EXCAVATION/POWER GENERATION/RECOVERY APPARATUS FOR ENABLING SUBMARINE HOT WATER POWER GENERATION AND USEFUL SUBSTANCE RECOVERY

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To perform hot water power generation under the seafloor by excavating a hot water well for recovering hot water at a high-temperature hydrothermal reservoir under the seafloor located 1000-1500 m below sea level, or by utilizing hot water from a naturally-generated hydrothermal chimney, and to enable recovering of useful metal, and also silica, lithium, and the like from the drawn-up hot water.SOLUTION: An apparatus is mainly constituted of: an open-type heat exchanger 13 for directly coming into contact with hot water jetted from hydrothermal vents of seafloor hydrothermal deposits to boil a secondary medium in the inside thereof; piping 14 for transporting the boiled secondary medium to a steam turbine 15; piping 19 for transporting the secondary medium exhausted from the steam turbine 15 to a condenser 20; an open-type heat exchanger 20 for making the secondary medium exhausted from the steam turbine 15 condense by performing heat exchange with the surrounding seawater; the steam turbine 15 for acquiring torque from power of the boiled secondary medium; and a power generator 16 for converting the torque of the steam turbine 15 into electricity.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2 【課題】海面下１０００ｍから１５００ｍの海底下の高温熱水溜まりに熱水採取の熱水井を掘削し、又は、自然に生成される熱水チムニーからの熱水を利用して、海底下において熱水発電を行い、また、汲み上げられる熱水から有用金属の外、シリカやリチウム等の回収を可能ならしめる。【解決手段】海底熱水鉱床の熱水噴出孔から噴出する熱水に直接接触して、内部の二次媒体を沸騰させるための開放式熱交換器１３と、前記沸騰した二次媒体を蒸気タービン１５へ輸送する配管１４と、蒸気タービン１５から排気された二次媒体を凝縮器２０に輸送するための配管１９と、蒸気タービン１５から排気された二次媒体を周囲の海水で熱交換して凝縮させるための開放式熱交換器２０と、沸騰した二次媒体の力で回転力を得るための蒸気タービン１５と、蒸気タービン１５の回転力を電気に変換する発電機１６等とから装置を構成する。【選択図】図２