Dynamic coupled thermo-hydro-mechanical problem for heterogeneous deep-sea sediments under vibration of mining vehicle

Due to the influence of deep-sea environment,deep-sea sediments are usually heterogeneous,and their moduli of elasticity and density change as depth changes.Combined with the characteristics of deep-sea sediments,the thermo-hydro-mechanical coupling dynamic response model of heterogeneous saturated porous sediments can be established to study the influence of elastic modulus,density,frequency,and load amplitude changes on the model.Based on the Green-Lindsay generalized thermoelasticity theory and Darcy’s law,the thermo-hydro-mechanical coupled dynamic response model and governing equations of heterogeneous deep-sea sediments with nonlinear elastic modulus and density are established.The analytical solutions of dimensionless vertical displacement,vertical stress,excess pore water pressure,and temperature are obtained by means of normal modal analysis,which are depicted graphically.The results show that the changes of elastic modulus and density have few effects on vertical displacement,vertical stress,and temperature,but have great effects on excess pore water pressure.When the mining machine vibrates,the heterogeneity of deep-sea sediments has great influence on vertical displacement,vertical stress,and excess pore water pressure,but has few effects on temperature.In addition,the vertical displacement,vertical stress,and excess pore water pressure of heterogeneous deep-sea sediments change more gently.The variation trends of physical quantities for heterogeneous and homogeneous deep-sea sediments with frequency and load amplitude are basically the same.The results can provide theoretical guidance for deep-sea mining engineering construction.

Stress Path Analysis of Deep-Sea Sediments Under the Compression-Shear Coupling Load of Crawler Collectors

The mechanical properties of deep-sea sediments during the driving process of crawler collectors are essential factors in the design of mining systems.In this study,a crawler load is divided into a normal compression load and a horizontal shear load.Then,the internal stress state of sedimentary soil is examined through a theoretical calculation and finite element numerical simulation.Finally,the driving of crawlers is simulated by changing the relative spatial position between the load and stress unit,obtaining the stress path of the soil unit.Based on the calculation results,the effect of the horizontal shear load on the soil stress response is analyzed at different depths,and the spatial variation law of the soil stress path is examined.The results demonstrate that the horizontal shear load has a significant effect on the rotation of the principal stress,and the reverse rotation of the principal stress axis becomes obvious with the increase in the burial depth.The stress path curve of the soil is different at various depths.The spatial variation rule of the stress path of the shallow soil is complex,whereas the stress path curve of the deep soil tends to shrink as the depth increases.The stress path of the corresponding depth should be selected according to the actual research purpose and applied to the laboratory test.

Two Kinds of Waves Causing the Resuspension of Deep-Sea Sediments:Excitation and Internal Solitary Waves

The resuspension of marine sediments plays a key role in the biogeochemical cycle and marine ecology system.Internal solitary waves are considered to be important driving forces of the resuspension of bottom sediments.In this paper,the movement of turbidity currents,the generation and the effects on the bottom bed of internal solitary waves and excitation waves are studied by flume tests and numerical simulations,and the sediment resuspension are analyzed.The results show that the excitation wave can lead to the resuspension of the bottom sediments under all the conditions,while the internal solitary wave can lead to the resuspension of the sediment only under some special conditions,such as high amplitude or large underwater slope.Under the experimental conditions,the change in the near-bottom velocity caused by the excitation wave is close to three times that of the internal solitary wave.

Turning traction force of tracked mining vehicle based on rheological property of deep-sea sediment

Based on main physical and mechanical properties of deep-sea sediment from C-C poly-metallic nodule mining area in the Pacific Ocean, the best sediment simulant was successfully prepared by mixing bentonite with a certain content of water. Compression-shear coupling rheological constitutive model of the sediment simulant was established by endochronic theory and the coupling rheological parameters were obtained by compressive and compression-shear creep tests. A new calculation formula of turning traction force of the tracked mining vehicle was first derived based on the coupling rheological model and consideration of pushing resistance and sinkage of the tracked mining vehicle. Effects of the turning velocity, crawler spacing and contacting length of crawler with deep-sea sediment on the turning traction force were analyzed. Research results can provide theoretical foundation for operation safety and optimal design of the tracked mining vehicle.

