Tokyokaiyo University, Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, University of Tokyo, and University of Tsukuba have succeeded in collecting seabed gas in Tokyo Bay off the coast of Urayasu City, Chiba Prefecture.According to the analysis, 96.8% is methane, and it is highly possible that methane is widely distributed from several meters to several tens of meters below the seafloor in the northern part of Tokyo Bay.
According to Tokyo Kaiyo University, gas foaming has often been confirmed in the northern part of Tokyo Bay in the past.Off the coast of Urayasu City, in 2017, a training boat "Hiyodori" from Tokyokaiyo University found a gas layer located about 7 meters below the seafloor, but the composition of the gas was not revealed.
Therefore, when we dived in collaboration with the Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute of the University of Tokyo and the University of Tsukuba to collect and analyze the seafloor gas, it was confirmed that the main component was methane.Subsequent observations of the training boat "Hiyodori" also revealed that the gas was distributed in layers over a wide area, such as off Urayasu City and Funabashi City in Chiba Prefecture.
Tokyokaiyo University believes that it cannot be denied that a large amount of gas will be released during an earthquake, and that considering the high greenhouse effect of methane and its strong flammability, it poses a great risk to the environment and disasters.
To avoid this risk, it is necessary to remove methane from the seabed.Methane can be used in the metropolitan area as a valuable energy resource.
Tokyokaiyo University and others will investigate the distribution of the gas layer in more detail and proceed with technological development on methane gas production methods.
