- Q: What is your current research topic?
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We are conducting research into methods to treat wastewater, sludge, and other waste from land-based metal mines with minimal environmental impact. Currently, we are mainly focusing on land-based metal mines, but in the future, we aim to develop technology that can also be used for the development of undersea mineral resources.
Specifically, we neutralize wastewater collected from onshore mines in the laboratory and investigate the efficiency of wastewater treatment at the mines. By analyzing the treated wastewater for harmful elements such as copper, lead, and zinc and comparing the results with computer simulations, we consider the chemical reactions that occur and investigate more efficient treatment methods and conditions.
- Q: What motivated you to start researching this?
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- As a student, I was conducting geochemical research on the origin of life in hydrothermal vents on the seafloor. There, I learned that there was a growing social need to utilize metal resources from seafloor hydrothermal deposits, and while studying the environmental issues involved in developing seafloor mineral resources, I learned that many problems remain unsolved even in land-based mines. Currently, most of the land-based mines in Japan are closed, but the acidic mine wastewater that is generated from them still requires a large amount of labor, electricity, and chemical costs. In order to reduce these costs, the use of treatment technologies that utilize natural power sources such as microorganisms, wetlands, and waterways is being considered.
- Q: What is interesting and rewarding about your research?
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- Because we are working with natural substances, we are sometimes able to obtain previously unknown chemical reactions as experimental results. For example, elements that are somewhat difficult to remove, such as zinc and cadmium, can be more easily removed by using reactions involving manganese. What is interesting is that we are not just developing technology, but are also elucidating the interactions between substances.
- Q: What are some of the challenges of research?
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Just as it is interesting, because we are working with natural materials, new knowledge and techniques are always required to analyze environmental samples containing various components and to interpret the results. For example, even one type of element can take on various chemical forms in water or sediment, so detailed chemical reactions cannot be understood without analyzing at the molecular level, which is difficult but also rewarding.
- Q: What kind of social impact can you expect from your research?
Please tell me about short-term (1-2 years from now) and long-term (up to 10 years from now) plans.
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In the short term, we are conducting research into wastewater treatment technology using microorganisms at mines in Hokkaido. By utilizing the iron-oxidizing bacteria present in the mine wastewater, we have significantly improved the efficiency of treatment. We hope to increase the number of mines like this in the next few years.
In the long term, the focus of resource development is shifting from land to sea, so we hope that when seabed mineral resource development takes place in the future, it will be possible to carry out this work with minimal environmental impact by repurposing the various technologies that have been accumulated in the treatment of wastewater from land-based mines. - Q: Which SDGs can your research contribute to?
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Goal 6: Clean Water and Sanitation
In Japan, there is a history of various pollution problems caused by discharging mine wastewater directly into the environment. These have been resolved through various regulations and technologies, but if we look overseas, there are still many places where similar health problems occur. By consolidating current technology to target not only mines but various other contaminated waters, we hope to create better water environments around the world.
Goal 9: Build infrastructure, promote industry, and innovate
Metal resources are essential for industry, so if we can choose technologies that have a smaller environmental impact, I believe we can build a more sustainable industrial base.
"Goal 13: Take urgent climate action"
Carbon neutrality is also progressing well in the field of mining development, and it is believed that the amount of energy required for processing can be reduced by reducing the amount of electricity and chemicals used. Greening the bare land of already developed mines and introducing wastewater treatment technology that utilizes natural power such as microorganisms will contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
"Goal 14: Protect and sustainably use the oceans and seas"
I believe that I can contribute to the development of technology that takes into account the environmental impact in the development of seabed mineral resources. - Q: What is the significance of conducting research at Tokyo University of Marine Science and Technology?
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- Research in the field of non-ferrous metal resources will continue to be important as global demand for copper, rare metals, etc. increases. It is extremely important to properly develop human resources who have the interest, skills, and knowledge in metal resource development, and who have a broad perspective and can take on both marine and land-based development.
- Q: What are your priorities and policies in research?
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- We believe that it is important to give back to society the results of our research. Of course, we give back academically through papers and presentations at academic conferences, but we also foster students with a broad perspective to revitalize the field. We place great importance on being conscious of the balance between education and research.
- Associate Professor Shigeji Fuchida's OA paper is here
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Paper title: Learning of Metals and Metalloids from Hydrothermal Ore Particulates and Their Effects on Marine Phytoplankton
Authors and co-authors: Shigeshi Fuchida, Akiko Yokoyama, Rina Fukuchi, Jun-Ichiro Ishibashi, Shinsuke Kawagucci, Masanobu Kawachi, Hiroshi Koshikawa
Published in: ACS Omega
Publication date: November 2017
DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.7b00081
Paper title: Kinetic Modeling and Mechanisms of Manganese Removal from Alkaline Mine Water Using a Pilot Scale Column Reactor
Authors and co-authors: Shigeshi Fuchida, Shota Tajima, Takuro Nishimura and Chiharu Tokoro
Published in: Minerals
Publication date: November 2022
DOI: 10.3390/min12010099
Paper title: Understanding the biogeochemical mechanisms of metal removal from acid mine drainage with a subsurface limestone bed at the Motokura Mine, Japan
Authors and co-authors: Shigeshi Fuchida, Kohei Suzuki, Tatsuya Kato, Masakazu Kadokura and Chiharu Tokoro
Magazine: Scientific Reports
Publication date: November 2020
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-78069-9