Predicting the sinkage of a moving tracked mining vehicle using a new rheological formulation for soft deep-sea sediment

The sinkage of a moving tracked mining vehicle is greatly af fected by the combined compression-shear rheological properties of soft deep-sea sediments. For test purposes, the best sediment simulant is prepared based on soft deep-sea sediment from a C-C poly-metallic nodule mining area in the Pacific Ocean. Compressive creep tests and shear creep tests are combined to obtain compressive and shear rheological parameters to establish a combined compressive-shear rheological constitutive model and a compression-sinkage rheological constitutive model. The combined compression-shear rheological sinkage of the tracked mining vehicle at dif ferent speeds is calculated using the Recur Dyn software with a selfprogrammed subroutine to implement the combined compression-shear rheological constitutive model. The model results are compared with shear rheological sinkage and ordinary sinkage(without consideration of rheological properties). These results show that the combined compression-shear rheological constitutive model must be taken into account when calculating the sinkage of a tracked mining vehicle. The combined compression-shear rheological sinkage decrease with vehicle speed and is the largest among the three types of sinkage. The developed subroutine in the Recur Dyn software can be used to study the performance and structural optimization of moving tracked mining vehicles.

Accumulation and exploration of gas hydrate in deep-sea sediments of northern South China Sea

The large deep-sea area from the southwestern Qiongdongnan Basin to the eastern Dongsha Islands,within the continental margin of northern South China Sea,is a frontier of natural gas hydrate exploration in China.Multiform of deep-sea sedimentations have been occurred since late Miocene,and sediment waves as a potential quality reservoir of natural gas hydrate is an most important style of them.Based on abundant available data of seismic,gravity sampling and drilling core,we analyzed the characteristics of seismic reflection and sedimentation of sediment waves and the occurrence of natural gas hydrate hosted in it,and discussed the control factors on natural gas hydrate accumulation.The former findings revealed the deep sea of the northern South China Sea have superior geological conditions on natural gas hydrate accumulation.Therefore,it will be of great significance in deep-sea natural gas hydrate exploration with the study on the relationship between deep-sea sedimentation and natural gas hydrate accumulation.

Extreme Enrichment of Tellurium in Deep-Sea Sediments

Tellurium is a sort of scattered rare element on the earth. Its concentration is very low in earth＇s crust, only 1.0 ng/g. However, it has extremely high abundance in Co-rich crusts, marine polymetallic nodules, deep-sea sediments and aerolites. To find out the origin of tellurium enrichment in deep-sea sediments, we analyzed and compared tellurium concentrations and helium isotope compositions in the magnetic parts and those in the bulk parts of deep-sea sediments. The result indicates that the helium content, 3He/4He ratio and tellurium concentration are obviously higher in the magnetic parts than those in the bulk parts. The 3He abundance varies synchronously with the tellurium concentration. 3He and Te have a distinct positive correlation with each other. It is the first time that the paper brings forward that the extreme enrichment of tellurium in deep-sea sediments, like helium isotope anomalies, probably results from the input of interplanetary dust particles （IDPs）. Similarly, the extreme enrichment of tellurium in marine polymetallic nodules and Co-rich crusts is possibly related to IDPs.

Phylogenetic analysis of bacterial community in deep-sea sediment from the western Pacific “warm pool”

A depth profile of bacterial community structure in one deep-sea sediment core of the western Pacific ＂warm pool＂ （WP） was investigated and compared with that in a sediment sample from the eastern Pacific （EP） by phylogenetic analysis of 16S rDNA fragments. Five bacterial 16S rDNA clone libraries were constructed, and 133 clones with different restriction fragment length polymorphism （RFLP） patterns were sequenced. A phylogenetic analysis of these sequences revealed that the bacterial diversity in a sample from the WP was more abundant than that in the EP sample. The bacterial population in the sediment core of WP was composed of eight major lineages of the domain bacteria. Among them the γ-Proteobacteria was the predominant and most diverse group in each section of WP sediment core, followed by the α-Proteobacteria. The genus Colwellia belonging to γ-Proteobacteria was predominant in this sample. The shift of bacterial communities among different sections of the WP sediment core was δ-, ε-Proteobacteria, and Cytopahga-Flexibacteria-Bacteroides （CFB） group. The ratios between them in the bacterial communities all showed inversely proportional to the depth of sediment. The sequences related to sulphate reducing bacteria （SRB） were detected in every section. The bacterial community structure in this sediment core might be related to the environmental characteristics of the surface seawater of the western Pacific WP.

