Thermal conductivity of marine sediments influenced by porosity and temperature in the South China Sea

A series of laboratory studies were conducted to explore the thermal properties of marine sediments from the South China Sea. The test specimens were obtained from depths of 733 m below sea level to 3248 m below sea level. The thermal conductivity of marine sediments from the South China Sea was developed using the KD2 Pro thermal properties analyser. The influence of transportation on the thermal conductivity of marine sediments was investigated through a series of tests onboard or in the laboratory for different site samples. The influence of temperature and porosity on the thermal conductivity of marine sediments was investigated through a series of tests using a modified oedometer. Fifteen models in the literature divided into four categories were used for calculating the thermal conductivity of marine sediments. The results indicate that the measurement results onboard were not much different from those in the laboratory for the samples from the northern part of the South China Sea. The thermal conductivity of marine sediments increased with increasing temperature and decreasing porosity. Five literature models used to calculate the thermal conductivity of the upper soil on land had relatively good predictive effects for marine sediments using a fitting parameter.