B.19 What is the radiation exposure of polymetallic nodules?

The Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR), in collaboration with external experts, has assessed potential health risks associated with the natural radioactivity of polymetallic nodules. According to the EU Radiation Protection Act, it is the effective body dose under realistic working conditions, rather than the activity concentration, that is decisive for assessing the actual risks posed by natural radionuclides in polymetallic nodules. The new investigations show that there are no fundamental health risks associated with the natural radioactivity of nodules. For more details, please see this paper published in Nature: Estimations of effective doses received from naturally occurring radioactivity in polymetallic nodules from the deep sea.

FAQs Archive

Q: I.4 What factors influence the lifespan of an underwater robot, and how can it be extended?

The main factors that influence underwater robots in general are maintenance management for: Corrosion: Low-corrosion materials and sacrificial anodes are used and replaced as needed. Biofouling: The ongoing maintenance will include a maintenance schedule for clearing acoustic and optical surfaces to prevent biofouling build-up. Moving component wear and tear: The primary cost factor for maintenance is rebuilding components due to wear and tear or in the event of failure, and we’ve incorporated it into the economic model. (Learn more about analysis in this blog post .) Electronics failure: In the event of a complete loss of power or control, the robot will always remain positively buoyant and float to the surface. Since we are operating a large fleet of underwater robots, we can collect performance and required maintenance data on a statistically significant scale and employ maintenance insights based on this information. See also this blog post: Prioritizing Reliability: Reducing the Mean Time Between Failures .

Q: I.3 What is the typical operational lifespan of the underwater robot?

Our current economic model is v6. In our economics, we model a 25-year effective life for the underwater robots. Underwater vehicles, when maintained, can last well beyond 25 years. The JASON ROV, launched in 1988, is a good example of this. We will spend about 10% of the total CAPEX each year on the maintenance of our equipment. This high degree of maintenance ensures that continued operation is similar to an airplane.

Q: I.2 What are the size ranges of nodules that the underwater robot’s robotic arms pick up?

The current end effector and internal nodule conveyor can accommodate a wide range of nodule sizes from 2 cm to 11 cm diameter. Refinement to the end effector design and conveyor for the production system will be customized to the nodule distribution in the field of operation. Our current v6 concept economic model assumes targeting the largest nodules in the field picking nodules 6.5 cm diameter and larger. An average nodule collection diameter of 8 cm is assumed based on available size distribution data.

Q: Myth 16: There are health risks associated with the natural radioactivity of nodules

A scientific paper shows that there are no fundamental health risks associated with the natural radioactivity of nodules. Please refer to Question B.19 for more information .

Q: I.1 How do you scale to high rates of production?

Our latest economic model is v6. Each Eureka IV, our planned production-scale underwater robot, will be able to deliver 12 dry metric tonnes of nodules to the transport ship every 4.3 hours. The same vehicle performs over 5.5 trips per day to deliver an average of 66 metric tons to the transport ship. 100 Eureka IV robots operating in parallel would harvest 6,600 tons per day. No fundamental limit exists on how many underwater robots and transport ships are deployed. We anticipate a volume production per location of around 6.8 million dry tons of nodules annually.

I.4 What factors influence the lifespan of an underwater robot, and how can it be extended?

I.3 What is the typical operational lifespan of the underwater robot?

I.2 What are the size ranges of nodules that the underwater robot’s robotic arms pick up?

Myth 16: There are health risks associated with the natural radioactivity of nodules

I.1 How do you scale to high rates of production?

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