Degradation of malachite green dye by Tenacibaculum sp. HMG1isolated from Pacific deep-sea sediments

A deep-sea bacterium from the Pacific Ocean identified as Tenacibaculum sp. HMG1 was found to have strong malachite green（MG） degradation activity. The MG tolerance and decolorizing activities of strain HMG1 were confirmed by bacterial growth and high-performance liquid chromatography（HPLC） analyses. Strain HMG1 was capable of removing 98.8% of the MG in cultures within 12 h and was able to grow vigorously at 20 mg/L MG. A peroxidase gene detected in the genome of strain HMG1 was found to be involved in the MG biodegradation process. The corresponding recombinant peroxidase（r POD） demonstrated high degradative activity at 1 000 mg/L MG. Based on the common candidate intermediates, strain HMG1 was inferred to have one primary MG degradation pathway containing r POD. In addition, five other candidate intermediates of the r POD-MG degradative process were detected. The optimal conditions for MG degradation were determined and showed that strain HMG1 and the r POD enzyme could maintain high bioactivity at a low temperature（20℃）, variable p H values（6.0–9.0）, higher salinities（100 mmol/L） and other factors, such as multiple metal ions, H2O2 and EDTA.MG-tolerant strain Tenacibaculum sp. HMG1 and its peroxidase have prospective applications as environmental amendments for MG degradation during coastal remediation.

Isolation and identification of Rhodosporidium diobovatum DS-0205 from deep-sea sediment of eastern Pacific Ocean

A facultative heterotrophic strain （DS-0205） was isolated from a deep-sea sediment sample collected at a depth of 5.2 km in the eastern Pacific Ocean, China. Strain DS-0205 is motile helmet-like single cell or pairs, forming hemisphere with the center sunken of variable size. It has a widespread carbon source and nitrogen source, including agarose, citric acid, salicin, D-glucitol nitrate, sodium nitrite and cthylamine, tt can grow in the following environment： temperature 4-37℃, pH 2.0-12.0, tolerance to NaCl≤15%. Two phylogenetic trees, one based on the ITS and 5.8S rRNA sequences and the other based on the 18S rRNA sequences, unite strain DS-0205（=JCM 0205） to the type strain of Rhodosporidium diobovatum JCM 3787 through a considerable evolutionary distance. These results suggest that strain DS-0205 is a new strain of the Rhodosporidium diobovatum.

Discrete element method for adhesion properties evaluation of deep-sea sediment from macro and micro perspectives

The adhesion between the mining machine and the deep-sea sediments will significantly affect the driving performance of the mining machine in the deep-sea environment.When the mining machine and the deep-sea sediment interaction simulation was carried out,the accuracy of the particle interaction parameters will directly affect the simulation results.This study proposed a method to systematically calibrate the interaction parameters between deep-sea sediment and grouser through the combination of experiment and simulation.The uniaxial compression test and macro adhesion test and corresponding discrete element numerical simulation were carried out,modifying the contact parameters until the simulation results are close to the experimental results.Then the micro-parameters of the JKR adhesion contact model were back calibrated with the test results,and the contact parameters between soil particle-soil particle and soil particle-metal are calibrated.Besides,the adhesion test shows that the adhesion forces were ranked in the order of 5052<STi80<TA2<TC4 under the same surface roughness,which indicates the aluminum alloy 5052 has the best anti-adhesion performance.The relationship between surface adhesion force and microscopic contact parameters was studied by discrete element numerical simulation,and the result shows that the coefficient of static friction and the coefficient of rolling friction has little effect on adhesion force.While it is mainly affected by the coefficient of restitution and surface energy,the surface adhesion force tends to decrease with the increase of the coefficient of restitution and increase with the growth of surface energy.The obtained parameters of soil particle to soil particle and soil particle to metal affecting the adhesion can contribute to the design optimization for the grouser of mining machines to decrease surface adhesion and enhance its movability and mining efficiency.

Research on coupled thermo-hydro-mechanical dynamic response characteristics of saturated porous deep-sea sediments under vibration of mining vehicle

The excessive deformation of deep-sea sediments caused by the vibration of the mining machine will adversely affect the efficiency and safety of mining.Combined with the deep-sea environment,the coupled thermo-hydro-mechanical problem for saturated porous deep-sea sediments subject to the vibration of the mining vehicle is investigated.Based on the Green-Lindsay(G-L)generalized thermoelastic theory and Darcy’s law,the model of thermo-hydro-mechanical dynamic responses for saturated porous deep-sea sediments under the vibration of the mining vehicle is established.We obtain the analytical solutions of non-dimensional vertical displacement,excess pore water pressure,vertical stress,temperature,and change in the volume fraction field with the normal mode analysis method,and depict them graphically.The normal mode analysis method uses the canonical coordinate transformation to solve the equation,which can quickly decouple the equation by ignoring the modal coupling effect on the basis of the canonical mode.The results indicate that the vibration frequency has obvious influence on the vertical displacement,excess pore water pressure,vertical stress,and change in volume fraction field.The loading amplitude has a great effect on the physical quantities in the foundation,and the changes of the physical quantities increase with the increase in loading amplitude.

