Agency of Industrial Science and Technology

Director-general of Agency of Industrial Science and Technology

Takeo Kajishima

Takayuki Saito

Katsumi Tsuchiya

The apparatus of the present invention includes an inverted J-shaped pipe disposed under the sea and including shorter and longer open end portions, and a connecting portion joining them such that the shorter and longer portions extend downward from connecting portion to their respective open ends. An injector nut injecting the carbon dioxide-containing gas into a portion of said short pipe adjacent to said first open end into said shorter pipe. An accumulator is in fluid communication with the connecting portion for collecting gas, which remains undissolved in the seawater during the passage of the carbon dioxide-containing gas through said shorter pipe. According to the method of the invention, the injection of the carbon dioxide-containing gas forces the seawater to enter into first open end, to flow upward together with the carbon dioxide-containing gas through the shorter pipe portion, to flow downward through the longer pipe portion and to be discharged from the second open end, with the carbon dioxide being dissolved in the seawater during the passage of the carbon dioxide-containing gas through the shorter pipe portion, so that the seawater discharged from the second open end contains carbon dioxide dissolved therein.

Method of treating carbon dioxide-containing gas and apparatus therefor

The present invention provides a simple and efficient means for dissolving carbon dioxide gas discharged from sources such as thermoelectric power plants into the seawater and for isolating it at deep sea level. The means comprises an inverted U-shaped gas lift 1 having a shorter gas lift dissolving pipe 2 and a longer descending pipe 3 being connected with each other at the top, said gas lift dissolving pipe 2 is held at shallow sea level, and the lower end of the descending pipe 3 is opened at deep sea level. When carbon dioxide gas is injected in from the lower end of the gas lift dissolving pipe 2, the seawater is introduced from the lower end of the dissolving pipe by gas lift action of the carbon dioxide gas in the dissolving pipe 2, and the carbon dioxide is completely dissolved into the seawater until it reaches the upper end of the dissolving pipe. With its density increased due to dissolving of the carbon dioxide, the seawater is moved down by gravity to deep sea level through the descending pipe 3 and carbon dioxide is isolated at deep sea level.

Growing community of inventors

Toyonaka, Japan

Takeo Kajishima