Experimental study on reinforcement of bionic grouser of deep-sea mining vehicle

Abstract

To fulfill the operational demands of deep-sea tracked mining vehicles traversing soft seabed substrates, an evaluation of the characteristics of these substrates was conducted, drawing a comparison with the land swamp black soil found in the buffalo's habitat. Employing the principles of biomimicry, two distinct types of bionic grouser were devised, replicating the configuration of the buffalo's hooves in both the horizontal and vertical planes. Utilizing self-constructed testing platforms, exhaustive examinations of the reinforcement efficacy of these bionic track grousers were undertaken, spanning from single-grouser to multi-grouser configurations and encompassing the entire track assembly. The findings unequivocally demonstrate a pronounced and consistent enhancement in traction force for both types of bionic grousers. Notably, the W-shaped bionic grouser, mimicking the horizontal contour of the buffalo's hoof, exhibits the most substantial increase in traction force. The maximum enhancement in traction force for individual bionic grouser exceeds 30%, while the overall track achieves an increase of over 19%. This research provides a valuable reference and establishes a foundational framework for the design of equipment tailored for the locomotion of deep-sea tracked mining vehicles across soft substrates.

Keywords

Deep-sea tracked mining vehicle / Bionic grouser / Soft substrates

CRediT authorship contribution statement

Xingzheng Gao: Data curation. Jiancheng Liu: Funding acquisition. Xuelin Liu: Writing - review & editing, Writing - original draft, Data curation, Conceptualization. Xiuzhan Zhang: Supervision, Funding acquisition. Xuguang Chen: Supervision, Methodology, Funding acquisition, Conceptualization. Hao Li: Data curation. Lubao Luan: Project administration, Methodology. Cong Ding: Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization.

Declaration of Competing Interest

As Jiancheng Liu, Xiuzhan Zhang, Hao Li are currently employed by China Merchants Marine and Offshore Research Institute Co., Ltd and China Merchants Deepsea Research Institute (Sanya) Co., Ltd., may be considered as potential competing interests. The other authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to acknowledge the support of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. U1906234、No. 52225107), and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central 410 Universities (grant 202041004).

References

[1] Baek, S. H., Shin, G. B., & Chung, C. K. (2019). Experimental study on the soil thrust of underwater tracked vehicles moving on the clay seafloor. Applied Ocean Research, 86, 117-127. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apor.2019.01.015

[2] Ekwue, E., Stone, R., & Ramphalie, S. (2002). Engineering properties of some wetland soils in Trinidad. Applied Engineering in Agriculture, 18(1), 37.

[3] Gan, L., Huang, Q., & Chen, S. (2022). Study on design and traction performance of ostrich-foot sandy track shoe. Mechanical Science and Technology for Aerospace Engineering, 41(05), 673-680 https://doi.org/10.13433/j.cnki.1003-8728.20200509.

[4] Greiner, C., & Schafer, M. (2015). Bio-inspired scale-like surface textures and their tribological properties. Bioinspiration Biomimetics, 10(4), https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-3190/10/4/044001

[5] Leng, D., Shao, S., Xie, Y., Wang, H., & Liu, G. (2021). A brief review of recent progress on deep sea mining vehicle. Ocean Engineering, 228, 108565. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oceaneng.2020.108565

[6] Li, L., Chen, L., & Gao, S. (2009). Study of microstructure properties of swamp soil in Sanjiang Plain. Rock and Soil Mechanics, 30(08), 2295-2299 https://doi.org/10.16285/j.rsm.2009.08.041.

[7] Liu, Z., Liu, K., Chen, X., et al. (2023). Deep-sea rock mechanics and mining technology: State of the art and perspectives. International Journal of Mining Science and Technology, 33(9), 1083-1115. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijmst.2023.07.007

[8] Ma, W., Rao, Q., Wu, H., et al. (2014). Macroscopic properties and microstructure analyses of deep-sea sediment. J. Rock. Soil Mech. 35( 6), 1641-1646.

[9] Martinez, A., DeJong, J., Akin, I., et al. (2022). Bio-inspired geotechnical engineering: Principles, current work, opportunities and challenges. Géotechnique, 72(8), 687-705. https://doi.org/10.1680/jgeot.20.P.170

[10] Song, Y., Yin, S., Zhang, N., Lu, F., & Cheng, Z. (2023). Dynamic traction of deep-sea polymetallic nodule collector. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, 11(1), 146. https://doi.org/10.3390/jmse11010146

[11] Timothy, M., Rodger, K., & Steven, J. (2004). Biomechanical and energetic determinants of the walk-trot transition in horse. Journal of Experimental Biology, 207(24), 4215-4223. https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.01277

[12] Wang, L., Chen, X., Wang, L., Li, Z., & Yang, W. (2023). Mechanical properties and soil failure process of interface between grouser of tracked mining vehicle and deep-sea sediment. Ocean Engineering, 285, 115336. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oceaneng.2023.115336

[13] Watzel, R., Rühlemann, C., & Vink, A. (2020). Mining mineral resources from the seabed: Opportunities and challenges. Marine Policy, 114, 103828. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpol.2020.103828

[14] Wei, D., Cao, H., & Xia, J. (2022). Study on the pressure-sinkage process and constitutive model of deep-sea sediment. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, 10(7), 883.

[15] Xu, F., Rao, Q., Zhang, J., & Ma, W. (2018). Compression-shear coupling rheological constitutive model of the deep-sea sediment. Mar. Georesour. Geotechnol. 36, 288-296.

[16] Xu, F., Zhang, Y., Li, Z., Zhang, L., & Sun, Y. (2023). Discovery and verification of traction weakening effect between multi track shoe of deep-sea miner and sediment. Ocean Engineering, 283(Sep.1), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oceaneng.2023.115045

[17] Xue, L., Xie, B., Lin, F., Cheng, S., Li, L., Liu, M., & Li, J. (2022). Field traction performance test analysis of bionic paddy wheel and vaned wheel. Biomimetics, 7(4), 185.

[18] Yang, Y., Tong, J., Ma, Y., Jiang, X., & Li, J. (2019). Design and experiment of biomimetic rotary tillage blade based on multiple claws characteristics of mole rats. Transactions of the Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering (Transactions of the CSAE), 35(19), 37-45 https://doi.org/10.11975/j.issn.1002-6819.2019.19.005.

[19] Zhang, W., Huang, R., Xiang, J., & Zhang, N. (2024). Recent advances in bio-inspired geotechnics: From burrowing strategy to underground structures. Gondwana Research. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gr.2023.12.018

[20] Zhang, R., Luo, G., & Xue, S. (2015). Biomimetic design and numerical analysis of traction performance for rigid wheel configuration in sandy terrain. Transactions of the Chinese Society of Agricultural Engineering, 31(03), 122-128.

[21] Zhang, Y., Zuo, C., Sun, S., & Sun, Y. (2008). Bonic propulsion blade for the paddy impeller. Journal of Jilin University (Engineering and Technology Edition), 38(S2), 153-157.