A simulated deep-sea polymetallic nodule collection device based on the Coanda effect, jointly developed by the Beijing Institute of Exploration Engineering of the China Geological Survey and the China University of Geosciences (Beijing), has been granted a national utility model patent (patent number ZL202322172889.9).
Collecting polymetallic nodules from the deep seabed requires a structurally complex and costly deep-sea mining collection system. Before such a system is manufactured, a small-scale simulation device is needed to validate the design approach and model the collection performance.
The patented device can simulate the process of collecting seabed polymetallic nodules using water-jet hydraulic pickup, and allows convenient adjustment of key parameters such as the height of the collection head above the seabed and the angle of the water jets, providing important experimental evidence for the physical design of deep-sea nodule collection systems. The device is already in use in the national key research and development program project on a new fluidized mining approach for deep-sea polymetallic nodules and its principle prototype.
