JP2001336479A - Method and equipment for pumping up deep water as well as ocean greening method using them - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce an over-fertilization of the ocean and concentration of a carbon dioxide by pumping up a deep water to a surface area at a low cost. SOLUTION: The method for pumping up the deep water where (a) a hollow pipe with good thermal conductivity and capable of connecting a surface area and a deep area is prepared, (b) the pipe is filled with the deep water, (c) the end of the pipe is sealed, (d) one end of the pipe filled with the deep water is arranged in the surface area and the other end in the deep area, (e) seawater is left until eventually made equal to a seawater outside the pipe, and (f) the pipe is relieved from sealing, and equipment for pumping up the deep water to accomplish it.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a deep water pumping method and a deep water pumping apparatus for pumping deep water in a deep ocean region to a surface region.
In addition, the present invention uses such a method or apparatus to pump deep water rich in nutrients (for example, phosphate and nitrate) into the surface region, thereby increasing the biological production in the surface region. And how to achieve greening of the ocean. Furthermore, the present invention relates to a method of moving surface water in a surface region having a low carbon dioxide concentration to a region having a lower depth to reduce carbon dioxide in the entire ocean.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, global environmental warming accompanying an increase in the use of fossil energy has been regarded as a problem. With increasing awareness of the importance of such global environmental issues, various efforts have begun to reduce carbon dioxide, a global warming gas. Under such efforts, expectations are placed on the use of the ocean, which accounts for 70% of the earth's surface.

On the other hand, with the dramatic increase in the world population, it is urgently necessary to secure food and energy resources. Land-based food production capacity is approaching its limits, and it is considered difficult to sharply increase supplies from the current state. In addition, measures to increase food production in the ocean, such as the release of migratory fish and fry, have been adopted.However, because the release of fish has exceeded the limit of its environmental breeding ability, the size of fish to be captured has been reduced, and sufficient No effect has been obtained.

[0004] However, as plant production on land is approaching its limits, it is likely that the ocean will become increasingly important as a future food production area. Correspondingly, in order to increase food production capacity, it is necessary to increase the biological production capacity of the ocean itself. In other words, it is not enough to simply increase the release and cultivation, increase the nutrients in the surface area of the ocean where sunlight penetrates, increase phytoplankton production in that area, and transform large fish from phytoplankton through zooplankton. It is important to increase the plant chain to Eutrophication of the ocean surface area is indispensable not only for food but also for growing large seaweeds that can be used as biomass energy.

In recent years, attention has been paid to the use of deep water with a lot of nutrients, and pumping of deep water using energy obtained from sunlight, wave power, ocean temperature difference, and others has been studied. . In particular, it is considered optimal if deep water used for ocean thermal energy conversion can be kept in the surface area as it is.

However, various renewable energies have high equipment costs, and the energy cost is too high to pump an enormous amount of deep water. In the case of ocean temperature difference power generation, which pumps deep water, the deep water is transported to the surface layer while it is cold, so it diffuses to the surface layer and then sinks to the deep layer.

[0007] In addition, considering the damage to the equipment due to waves, storms, and the like, it is economically disadvantageous to maintain a huge offshore structure for a long time.

[0008] Therefore, the deep water pumping technology known at present has a high facility cost and an operating cost, and is not feasible due to insufficient absorption of carbon dioxide by the deep water pumping or production of food and energy. there were.

[0009]

There is a need for a method of solving these problems in eutrophication of the marine surface area. In other words, there is a technology to pump deep water at low cost, specifically using natural energy, and to raise the temperature of the pumped deep water sufficiently to cause the pumped deep water to stay in the surface ocean area. Is desired. Further, a pumping system capable of pumping a large amount of deep water is desired so that the deep water carried to the surface layer is not diffused by the ocean current and the eutrophication effect is not impaired.

[0010] In constructing such a system, it is desired that the number of operating parts of the equipment is small, and the installation cost and the maintenance cost are low.

