The fluid dynamics of deep-sea mining

In the next decade, with pressing societal for mineral resources, it is anticipated that deep-sea mining activities will commence. Associated with such activities are numerous challenging fluid dynamics problems. A notable example is the behavior of sediment-laden plumes generated by collector vehicles operating on the sea floor at depths around 4000-5000m. Here we present an overview of the fluid dynamics associated with deep-sea mining activities and results of our studies incorporating classical and numerical modeling, and the results of recent field experiments.