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Journal ArticleDOI

Deep-ocean mineral deposits as a source of critical metals for high- and green-technology applications: Comparison with land-based resources

TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compare the grades and tonnages of nodules and crusts in those two areas with the global terrestrial reserves and resources, and compare the two largest existing land-based REE mines, Bayan Obo in China and Mountain Pass in the USA.
About: This article is published in Ore Geology Reviews.The article was published on 2013-06-01. It has received 608 citations till now.
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the rare earths and yttrium (REY) inventory of marine Fe-Mn (oxyhydr)oxide deposits is used to discriminate between different types of precipitates, regardless of their diverse mineralogical composition.

328 citations


Cites background from "Deep-ocean mineral deposits as a so..."

  • ...…the modern global ocean are currently being explored and evaluated as potential targets of deep-sea mining, predominantly because of their high contents of critical high-technology metals, such as Cu, Ni, Co, rare earths and yttrium (REY), Mo, Te, Li, and Pt, among others (e.g., Hein et al., 2013)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A review of the current state of development of seabed mining activities in areas both within and beyond national jurisdictions is presented in this article, where the uncertainties and gaps in scientific knowledge and understanding which render baseline and impact assessments particularly difficult for the deep sea.
Abstract: Rising demand for minerals and metals, including for use in the technology sector, has led to a resurgence of interest in exploration of mineral resources located on the seabed. Such resources, whether seafloor massive (polymetallic) sulfides around hydrothermal vents, cobalt-rich crusts on the flanks of seamounts or fields of manganese (polymetallic) nodules on the abyssal plains, cannot be considered in isolation of the distinctive, in some cases unique, assemblages of marine species associated with the same habitats and structures. In addition to mineral deposits, there is interest in extracting methane from gas hydrates on continental slopes and rises. Many of the regions identified for future seabed mining are already recognised as vulnerable marine ecosystems. Since its inception in 1982, the International Seabed Authority (ISA), charged with regulating human activities on the deep-sea floor beyond the continental shelf, has issued 27 contracts for mineral exploration, encompassing a combined area of more than 1.4 million km2, and continues to develop rules for commercial mining. At the same time, some seabed mining operations are already taking place within continental shelf areas of nation states, generally at relatively shallow depths, and with others at advanced stages of planning. The first commercial enterprise, expected to target mineral-rich sulfides in deeper waters, at depths between 1,500 and 2,000 metres on the continental shelf of Papua New Guinea, is scheduled to begin early in 2019. In this review, we explore three broad aspects relating to the exploration and exploitation of seabed mineral resources: (1) the current state of development of such activities in areas both within and beyond national jurisdictions, (2) possible environmental impacts both close to and more distant from mining activities and (3) the uncertainties and gaps in scientific knowledge and understanding which render baseline and impact assessments particularly difficult for the deep sea. We also consider whether there are alternative approaches to the management of existing mineral reserves and resources, which may reduce incentives for seabed mining.

290 citations


Cites background from "Deep-ocean mineral deposits as a so..."

  • ...Cobalt is of economic interest because the metal has wideranging uses that include those in superalloys, such as in jet aircraft engines, and in battery technology (Hein et al., 2013)....

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  • ...Cobalt-rich crusts, also referred to as ferromanganese crusts, form on the slopes and summits of seamounts and contain manganese, iron and a wide array of trace metals (cobalt, copper, nickel, and platinum; Hein et al., 2013)....

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  • ...Seafloor massive sulfides (SMS), which are associated with both active and inactive hydrothermal vents along oceanic ridges, have a high sulfide content but are also rich in copper, gold, zinc, lead, barium, and silver (Figure 2C; Hein et al., 2013)....

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  • ...Cobalt-Rich Crusts at Seamounts Cobalt-rich crusts, also referred to as ferromanganese crusts, form on the slopes and summits of seamounts and contain manganese, iron and a wide array of trace metals (cobalt, copper, nickel, and platinum; Hein et al., 2013)....

