Operation support system, information processing method, and program

Abstract

To provide an operation support system and the like that can effectively utilize exhaust gas discharged from a production facility.SOLUTION: An operation support system comprises: a recovery apparatus that recovers exhaust gas discharged from a production facility; a synthesis apparatus that synthesizes a valuable substance from the exhaust gas; and an information processing apparatus. The information processing apparatus includes a control unit. The control unit acquires exhaust gas information regarding the exhaust gas recovered by the recovery apparatus and specifies the valuable substance to be synthesized from the exhaust gas by the synthesis apparatus according to the exhaust gas information.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a driving assistance system, an information processing method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Various efforts have been made to reduce emissions of exhaust gases such as carbon dioxide. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a reduction method for utilizing carbon dioxide in an electrolysis system, in which an electrolyte and carbon dioxide are passed in front of a cathode to produce hydrocarbon compounds or carbon monoxide as electrolysis products and formate as an electrolysis by-product, and the electrolysis by-products are removed using a catalytic filter system to produce hydrogen and carbon dioxide, or water and carbon monoxide. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Special Publication No. 2018-510963 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In one aspect, an object of the present invention is to provide an operation assistance system or the like that can effectively utilize exhaust gas emitted from production equipment. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] In one aspect, the operation assistance system is an operation assistance system having a recovery device that recovers exhaust gas emitted from a production facility, a synthesis device that synthesizes valuable materials from the exhaust gas, and an information processing device, wherein the information processing device is equipped with a control unit, and the control unit acquires exhaust gas information regarding the exhaust gas recovered by the recovery device, and identifies the valuable materials to be synthesized from the exhaust gas by the synthesis device according to the exhaust gas information. [Effects of the Invention]

[0006] In one aspect, exhaust gas emitted from production facilities can be effectively utilized. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a driving assistance system. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a server. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a first example of an electrolysis cell provided in the recovery unit. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a second example of an electrolysis cell provided in the recovery unit. [Figure 5] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a first example of an electrolysis cell provided in the synthesis unit. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a second example of an electrolysis cell provided in the synthesis unit. [Figure 7] 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure executed by a server. [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is a diagram relating to a prediction model. [Figure 9] 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a processing procedure executed by a server according to the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] (1) An operation assistance system according to one embodiment of the present invention is an operation assistance system having a recovery device that recovers exhaust gas emitted from a production facility, a synthesis device that synthesizes valuable materials from the exhaust gas, and an information processing device, wherein the information processing device is equipped with a control unit, and the control unit acquires exhaust gas information regarding the exhaust gas recovered by the recovery device, and identifies the valuable materials to be synthesized from the exhaust gas by the synthesis device according to the exhaust gas information.

[0009] (13) In an information processing method according to one embodiment of the present invention, a computer acquires exhaust gas information relating to exhaust gas emitted from a production facility, and executes a process for identifying valuable materials to be synthesized from the exhaust gas based on the exhaust gas information.

[0010] (14) A program according to one embodiment of the present invention acquires exhaust gas information regarding exhaust gas emitted from a production facility, and causes a computer to execute a process of identifying valuable materials to be synthesized from the exhaust gas based on the exhaust gas information.

[0011] According to the driving assistance system, information processing method, and program of one embodiment of the present invention, valuable materials to be synthesized from exhaust gas emitted from production equipment can be identified, and the exhaust gas can be effectively utilized.

[0012] (2) In the driving assistance system described in (1) above, instruction information instructing the combination of the identified valuable resources may be output.

[0013] According to the operation assistance system described in (2) above, the recovery device and the synthesis device can operate according to the instruction information, and the automation of the recovery of exhaust gas and the synthesis of valuable materials can be accelerated.

[0014] (3) In the driving assistance system described in (1) or (2) above, the recovery device or the synthesis device may be a device that utilizes an electrochemical reaction.

[0015] According to the driving assistance system described in (3) above, the recovery device or the synthesis device can be made smaller.

[0016] (4) In the driving assistance system according to any one of (1) to (3) above, sales or profits obtained from the combined valuables may be calculated.

[0017] According to the driving assistance system described in (4) above, an incentive obtained by combining valuables can be presented to the user.

[0018] (5) In the operation assistance system described in any one of (1) to (4) above, the exhaust gas information of each of a plurality of production facilities may be acquired, and the valuable material to be synthesized from the exhaust gas emitted from each of the plurality of production facilities may be identified according to the exhaust gas information.

[0019] According to the operation support system described in (5) above, operation support can be performed for multiple production facilities at once, thereby improving efficiency.

[0020] (6) In the driving assistance system described in any one of (1) to (5) above, the recovery device may be a device that produces a gas in which carbon dioxide is concentrated from the exhaust gas, and the synthesis device may be a device that synthesizes a carbon compound from the gas in which carbon dioxide is concentrated.

[0021] According to the driving assistance system described in (6) above, it is possible to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

[0022] (7) In the driving assistance system described in any one of (1) to (6) above, the valuable material to be synthesized may be identified according to the amount of auxiliary material required to recover a unit mass of the exhaust gas or synthesize a unit mass of the valuable material.

[0023] According to the driving assistance system described above in (7), valuable materials can be synthesized that reduce the amount of auxiliary materials.

[0024] (8) In the driving assistance system described in any one of (1) to (7) above, the valuable material to be synthesized may be identified according to the amount of carbon contained in the auxiliary material required to recover a unit mass of the exhaust gas or synthesize a unit mass of the valuable material.