Chemical profile of the secondary metabolites produced by a deep-sea sediment-derived fungus Penicillium commune SD-118

Bioassay-guided fractionation of the crude extract from Penicillium commune SD-118, a fungus obtained from a deep-sea sediment sample, resulted in the isolation of a known antibacterial compound, xanthocillin X (1), and 14 other known compounds comprising three steroids (2-4), two ceramides (5 and 6), six aromatic compounds (7-12), and three alkaloids (13-15). Xanthocillin X (1) was isolated for the first time from a marine fungus. In the bioassay, xanthocillin X (1) displayed remarkable antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli, and significant cytotoxicity against MCF-7, HepG2, H460, Hela, Du145, and MDA-MB-231 cell lines. Meleagrin (15) exhibited cytotoxicity against HepG2, Hela, Du145, and MDA-MB-231 cell lines. This is the first report of the cytotoxicity of xanthocillin X (1).

Shear creep parameters of simulative soil for deep-sea sediment

Based on mineral component and in-situ vane shear strength of deep-sea sediment, four kinds of simulative soils were prepared by mixing different bentonites with water in order to find the best simulative soil for the deep-sea sediment collected from the Pacific C-C area. Shear creep characteristics of the simulative soil were studied by shear creep test and shear creep parameters were determined by Burgers creep model. Research results show that the shear creep curves of the simulative soil can be divided into transient creep, unstable creep and stable creep, where the unstable creep stage is very short due to its high water content. The shear creep parameters increase with compressive stress and change slightly or fluctuate to approach a constant value with shear stress, and thus average creep parameters under the same compressive stress are used as the creep parameters of the simulative soil. Traction of the deep-sea mining machine walking at a constant velocity can be calculated by the shear creep constitutive equation of the deep-sea simulative soil, which provides a theoretical basis for safe operation and optimal design of the deep-sea mining machine.

Coextraction of microbial metagenomic DNA and RNA from deep-sea sediment

A protocol to coextract the microbial metagenomic DNA and RNA from deep-sea sediment was developed for the microbiological study of environmental samples. The obtained pure metagenomic DNA with the size larger than 23 kb and stable RNA could be used directly for PCR and reverse transcription - PCR （ RT - PCR） respectively. The direct lysis including the treatments of SDS, proteinase and lysozyme was applied to acquiring the metagenomic DNA and RNA furthest. Prior to the lysis treatment, the glass bead and denaturing solution were added to enhance the lysis efficiency and keep the integrity of RNA respectively. Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis （DGGE） was applied in accessing the microbial 16S rRNA diversity by PCR and RT -PCR amplification from a single extraction. The pattern obtained by this analysis revealed some differences between them, indicating the efficiency of the protocol in extracting the metagenomic DNA and total RNA from deep-sea sediment.

Characterization of Fe(Ⅲ)-Reducing Enrichment Cultures and Isolation of Enterobacter sp. Nan-1 from the Deep-Sea Sediment, South China Sea

To characterize the Fe(III)-reducing bacteria,enrichment cultures were initiated by inoculating deep-sea sediment from the South China Sea(SCS)into the media with hydrous ferric oxide(HFO)as the sole electron acceptor.As indicated by Meta 16S rDNA Amplicon Sequencing,the microorganisms related to Fe(III)-reduction in the enrichment cultures were mainly Shewanella and Enterobacter.A new facultative Fe(III)-reducing bacterium was obtained and identified as Enterobacter sp.Nan-1 based on its 16S rRNA gene sequence and physiological characterizations.Enterobacter sp.Nan-1 was not only a mesophilic bacterium capable of reducing HFO with a wide range of salinity(4,34,40,50 and 60 g L−1)efficiently,but also a piezotolerant bacterium that can proceed Fe(III)-reduction sustainedly at hydrostatic pressures between 0.1 and 50 MPa using glucose and pyruvate as carbon source.Furthermore,the geochemical characteristics of deep-sea sediment indicated that the microbial metabolism and iron reduction both remain active in the well-developed Fe(III)-reducing zone where the strain Nan-1 was obtained.To our knowledge,Enterobacter sp.Nan-1 could serve as a new applicative Fe(III)-reducing bacterium for future investigation on the iron biogeochemical cycle and diagenetic process of organic matter in the deep-sea environment.