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  • ...Seafloor Massive Sulfides at Hydrothermal Vents Seafloor massive sulfides (SMS), which are associated with both active and inactive hydrothermal vents along oceanic ridges, have a high sulfide content but are also rich in copper, gold, zinc, lead, barium, and silver (Figure 2C; Hein et al., 2013)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The deep ocean is often viewed as a vast, dark, re- mote, and inhospitable environment, yet the deep ocean and seafloor are crucial to our lives through the services that they provide as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: The deep sea is often viewed as a vast, dark, re- mote, and inhospitable environment, yet the deep ocean and seafloor are crucial to our lives through the services that they provide. Our understanding of how the deep sea func- tions remains limited, but when treated synoptically, a di- versity of supporting, provisioning, regulating and cultural services becomes apparent. The biological pump transports carbon from the atmosphere into deep-ocean water masses that are separated over prolonged periods, reducing the im- pact of anthropogenic carbon release. Microbial oxidation of methane keeps another potent greenhouse gas out of the atmosphere while trapping carbon in authigenic carbonates. Nutrient regeneration by all faunal size classes provides the elements necessary for fueling surface productivity and fish- eries, and microbial processes detoxify a diversity of com- pounds. Each of these processes occur on a very small scale, yet considering the vast area over which they occur they be- come important for the global functioning of the ocean. The deep sea also provides a wealth of resources, including fish stocks, enormous bioprospecting potential, and elements and energy reserves that are currently being extracted and will be increasingly important in the near future. Society benefits from the intrigue and mystery, the strange life forms, and the great unknown that has acted as a muse for inspiration and imagination since near the beginning of civilization. While many functions occur on the scale of microns to meters and timescales up to years, the derived services that result are only useful after centuries of integrated activity. This vast dark habitat, which covers the majority of the globe, harbors processes that directly impact humans in a variety of ways; however, the same traits that differentiate it from terrestrial or shallow marine systems also result in a greater need for integrated spatial and temporal understanding as it experi- ences increased use by society. In this manuscript we aim to provide a foundation for informed conservation and manage- ment of the deep sea by summarizing the important role of the deep sea in society.

264 citations


Cites background from "Deep-ocean mineral deposits as a so..."

  • ...A variety of processes in the deep sea leads to large areas of concentrated metals reserves on the abyssal floor, at hydrothermal vents, and in certain areas covered by rich crusts of minerals (e.g., Hein et al, 2013)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
24 Jan 2020
TL;DR: The blue acceleration as mentioned in this paper describes a race among diverse and often competing interests for ocean food, material, and space, and explores what this new reality means for the global ocean and how to steer it in a sustainable and equitable way.
Abstract: Does humanity's future lie in the ocean? As demand for resources continues to grow and land-based sources decline, expectations for the ocean as an engine of human development are increasing. Claiming marine resources and space is not new to humanity, but the extent, intensity, and diversity of today's aspirations are unprecedented. We describe this as the blue acceleration—a race among diverse and often competing interests for ocean food, material, and space. Exploring what this new reality means for the global ocean and how to steer it in a sustainable and equitable way represents an urgent challenge.

252 citations


Cites background from "Deep-ocean mineral deposits as a so..."

  • ...Likewise, the surge of interest in minerals from the deep sea is linked to a growing demand for metals to sustain the development of high-tech products, including those needed for a low carbon future.(45,46) Exploratory mining licenses have been granted for more than 1....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors developed a comprehensive metal supply and demand scenario for the period 2010-2050 and found that copper demand increases by between 275 and 350% by 2050, depending on the scenario.
Abstract: To a set of well-regarded international scenarios (UNEP’s GEO-4), we have added consideration of the demand, supply, and energy implications related to copper production and use over the period 2010–2050. To our knowledge, these are the first comprehensive metal supply and demand scenarios to be developed. We find that copper demand increases by between 275 and 350% by 2050, depending on the scenario. The scenario with the highest prospective demand is not Market First (a “business as usual” vision), but Equitability First, a scenario of transition to a world of more equitable values and institutions. These copper demands exceed projected copper mineral resources by mid-century and thereafter. Energy demand for copper production also demonstrates strong increases, rising to as much as 2.4% of projected 2050 overall global energy demand. We investigate possible policy responses to these results, concluding that improving the efficiency of the copper cycle and encouraging the development of copper-free energy distribution on the demand side, and improving copper recycling rates on the supply side are the most promising of the possible options. Improving energy efficiency in primary copper production would lead to a reduction in the energy demand by 0.5% of projected 2050 overall global energy demand. In addition, encouraging the shift towards renewable technologies is important to minimize the impacts associated with copper production.

