Observation System and Method for Re-suspension Quantity of Submarine Sediments by Deep-sea Internal Waves

• US 20200130784A1
• Filed: 12/20/2018
• Published: 04/30/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 01/22/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ocean University of China
• Original Assignee: Ocean University of China
• Inventors: JIA, Yonggang, TIAN, Zhuangcai, ZHANG, Shaotong, ZHANG, Bowen, WEI, Zhiming, LIU, Xiaolei, SHAN, Hongxian
• Granted Patent: US 10,640,176 B1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B63B 21/50 Anchoring arrangements or methods for special vessels, e.g. for floating drilling platforms or dredgers
• CPC Class Codes: B63B 2211/02 Oceanography
• CPC Class Codes: B63B 35/00 Vessels or similar floating structures specially adapted for specific purposes and not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 13/00 Surveying specially adapted to open water, e.g. sea, lake, river or canal liquid level metering G01F
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 13/008 measuring depth of open water
• CPC Class Codes: G01D 21/02 Measuring two or more variables by means not covered by a single other subclass

Abstract

An observation system and determination method for the re-suspension quantity of submarine sediments by deep-sea internal waves. The observation system comprises a submarine observation platform, a mooring rope, and an anchor mooring counterweight. Acoustic release transponder, a single-point current meter, a turbidity meter, a high-precision temperature and salinity detector, and a sediment catcher are mounted on the submarine observation platform. A main floating body and auxiliary floating bodies are arranged on the mooring rope, wherein the main floating body is located in the middle of the mooring rope and is equipped with acoustic Doppler current profilers, and the auxiliary floating bodies are equipped with turbidity meters and high-precision temperature and salinity detectors. The anchor mooring counterweight is a gravity anchor provided with a square clamping groove and a fixed ring.

Claims

1. An observation system for the re-suspension quantity of submarine sediments by deep-sea internal waves, comprising:

a submarine observation platform frame located at a bottom of the system,

an anchor mooring counterweight located below the submarine observation platform frame, and

a mooring rope arranged vertically,

wherein the anchor mooring counterweight is a cuboid gravity anchor provided with a fixed ring in a middle of an upper surface, and floating materials are arranged at a top of the submarine observation platform frame;

the submarine observation platform frame is equipped with a turbidity meter, a sediment catcher, a high-precision temperature and salinity detect a single-point current meter and two acoustic release transponders connected in parallel;

upper ends of the two acoustic release transponder are connected with the submarine observation platform frame, and lower ends of the two acoustic release transponder are connected through a rope penetrating through the fixed ring;

the mooring rope has a bottom end connected with the submarine observation platform frame and a top end connected with a first glass floating ball assembly;

a second glass floating ball assembly, a release ring and a main floating body are sequentially arranged on the mooring rope from the bottom end to the first glass floating ball assembly at the top end;

two or more auxiliary floating bodies are mounted at different positions of the mooring rope;

the main floating body is located in a middle of the mooring rope and is equipped with two acoustic Doppler current profilers, wherein one of the two acoustic Doppler current profilers faces upwards and is configured for observing a flow field above the main floating body, and an other one of the two acoustic Doppler current profilers faces downwards and is configured for observing a flow field below the main floating body, allowing achieving full-depth flow measurement from a sea surface to a seabed;

a flow measurement layer has a thickness of 8-24 m; and

each said auxiliary floating body is equipped with a turbidity meter and a high-precision temperature and salinity detector.

2. The observation system for the re-suspension quantity of submarine sediments by deep-sea internal waves according to claim 1, wherein distances between the auxiliary floating bodies are equal to or less than 20 m.

3. A method for obtaining the re-suspension quantity of submarine sediments by deep-sea internal waves through the observation system according to claim 1, comprising the following steps:

(1) calibrating all instruments on the observation system, and setting operating parameters of the instruments;

(2) transporting the observation system to a target position by an auxiliary vessel and a GPS positioning system, preparing a hoisting device and a deployment rope on the vessel, configuring the mooring rope and the instruments fixed on the mooring rope, and then launching the submarine observation platform frame through the release ring;

(3) after configuration is completed, carrying out self-contained observation by the instruments on the observation system according to the set parameters;

(4) after observation is completed, withdrawing the observation system by the auxiliary vessel particularly as follows;

the anchor mooring counterweight is released through the two acoustic release transponders connected in parallel, allowing the submarine observation platform frame to be separated from the anchor mooring counterweight, the mooring rope and the submarine observation platform frame wholly emerge from seawater under the effect of the floating bodies, afterwards, the submarine observation platform frame emerging from the seawater is withdrawn through the release ring, and finally, the mooring rope and the instruments fixed to the mooring rope are recovered;

(5) reading data in the self-contained instruments, and collecting suspended solids caught by the sediment catcher;

(6) removing organic components in part of the suspended solids caught by the sediment catcher with H₂O₂, and calculating the percentage of sediments in all the suspended solids according to the following formula;