Abstract

Exploration of sea-bottom solid mineral resources are gathering a lot of interest, and the geomorphology of the seafloor play a major role in studying this resource. International studies have shown that cobalt-rich ferro-manganese crusts are often distributed on slope and flat surface of the bathymetry, while nodules are often distributed in troughs with low flowing energy, not influenced by tides and waves. For the first time this paper constructs a geomorphological map of the Tu Chinh-Vung May area at the scale 1:250,000 to illustrate therelationship between seafloor topography and formation of seafloor solid mineral resources. Particularly, the geomorphological pre-conditions for forming ferro-manganese nodules on the modern seafloor are flat surfaces of the Geomorphological Unit 4 and 11; while those for cobalt-rich ferro-manganese crust and polymetallic sulfide crusts are extrusive surfaces and fault zones related to the Geomorphological Unit 3, submarine mountains of the Geomorphological Unit 6 and slopes of the Geomorphologcial Unit 12, Top and slope surface of the Geomorphological Unit 5, 6 and 7 confirmed by the chemical elements such as Fe, Mn… in sample analysis.