245 citations

References
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Journal ArticleDOI
16 Mar 1979-Science
TL;DR: It is suggested that two-thirds of the heat lost from new oceanic lithosphere at the Gal�pagos Rift in the first million years may be vented from thermal springs, predominantly along the axial ridge within the rift valley.
Abstract: The submarine hydrothermal activity on and near the Galapagos Rift has been explored with the aid of the deep submersible Alvin Analyses of water samples from hydrothermal vents reveal that hydrothermal activity provides significant or dominant sources and sinks for several components of seawater; studies of conductive and convective heat transfer suggest that two-thirds of the heat lost from new oceanic lithosphere at the Galapagos Rift in the first million years may be vented from thermal springs, predominantly along the axial ridge within the rift valley The vent areas are populated by animal communities They appear to utilize chemosynthesis by sulfur-oxidizing bacteria to derive their entire energy supply from reactions between the seawater and the rocks at high temperatures, rather than photosynthesis

1,628 citations

OtherDOI
01 Jan 2002
Abstract: The rare earth elements (REE) form the largest chemically coherent group in the periodic table. Though generally unfamiliar, the REE are essential for many hundreds of applications. The versatility and specificity of the REE has given them a level of technological, environmental, and economic importance considerably greater than might be expected from their relative obscurity. The United States once was largely self-sufficient in these critical materials, but over the past decade has become dependent upon imports (fig. 1). In 1999 and 2000, more than 90% of REE required by U.S. industry came from deposits in China. Although the 15 naturally occurring REE (table 1; fig. 2) are generally similar in their geochemical properties, their individual abundances in the Earth are by no means equal. In the continental crust and its REE ore deposits, concentrations of the most and least abundant REE typically differ by two to five orders of magnitude (fig. 3). As technological applications of REE have multiplied over the past several decades, demand for several of the less abundant (and formerly quite obscure) REE has increased dramatically. The diverse nuclear, metallurgical, chemical, catalytic, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties of the REE have led to an ever increasing variety of applications. These uses range from mundane (lighter flints, glass polishing) to high-tech (phosphors, lasers, magnets, batteries, magnetic refrigeration) to futuristic (hightemperature superconductivity, safe storage and transport of hydrogen for a post-hydrocarbon economy).