[0011]

Means for Solving the Problems [Summary of the Invention] <Summary> The deep water pumping method of the present invention comprises the steps of (a) connecting a surface region at a depth of 30 m from the surface of the ocean and a deep region at a depth of 500 m or more from the surface of the ocean. (B) filling the inside of the pipe with deep water near the deep end, (c) sealing at least one end of the pipe, and (d) Placing one end of the pipe filled with seawater in a surface region and the other end in a deep region, and (e) the seawater in the pipe substantially coincides with seawater outside the pipe at each position in the length direction of the pipe. Leave until equal, (f)
The sealing of the pipe is released.

Further, the deep water pumping device of the present invention comprises a hollow pipe made of a heat conductive material capable of connecting a surface region at a depth of 30 m from the surface of the ocean and a deep region at a depth of 500 m or more, And a device capable of temporarily sealing at least one end of the pipe,
It has the function of raising the temperature of the deep water filled in the pipe by the temperature of the relatively high temperature seawater outside the pipe, making the specific gravity relatively small, and pumping the deep water to the surface area. Is what you do.

<Effect> According to the present invention, deep water having a high nutrient content in the deep region can be pumped to the surface region at low cost. Thereby, eutrophication of the surface region is achieved, and marine greening can be achieved. In addition, when pumping low-temperature deep water through a pipe, lowering the temperature of the surface water with a low carbon dioxide content outside the pipe in the surface area, increasing the specific gravity, and causing sedimentation in a deeper area, The overall carbon dioxide content can be reduced.

According to the method of the present invention, it is possible to solve the above-mentioned environmental problems and improve the global environment at low cost.

[Detailed Description of the Invention] Deep Water Pumping Method The deep water pumping method of the present invention connects a surface region and a deep region with a pipe, and utilizes heat of seawater having a relatively high temperature outside the pipe. The temperature of the deep water with low salt concentration inside the pipe is raised, and the deep water is pumped by utilizing the buoyancy generated by the difference in specific gravity. Since the driving energy for pumping seawater is thermal energy from sunlight, deep water can be pumped permanently. (In the present invention, unless otherwise specified, the water depth of the ocean is 0 to 30.
The region of m is referred to as a surface region, and the region having a depth of 500 m or more is referred to as a deep region. )

This mechanism will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of a deep water pumping method according to the present invention. In the method described here, the pipes 101 are suspended in the ocean by buoys 102 and the pipes are connected by a net 103. That is, the pipe 101 and the net 103 are submerged in the sea. Seaweed 104 and the like can be grown on the net. By supplying plankton 105 to this region, the food chain can be effectively increased.

FIG. 2 shows a part of the apparatus used in the deep water pumping method of the present invention shown in FIG. The deep water pumping method of the present invention pumps deep water near the deep-side end of the pipe 101 to the surface layer region.

When the deep water is compared with the surface water, the following relation is relatively obtained.

Therefore, deep water having a high specific gravity usually stays in the deep layer as it is, and does not flow out to the surface region. The mechanism by which the deep water is pumped by the method of the present invention is as shown in FIG. Deep water (cold water) 301 introduced from the deep side of the pipe exchanges heat with relatively high temperature seawater outside the pipe, so that the water temperature rises and becomes substantially the same as the seawater outside the pipe. Since the deep water has a low salt concentration, the specific gravity is relatively low at the same temperature as the surface water, so that buoyancy is generated and the deep water in the pipe rises. Then, deep water (warm water) 302 finally having the same temperature as the surface water is discharged from the surface side end of the pipe.

Such a mechanism has already been proposed by Stommel et al. ("Oceannographical
Curiosity ", Deep Sea Research, Vol. 3, pp.152-153,
(1956)), yet to be proven. It is considered that this was due to insufficient settings at the initial stage of deep water pumping.

