Arrangement for transporting solid materials from the bottom of basins

摘要

The arrangement is mainly designed for transporting solid minerals from the floor of the ocean to a support vessel. The arrangement comprises an endless flexible carrier which is made of interconnected container sections. Each section has two chambers -- a load chamber and a float chamber. The arrangement also has means for batched loading of the chambers with solid mineral and compressed gas. During operation of the arrangement, the load chambers are loaded with solid mineral and the float chambers are filled with gas so that the loaded sections of the carrier acquire a positive buoyancy thus enabling displacement of the entire carrier.