442 citations

Book ChapterDOI
01 Jan 2005
TL;DR: In this article, the authors identify a number of sites of high-temperature venting and polymetallic sulfide deposits on the seafloor of the world's oceans.
Abstract: The discovery of metal-depositing hot springs on the sea floor, and especially their link to chemosynthetic life, was among the most compelling and significant scientific advances of the twentieth century. More than 300 sites of hydrothermal activity and sea-floor mineralization are known on the ocean floor. About 100 of these are sites of high-temperature venting and polymetallic sulfide deposits. They occur at mid-ocean ridges (65%), in back-arc basins (22%), and on submarine volcanic arcs (12%). Although high-temperature, 350°C, black smoker vents are the most recognizable features of sea-floor hydrothermal activity, a wide range of different styles of mineralization has been found. Different volcanic substrates, including mid-ocean ridge basalt, ultramafic intrusive rocks, and more evolved volcanic suites in both oceanic and continental crust, as well as temperature-dependent solubility controls, account for the main geochemical associations found in the deposits. Although end-member hydrothermal fluids mainly originate in the deep volcanic basement, the presence of sediments and other substrates can have a large effect on the compositions of the vent fluids. In arc and backarc settings, vent fluid compositions are broadly similar to those at mid-ocean ridges, but the arc magmas also supply a number of components to the hydrothermal fluids. The majority of known black smoker vents occur on fast-spreading mid-ocean ridges, but the largest massive sulfide deposits are located at intermediate- and slow-spreading centers, at ridge-axis volcanoes, in deep backarc basins, and in sedimented rifts adjacent to continental margins. The range of deposit sizes in these settings is similar to that of ancient volcanic-associated massive sulfide (VMS) deposits. Detailed mapping, and in some cases drilling, indicates that a number of deposits contain 1 to 5 million tons (Mt) of massive sulfide (e.g., TAG hydrothermal field on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, deposits of the Galapagos Rift, and at 13°N on the East Pacific Rise). Two sediment-hosted deposits, at Middle Valley on the Juan de Fuca Ridge and in the Atlantis II Deep of the Red Sea, are much larger (up to 15 and 90 Mt, respectively). In the western Pacific, high-temperature hydrothermal systems occur mainly at intraoceanic back-arc spreading centers (e.g., Lau basin, North Fiji basin, Mariana trough) and in arc-related rifts at continental margins (e.g., Okinawa trough). In contrast to the mid-ocean ridges, convergent margin settings are characterized by a range of different crustal thicknesses and compositions, variable heat flow regimes, and diverse magma types. These variations result in major differences in the compositions and isotopic systematics of the hydrothermal fluids and the mineralogy and bulk compositions of the associated mineral deposits. Intraoceanic back-arc basin spreading centers host black smoker vents that, for the most part, are very similar to those on the mid-ocean ridges. However, isotopic data from both the volcanic rocks and the sulfide deposits highlight the importance of subduction recycling in the origin of the magmas and hydrothermal fluids. Back-arc rifts in continental margin settings are typically sediment-filled basins, which derive their sediment load from the adjacent continental shelf. This has an insulating effect that enhances the high heat flow associated with rifting of the continental crust and also helps to preserve the contained sulfide deposits. Large hydrothermal systems have developed where initial rifting of continental crust or locally thickened arc crust has formed large calderalike sea-floor depressions, similar to those that contained major VMS-forming systems in the geologic record. Hydrothermal vents also occur in the summit calderas of submarine volcanoes at the volcanic fronts of arcs. However, this contrasts with the interpreted settings of most ancient VMS deposits, which are considered to have formed mainly during arc rifting. Hydrothermal vents associated with arc volcanoes show clear evidence of the direct input of magmatic volatiles, similar to magmatic-hydrothermal systems in subaerial volcanic arcs. Several compelling examples of submarine epithermal-style mineralization, including gold-base metal veins, have been found on submarine arc volcanoes,and this type of mineralization may be more common than is presently recognized. Mapping and sampling of the sea floor has dramatically improved geodynamic models of different submarine volcanic and tectonic settings and has helped to establish a framework for the characterization of many similar ancient terranes. Deposits forming at convergent margins are considered to be the closest analogs of ancient VMS. However, black smokers on the mid-ocean ridges continue to provide critically important information about metal transport and deposition in sea-floor hydrothermal systems of all types. Ongoing sea-floor exploration in other settings is providing clues to the diversity of mineral deposit types that occur in different environments and the conditions that are favorable for their formation.

441 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors proposed a simple sorption model related to the inorganic speciation of the elements in seawater, as has been proposed in earlier models, in order to determine the host phases of 40 elements.

363 citations


"Deep-ocean mineral deposits as a so..." refers background in this paper

  • ..., Co, Pt, Te, Ce, Tl), substitution, and possibly precipitation of discrete phases (Koschinsky and Halbach, 1995; Koschinsky and Hein, 2003)....

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  • ...Secondorder processes include surface oxidation (e.g., Co, Pt, Te, Ce, Tl), substitution, and possibly precipitation of discrete phases (Koschinsky and Halbach, 1995; Koschinsky and Hein, 2003)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the results of leaching experiments were carried out on twentyone hydrogenetic crust samples from different locations in the central Pacific and the results were compared with four crust and nodule samples of different genetic origin.

319 citations


"Deep-ocean mineral deposits as a so..." refers background in this paper

  • ..., Co, Pt, Te, Ce, Tl), substitution, and possibly precipitation of discrete phases (Koschinsky and Halbach, 1995; Koschinsky and Hein, 2003)....

    [...]

  • ...Secondorder processes include surface oxidation (e.g., Co, Pt, Te, Ce, Tl), substitution, and possibly precipitation of discrete phases (Koschinsky and Halbach, 1995; Koschinsky and Hein, 2003)....

    [...]