On the other hand, the present inventors have found a method capable of realizing deep water pumping. That is, the deep water pumping method of the present invention comprises the steps of: (a) preparing a hollow pipe made of a heat conductive material capable of connecting a surface region at a depth of 30 m from the surface of the ocean and a deep region at a depth of 500 m or more; (B) filling the inside of the pipe with deep water near the deep end, (c) sealing at least one end of the pipe, and (d) placing one end of the pipe filled with seawater in a surface region, and Placing the end in the deep region, (e) leaving the seawater in the pipe substantially equal to the seawater outside the pipe at each position along the length of the pipe, and (f) sealing the pipe. Canceling. Here, the symbols (a) to (f) are used for convenience in each step.
The order of the steps (b) to (d) can be changed as necessary (details will be described later).

First, in the method of the present invention, a pipe for connecting the surface region and the deep region is prepared (a). The pipe may be straight or otherwise shaped, such as a spiral, but may be straight for ease of handling and reduced flow resistance of seawater in the pipe. preferable. The length is determined by the surface region and the deep region to be connected. Particularly in the deep region, the salt concentration and nutrient concentration of seawater change depending on the depth. Therefore, it is necessary to connect the region where the desired deep water is obtained and the surface region. However, pipes with a length of 500 to 1000 m are generally selected.

The position of the pipe in the depth direction is such that one end of the pipe is a surface region from the surface of the ocean to a depth of 30 m, preferably 10 to 20 m, and the other end is a depth of 500 m.
m, preferably 700 m or more. If you place the pipe out of this position,
Although the pumping of deep water occurs by the mechanism as described above, it is not preferable from the viewpoint of ocean greening and carbon dioxide reduction.

Further, one end of the surface layer is at a depth of 30 meters from the sea surface.
m, preferably 10 to 20 m in depth, but it is preferable to install it at a depth where its end does not appear on the sea surface due to waves or the like. With such an arrangement, damage to the pipe due to waves and the like can be prevented.

This pipe is made of a heat conductive material. This is because it is essential that heat exchange occurs between the seawater inside the pipe and the seawater outside. Although the thermal conductivity is not particularly limited, when the thermal conductivity is low, the speed of heat exchange tends to be slow, and the speed of pumping deep water tends to be slow. Preferred materials include various plastics (eg, vinyl chloride, polyethylene, PET
Etc.), FRP, metals and the like.

The sectional shape of the pipe is not particularly limited. However, it is preferable that the cross section be circular in order to minimize the influence of waves and the like. The thickness of the pipe is not particularly limited. In general, since the pressure is in an equilibrium state between the inside and the outside of the pipe, no stress is applied due to the pressure difference, so that the thickness can be reduced. Reducing the thickness is also preferable in terms of increasing the efficiency of heat exchange. For example, when the pipe used in the present invention is a pipe having a diameter of 1 m, plastic can be selected as the material and the wall thickness can be about 1 mm.

In order to reinforce the effects of waves and currents in the ocean, the pipe may be reinforced with a rigid material such as metal.

In the method of the present invention, the prepared pipe is filled with deep water. The method is optional, but after installing the pipe, pumping deep water with a pump etc. to fill the deep water inside the pipe, sinking the pipe horizontally in the deep area, filling the deep water inside, And a method of pulling deep water into the pipe from one end on the deep side of the pipe and sealing one end on the surface side, and other methods.

Before filling the pipe with deep water,
Alternatively, at least one end of the pipe is sealed immediately thereafter. This is to prevent the seawater inside the pipe from moving until the seawater filled inside the pipe installed in the ocean becomes equal to the temperature of the seawater outside the pipe by heat exchange.
Therefore, depending on how to fill the deep water in the pipe,
The order of performing the step (b) of filling the deep water into the pipe, the step (c) of sealing at least one end of the pipe, and the step (d) of placing the pipe in the sea are changed.
Performing these steps in an arbitrary order, the inside is filled with deep water, and the pipe, at least one end of which is sealed, is arranged so that one end of the pipe is in the surface region and the other end is in the deep region. I just need.

Further, by sealing at least one end of the pipe, seawater in the pipe can be prevented from moving, but at the open end, deep water in the pipe leaks out due to diffusion or the like. Preferably, both ends of the pipe can be sealed. The means for sealing one end of the pipe is optional, but it is common to attach various valves to the end of the pipe.

