Japan Agency for Marine-earth Science and Technology

The University of Tokyo

Takazo Shibuya

Ikuo Sawada

Tomokazu Saruhashi

Ken Takai

Junichi Miyazaki

Kentaro Nakamura

Kazuhito Hashimoto

Ryuhei Nakamura

Masahiro Yamamoto

Shinsuke Kawaguchi

Junichiro Ishibashi

Tatsuo Nozaki

Teruhiko Kashiwabara

Katsuhiko Suzuki

A power generation system includes a hydrothermal fluid well including a drilled hole reaching down to a hydrothermal fluid reservoir present below an ocean floor from an ocean floor surface and a casing installed in the drilled hole through a guide base on the ocean floor surface, an anode provided on a flow channel for hot water formed by the hydrothermal fluid well, a cathode provided in seawater other than the flow channel for hot water formed by the hydrothermal fluid well, and an ocean floor device that is connected with the anode and the cathode respectively and extracts generated power so as to operate. Power is easily and stably supplied on the ocean floor.

Power generation system

A recovery method for recovering mineral resources from a hydrothermal fluid reservoir present beneath the ocean floor includes the steps of: (A) providing a hydrothermal fluid well by drilling a hole reaching a hydrothermal fluid reservoir from an ocean floor surface via a guide base on the ocean floor surface, and then installing a casing in the drilled hole via the guide base; (B) precipitating minerals on a mineral-culturing device by installing the mineral-culturing device on the base guide so as to cover a well head of the hydrothermal fluid well, and bringing hot water ejecting from the well head into contact with sea water on the mineral-culturing device; and (C) recovering minerals precipitated on the mineral-culturing device together with the mineral-culturing device.

Method and system for recovering ocean floor hydrothermal mineral resources

Growing community of inventors

Yokosuka, Japan

Takazo Shibuya