Multielement Analysis of Deep-Sea Sediments by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry

Marine sediments were dissolved by HNO3-HF-HC104 in a sealed container at low pressure; HF was evaporated in an open container and salts were dissolved in HCl by heating, then transferred to 2% HNO3 solution. A total of 45 elements, including Li, Be, Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ga, Rb, Sr, Y, Zr, Nb, Mo, Cd, In, Sb, Cs, Ba, La, Ce, Pr, Nd, Sin, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu, Hf, Ta, W, Tl, Pb, Bi, Th and U, were measured by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry （ICP-MS）. Conditions and sample experiments showed that this procedure defines a good experimental method which has the advantages of clear interference, easy operation and reliable results. The concentrations of the 45 elements could be used for resource exploration, environmental assessment and academic research.

Experimental investigation of the inhibition of deep-sea mining sediment plumes by polyaluminum chloride

Deep-sea sediment disturbance may occur when collecting polymetallic nodules,resulting in the creation of plumes that could have a negative impact on the ecological environment.This study aims to investigate the potential solution of using polyaluminum chloride(PAC)in the water jet.The effects of PAC are examined through a self-designed simulation system for deep-sea polymetallic nodule collection and sediment samples from a potential deep-sea mining area.The experimental results showed that the optimal PAC dose was found to be 0.75 g/L.Compared with the test conditions without the addition of PAC,the presence of PAC leads to a reduction in volume,lower characteristic turbidity,smaller diffusion velocity,and shorter settling time of the plume.This indicates that PAC inhibits the entire development process of the plume.The addition of PAC leads to the flocculation of mm-sized particles,resulting in the formation of cm-sized flocs.The flocculation of particles decreases the rate of erosion on the seabed by around 30%.This reduction in erosion helps to decrease the formation of plumes.Additionally,when the size of suspended particles increases,it reduces the scale at which they diffuse.Furthermore,the settling velocity of flocs(around 10^(-2) m/s)is much higher that of compared to sediment particles(around 10^(-5) m/s),which effectively reduces the amount of time the plume remains in suspension.

Provenance and depositional setting of the Late MiocenePleistocene clastic sediments in the eastern Arabian Peninsula and western Iraq using rare earth elements geochemistry

The sandstones of the Late miocene–Pliocene Dibdibba Formation in the Najaf–Karbala Plateau and Basra were examined to determine their source rocks and origin. The rare earth elements(REE) and trace elements(Sc, Co, V, and Th) concentrations in these sandstones revealed that they likely derived from a single source. The steep light rare earth elements(LREE) and flat, heavy rare earth element(HREE) patterns, negative Eu anomaly, and high ΣREE contents in sandstones suggest its derivation from a suggests that a passive continental margin environment and originated from felsic source rocks. The average concentration of ΣREE is 93.5 ppm, which is lower than that of the average crustal compositions like Upper Continental Crust and Post Archean Australian Shale. The higher proportion of LREE compared to HREE implies that these sandstones were recycled and derived from a distal source. The Th/Co, Th/Sc, La/Sc, La/Co, Eu/Eu*and(La/Lu)cn elemental ratios indicated that these Late Miocene–Pliocene sandstones were derived from felsic rocks located in the marginal region of the Arabian Shield.

Volume-averaged modeling of multiphase solidification with equiaxed crystal sedimentation in a steel ingot

Macrosegregation is a critical factor that limits the mechanical properties of materials.The impact of equiaxed crystal sedimentation on macrosegregation has been extensively studied,as it plays a significant role in determining the distribution of alloying elements and impurities within a material.To improve macrosegregation in steel connecting shafts,a multiphase solidification model that couples melt flow,heat transfer,microstructure evolution,and solute transport was established based on the volume-averaged Eulerian-Eulerian approach.In this model,the effects of liquid phase,equiaxed crystals,columnar dendrites,and columnar-to-equiaxed transition(CET)during solidification and evolution of microstructure can be considered simultaneously.The sedimentation of equiaxed crystals contributes to negative macrosegregation,where regions between columnar dendrites and equiaxed crystals undergo significant A-type positive macrosegregation due to the CET.Additionally,noticeable positive macrosegregation occurs in the area of final solidification in the ingot.The improvement in macrosegregation is beneficial for enhancing the mechanical properties of connecting shafts.To mitigate the thermal convection of molten steel resulting from excessive superheating,reducing the superheating during casting without employing external fields or altering the design of the ingot mold is indeed an effective approach to control macrosegregation.