The pipe filled with deep water as described above has a heat exchange between the seawater inside the pipe and the seawater outside the pipe in a state where one end is located in the surface area and the other end is located in the deep area. Then, it is left until substantially the same temperature is reached. Here, “substantially” means that the internal deep water reaches a temperature at which it can start to float by the mechanism described above.

At this time, the pipe may be allowed to stand still, but heat conduction can be improved by vertically moving the pipe. Thereby, the speed of pumping deep water can be promoted. The improvement in heat conduction due to such vertical movement of the pipe is similar to what is known in the thermal engineering field as the "dream pipe" effect.
When the pipe is connected to a buoy or the like instead of being fixed to the surface of the ground and floated in the ocean, the pipe naturally moves up and down under the influence of waves and the like, and such a heat transfer improving effect is obtained. Also, by connecting the pipe to a device having sufficient buoyancy to float the ocean, for example, a buoy, and moving the pipe into the ocean, deep water pumping in unspecified sea areas along the ocean currents. It can be carried out.
Also, conversely, by fixing the pipe to the seabed or the like,
It is also possible to pump deep water only in certain areas of the ocean.

Next, when the temperature of the seawater inside the pipe becomes substantially the same as the temperature of the seawater outside the pipe, the end of the pipe is unsealed. Thereby, pumping of deep water starts by the mechanism shown in FIG. 3, and a permanent spring can be realized.

By pumping the deep water into the surface region by the deep water pumping method of the present invention, nutrients contained in the deep water can be sprayed on the surface region.
When nutrients are supplied, the bioproductivity is increased accordingly, and greening of the area is promoted. The method of the present invention is inexpensive for the operation of pumping deep water,
Greening of the ocean becomes possible at low cost. Further, by combining a plurality of the pipes, the effect of promoting greening can be obtained over a wide range.

From the standpoint of promoting greening, it is preferable to supply phytoplankton and zooplankton in appropriate amounts to the surface region from which deep water has been pumped by the deep water pumping method of the present invention. This can effectively increase the food chain. In addition, iron ions are indispensable in order to improve biological productivity, but the content of iron ions may not be sufficient even in deep water,
Similarly, it is preferable to supply iron ions to the region.
For this purpose, it is preferable to arrange a substance capable of supplying iron ions inside the pipe. Such materials include salts containing iron ions, metallic iron, iron oxides, and others. The use of metallic iron as the material of the pipe can be selected from the viewpoint of such iron ion supply.

According to the deep water pumping method of the present invention, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the entire ocean can be reduced.

By the above mechanism, the deep water inside the pipe is heated by the seawater outside the pipe. Conversely, seawater outside the pipe is cooled by deep water inside the pipe.
Here, since the surface water in the surface region has a low carbon dioxide concentration, if the surface water is cooled and settles to a deeper layer, the carbon dioxide concentration in the deep region is reduced. Since deep water with high carbon dioxide concentration is pumped to the surface area,
At first glance, it is easy to be misunderstood that the concentration of carbon dioxide in the surface area increases, but the pumping of deep water increases the biological productivity of the surface area and activates biological production (photosynthesis). , So that the carbon dioxide concentration in the surface layer does not increase. Therefore, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the entire ocean is reduced. In other words, the deep water pumping method of the present invention does not reduce carbon dioxide itself, but reduces the carbon oxide concentration in the entire ocean by improving its biological productivity and sinking surface water in the surface region. You can do it.

The method of the present invention can be carried out at any place where there is a sufficient depth in the ocean, but from the viewpoint of ocean greening, it is preferable to carry out the method at a place where the nutrient concentration in the surface layer is low. Specifically, the vicinity of the equator in the Pacific Ocean and the like can be mentioned. Especially in this area, since the ocean currents are circling in the sea area, if a device that realizes the method of pumping deep water is connected to a buoy and floated, eutrophication can be achieved by pumping deep water in a closed sea area it can.

