, with a hollow steel tube, called a core drill. The hole made for the ...
The main source of the minerals comes from the volcanic rocks through which the sea water flows, taking with it the minerals of the volcanic rock. The sea water is heated, convection currents are formed and they ascend carrying the minerals which are discharged at the bottom of the sea or immediately below the surface in the form of black smokers.