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Deep-sea mining: dewatering plumes, vortex-induced vibrations and economic modelling by Carlos Muioz-Royo M.S. Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering Universidad Politecnica de Madrid (2016) Submitted to the Department of Mechanical Engineering in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Ocean Engineering at the MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY June 2018 2018 Massachusetts Institute of Technology. All rights reserved. Signature redacted Signature of Author ..... y...................... Departme of Mechanical Engineering Signature redacted Mvay 11, 2018 Certified by ... I I Thomas Peacock Professor of Mechanical Engineering Thesis Supervisor Accepted by................................... Signature redacted Rohan Abeyaratne MASSACHU-SETSINSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Professor of Mechanincal Engineering Graduate Students JUN 252018 _ Chairman, Committee on LIBRARIES ARCHIVES Deep-sea mining: dewatering plumes, vortex-induced vibrations and economic modeling by Carlos Mufioz-Royo Submitted to the Department of Mechanical Engineering on May 11, 2018 in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Ocean Engineering ABSTRACT Deep-sea mining activities are expected to commence in the next decade; the International Seabed Authority (ISA) has already issued twenty nine exploration licenses for polymetallic nodules, polymetallic sulphides and polymetallic crusts. The ISA is seeking to approve the exploitation regulations for polymetallic nodules in the next two years, but there are significant research and knowledge gaps that still have to be explored. The discharge of dewatering plumes, the analysis of the effect of vortex-induced vibrations (VIV) on mining risers, and the development of updated and detailed economic models -which are among the most pressing ones - are addressed in this thesis. PLUMEX field studies were conducted in the Pacific Ocean to create and monitor six dewatering plumes. The data obtained from the experiments will be used to validate analytic and numeric plume models that will help to assess the environmental impacts. Additionally, a preliminary VIV analysis of a simple riser configuration was conducted to show the significant impact of VIV on the fatigue life. The results showed that the fatigue life could be reduced to less than one year. Lastly, an independent and thorough economic model is being developed at MIT to allow the simulation of different scenarios and forecast the economic result of a polymetallic nodule exploitation. The ISA will consider the results from the model to determine the royalties and fees that will be paid by future contractors in order to share their benefit with the humankind. Thesis Supervisor: Thomas Peacock Title: Professor of Mechanical Engineering 3 4 Acknowledgements I would like to start giving thanks to my advisor, Thomas Peacock, for sharing with me this exciting learning experience and guiding me towards new challenges. Also, I have to thank Matthew Alford, Jonathan Ladner, Spencer Kawamoto, Michael Goldin, Rohit Supekar, Andrew Rzeznik and many others who worked incredibly hard during PLUMEX field studies to make it happen. Undoubtedly, all this work would not be a reality without the unconditional support of Margarita, my wife, who is always encouraging me to make the most of myself in all facets of life. Of course, I have to thank my parents, my sister and the rest of my family for their great support and help since the very beginning. Thanks to my old and new friends, who make life much more fun and enjoyable. Finally, I want to thank Fundaci6n Bancaria La Caixa for their trust and economic support during the last two years through their Fellowship program. 5 6 Contents Chapter 1 Introduction to Deep-Sea M ining......................................................................................... 17 1.1. Deep-sea m ineral resources................................................................................................................... 17 1.1.1. Polym etallic nodules ....................................................................................................................... 17 1.1.2. Polym etallic crusts .......................................................................................................................... 21 1.1.3. M assive sulfides .............................................................................................................................. 23 1.2. Polym etallic nodule m ining stakeholders .......................................................................................... 25 1.3. Seabed m ining process...........................................................................................................................28 1.3.1. Exploration ...................................................................................................................................... 28 1.3.2. Resource assessm ent, evaluation and m ine planning ................................................................ 30 1.3.3. Technology development................................................................................................................ 30 1.3.4. Nodule collection ............................................................................................................................ 32 1.3.5. Vertical transport ............................................................................................................................ 33 1.3.6. M ining vessel...................................................................................................................................34 1.3.7. Horizontal transport........................................................................................................................ 35 1.3.8. M etallurgical processing ................................................................................................................. 35 1.4. Environm ental impact ............................................................................................................................ 36 1.5. Regulations.............................................................................................................................................38 Chapter 2 Polym etallic nodule m ining sediment plum es .................................................................... 41 2.1. W aste water discharge plum es .............................................................................................................. 41 2.2. Bottom plum es ....................................................................................................................................... 43 2.3. Other sedim ent plum es in the oceans ................................................................................................. 44 2.3.1. Vertical and horizontal extent ........................................................................................................ 46 2.3.2. Flow velocity.................................................................................................................................... 50 2.3.3. Flow rate ......................................................................................................................................... 53 2.3.4. Settling velocity ............................................................................................................................... 55 2.3.5. Density............................................................................................................................................. 56 Chapter 3 PLUM EX: Waste W ater Discharge Plum e Experim ent .......................................................... 59 3.1. Plum e m odel........................................................................................................................................... 59 3.2. Sco pe of the experim ents ....................................................................................................................... 61 3.3. Plum e creation........................................................................................................................................ 65 3.4. Plum e m onitoring, sampling and tracking .......................................................................................... 70 3.4.1 Near field m onitoring ....................................................................................................................... 71 3.4.2 Interm ediate field m onitoring ......................................................................................................... 72 3.4.3 Far field tracking and m onitoring................................................................................................. 73 3.4.4. Biological studies.................................................... ........................................................................ 74 7 Chapter 4 Polym etallic nodule m ining econom ics ............................................................................... 75 4.1. Introduction............................................................................................................................................ 75 4.2. Previous econom ic m odels...................................................................................................................... 76 4.3. Main assumptions, estimates and forecasts on polymetallic nodule mining economic models............78 4.3.1 General assum ptions........................................................................................................................78