Deep Water Pumping Apparatus The deep water pumping apparatus of the present invention is an apparatus for realizing the above deep water pumping method. That is, the deep water pumping apparatus of the present invention is a hollow pipe made of a heat conductive material, which can connect a surface area at a depth of 30 m from the surface of the ocean and a deep area at a depth of 500 m or more, and a hollow pipe made of a heat conductive material. A device capable of temporarily sealing at least one end, comprising: raising the depth of the deep water filled in the pipe by a relatively high temperature of seawater outside the pipe, and setting a specific gravity to a relative value. And has a function of pumping deep water into the surface region.

The operation of the deep water pumping apparatus of the present invention is in accordance with the above-described deep water pumping method. Therefore, the shape and material of the pipe are as described above.

The pipe may be filled with deep water by a manual method. However, it is preferable that the pipe further includes a device capable of filling deep water in the deep region. Examples of such an apparatus include a pump as described above. In addition, when the pipe is filled with deep water by pulling up the pipe horizontally sunk in the deep area, a rope connected to the pipe to lift one end of the pipe is used to fill the pipe with deep water. It can be called a device.

At least one end of the pipe is provided with a device for temporarily closing the opening so as to prevent seawater in the pipe from moving in the pipe. Such devices include various valves, which may be provided at both ends of the pipe.

As described above, it is preferable that the pipe is substantially straight. It is also preferable that the pipe is arranged vertically in the ocean when pumping deep water. However, actually, the pipe may be tilted in the sea due to the influence of the ocean current or the like. Therefore, it is preferable to further include a device for preventing the inclination. As a device for preventing such inclination, there is a weight provided on the deep side of the pipe. Also, a plurality of pipes may be arranged as shown in FIG. 1 and connected to each other to prevent inclination.

It is preferable from the viewpoint of preventing damage to the pipe due to waves and the like, that the end of the surface region of the pipe be maintained at a depth that is not exposed to the sea surface.

The pipe may be fixed to, for example, the sea floor, but is preferably fixed to a device having a sufficient buoyancy for floating the pipe, for example, a buoy. By doing so, it becomes possible to pump deep water in an unspecified area of the ocean, and the pipe moves up and down in the sea by the action of the wave and buoyancy of the sea surface, and inside and outside of the pipe. During the heat transfer is promoted. The form in which the pipe floats is also advantageous from the viewpoint of preventing the pipe from being damaged or cut by waves.

In order to promote the effect of ocean greening,
It is preferable that a substance that elutes iron ions is disposed inside the pipe. Such substances include:
Iron ion-containing salts, metallic iron, iron oxide, and others.

[0047]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below with reference to examples.

First, a plastic pipe having a diameter of 1 m, a thickness of 1 mm, and a length of 700 m is prepared. As shown in FIG. 1, this pipe is arranged vertically in the sea so that one opening is located at a depth of 10 m from the sea surface.

One end of the pipe is sealed with a valve, and the inside is
After filling with 0 m deep water and leaving it until the temperature reaches equilibrium, when the sealed valve is opened, buoyancy is generated due to the density difference, and the deep water inside the pipe rises.

This situation was simulated by numerical analysis. The seawater temperature and salinity used the values in the North Pacific Ocean at 30 degrees north latitude and 170 degrees east longitude. These values vary depending on the depth in the ocean, and the values are as shown in FIG.

Using these values, the rising speed of the deep water determined in consideration of the flow resistance was 11 m / day. Therefore, if a deep water pumping device having this pipe is arranged at a rate of one in every 9.3 m, an effect of pumping deep water at an average of 0.1 m / day can be obtained. In order to obtain such a deep water pumping effect in a wide sea area, it is necessary to arrange a large number of pipes (deep water pumping devices), but as described above, the deep water pumping device of the present invention is realized at low cost. Therefore, the cost problem is low, and the physical arrangement can be easily achieved by applying the technology of installing fishing nets such as drift nets.

In this way, if deep water is pumped into the surface region to make it eutrophic and phytoplankton and zooplankton are controlled and introduced, seaweed and seafood can be grown, and the green sea area of the ocean Can be made. Furthermore, if the group of pipes is not fixed here and moves by an ocean current, the ocean greening area moves while floating.

[0053]

According to the present invention, deep water having a high nutrient content in the deep region can be pumped to the surface region at low cost, whereby eutrophication of the surface region and consequently marine greening can be achieved. At the same time, it is possible to reduce the carbon dioxide content of the entire ocean, as described in the Summary of the Invention.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of a method for pumping deep water according to the method of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows a device (part) used in a method for pumping deep water according to the method of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a mechanism by which deep water is pumped by the method of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing changes in seawater temperature and seawater density in the ocean with depth.

[Explanation of symbols]

 101 Pipe 102 Buoy 103 Net 301 Deep water (cold water) 302 Deep water (hot water)

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing on the front page (71) Applicant 500247080 Keisuke Taira 4452-159 Ono-cho, Machida-shi, Tokyo District 11-405 (72) Inventor Masamichi Ishikawa 2-3-6 Otemachi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Inside Mitsubishi Research Institute, Inc. (72) Inventor Keisuke Taira 4452-159 Onomachi, Machida-shi, Tokyo F-term (reference) 2B104 FA04

Claims (14)

[Claims] 1. (a) A hollow pipe made of a heat conductive material, which can connect a surface area at a depth of 30 m from the surface of the ocean and a deep area at a depth of 500 m or more, is prepared.
(B) filling the inside of the pipe with deep water near the deep side end; (c) sealing at least one end of the pipe;
(D) arranging one end of the pipe filled with seawater in a surface area and the other end in a deep area, and (e) seawater in the pipe is separated from seawater outside the pipe at each position in the length direction of the pipe. A method for pumping deep water, wherein the method is left until the pipes are substantially equal to each other, and (f) the sealing of the pipe is released. 2. The deep water pumping method according to claim 1, wherein said pipe is substantially straight, and said pipe is disposed substantially vertically when pumping deep water. 3. The deep water pumping method according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of said pipes are arranged at dispersed positions. 4. The deep water pumping method according to claim 1, wherein the position of the pipe is fixed, and deep water is pumped in a specific sea area. 5. The pipe is connected to a device having a buoyancy sufficient to maintain one end of the pipe in a surface area and the other end in a deep area, and the pipe is moved by an ocean current so as to be in an unspecified sea area. The deep water pumping method according to claim 1, wherein the deep water is pumped. 6. A method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein seawater having a high nutrient concentration in a deep region is pumped to a surface region, and a nutrient concentration in the surface region is increased to improve biological production. Let the ocean greening method. 7. The surface layer according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the temperature of the seawater having a low carbon dioxide concentration in the surface region is cooled by the deep water in the pipe, and the specific gravity is increased to settle. A method of reducing the concentration of carbon dioxide in a region deeper than a region. 8. A hollow pipe made of a heat conductive material capable of connecting a surface area at a depth of 30 m from the surface of the ocean and a deep area at a depth of 500 m or more, and at least one end of the pipe is temporarily connected. A device that can be sealed, comprising: raising the temperature of the deep water filled in the pipe by the temperature of the relatively high temperature of the seawater outside the pipe, making the specific gravity relatively small; A deep water pumping device having a function of pumping water to a surface region. 9. The deep water pumping device according to claim 8, further comprising a device capable of filling deep water in a deep region in the pipe. 10. The deep water pumping apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the pipe is substantially straight, and the pipe is disposed vertically in the ocean when pumping deep water. 11. The end of the surface area of the pipe is arranged to be maintained at a depth that is not exposed to the sea surface.
The deep water pumping device according to claim 10. 12. The deep water pumping device according to claim 8, wherein said pipe is fixed to a device having sufficient buoyancy to float said pipe. . 13. Deep water pumping according to claim 12, wherein said pipe moves up and down the sea by the action of sea surface waves and buoyant devices to promote heat conduction between the inside and outside of the pipe. apparatus. 14. The deep water pumping apparatus according to claim 8, wherein a substance that elutes iron ions is disposed inside the pipe.