[0025] According to the driving assistance system described in (8) above, it is possible to synthesize valuable materials that contain less carbon in the auxiliary materials, thereby reducing the amount of carbon dioxide generated when producing the auxiliary materials.

[0026] (9) In the driving assistance system described in any one of (1) to (8) above, the valuables to be synthesized may be identified according to the amount of carbon dioxide reduction achieved when synthesizing the valuables by unit mass.

[0027] According to the driving assistance system described in (9) above, it is possible to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

[0028] (10) In the driving assistance system described in any one of (1) to (9) above, the valuable material to be synthesized may be identified according to the cost of auxiliary materials required to recover a unit mass of the exhaust gas or synthesize a unit mass of the valuable material.

[0029] According to the driving assistance system described in (10) above, it is possible to reduce the cost of auxiliary materials.

[0030] (11) In the driving assistance system described in any one of (1) to (10) above, the valuables to be synthesized may be identified according to the utility costs required to recover a unit mass of the exhaust gas or to synthesize a unit mass of the valuables.

[0031] According to the driving assistance system described in (11) above, it is possible to identify valuable materials to be synthesized so that the utility costs required for recovering exhaust gas or synthesizing valuable materials are reduced.

[0032] (12) In the driving assistance system described in any one of (1) to (11) above, production plan information indicating a production plan for a product to be produced in a production facility may be acquired, and the acquired production plan information may be input into a model that has been trained to output the exhaust gas information when the production plan information is input, thereby acquiring the exhaust gas information from the model.

[0033] According to the operation support system described in (12) above, it is possible to predict exhaust gas information of a production facility from production plan information of a product in the production facility, and to identify valuable materials to be synthesized.

[0034] The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings showing embodiments thereof. (Embodiment 1) 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the configuration of an operation support system. In this embodiment, an operation support system will be described that identifies valuable materials to be synthesized from exhaust gas according to exhaust gas information about the exhaust gas emitted from a production facility 100, and synthesizes the identified valuable materials from the exhaust gas. The operation support system includes a server 1, an operation control device 2, a recovery unit 30 (recovery device), synthesis units 31 and 32 (synthesizing devices), auxiliary material supply units 33, 34, and 35, storage tanks 36, 37, and 38, and sensors S1 to S12. The server 1 and the operation control device 2 are communicatively connected via a network N.

[0035] The production facility 100 is, for example, a facility such as a factory, and emits exhaust gases containing carbon dioxide during the production of products (for example, batteries, power supplies, lighting devices, etc.). The exhaust gases emitted from the production facility 100 are sent to a recovery unit 30 after their composition, concentration, temperature, flow rate, etc. are measured by sensors S1 and S2.

[0036] In this embodiment, a description will be given assuming that exhaust gas is recovered from a plurality of (two in FIG. 1 ) production facilities 100. By collectively recovering exhaust gas and synthesizing valuable materials from a plurality of production facilities 100, efficiency can be improved.

[0037] The capture unit 30 captures carbon dioxide from the exhaust gas, concentrating and capturing it under conditions appropriate for the exhaust gas. Carbon dioxide capture can be achieved using electrochemical methods, chemical absorption, physical adsorption, membrane separation, and other methods. Electrochemical methods, for example, use an electrolytic cell (described below) to capture carbon dioxide electrochemically. Chemical absorption captures carbon dioxide by absorbing it into an alkaline solution such as an amine or potassium carbonate solution. Physical adsorption captures carbon dioxide by adsorbing it from the combustion exhaust gas that comes into contact with the adsorbent, using zeolite, activated carbon, or other adsorbents. After adsorption, the adsorption capacity is restored by desorption. Methods for recovery include pressure swing adsorption (PSA) and thermal swing adsorption (TSA). Membrane separation captures carbon dioxide by passing the combustion exhaust gas through a porous membrane and utilizing the difference in permeation speed through the membrane.

[0038] Of the above-mentioned methods, the electrochemical method is preferable because it is relatively easy to miniaturize. Therefore, in this embodiment, the electrochemical method is used to recover carbon dioxide (and synthesize valuable materials).

[0039] When recovering carbon dioxide, the auxiliary material supply unit 33 supplies auxiliary materials necessary for recovering carbon dioxide as needed to the recovery unit 30. When supplying the auxiliary materials, the sensor S3 measures the composition, temperature, supply amount, etc. of the auxiliary materials, and supplies an appropriate amount of auxiliary materials to the recovery unit 30.

[0040] The carbon dioxide-enriched gas recovered in the recovery unit 30 may be stored in the storage tank 36 after the composition of the gas, the concentration of each component (composition ratio), the temperature, etc. are measured by sensor S6. Alternatively, the carbon dioxide-enriched gas recovered in the recovery unit 30 may be sent to the synthesis unit 31 after the composition of the gas, the concentration of each component (composition ratio), the temperature, etc. are measured by sensor S7. The gas (gas in which carbon dioxide is enriched) stored in the storage tank 36 may be sent to the synthesis unit 31 after the composition of the gas, the concentration of each component (composition ratio), the temperature, etc. are measured by sensor S8, or may be transported to a demand area by a tank truck or the like. Alternatively, the liquid that has absorbed carbon dioxide or the solid that has adsorbed carbon dioxide recovered in the absorption unit (recovery unit 30) may be stored in the storage tank 36 or may be transported to a demand area by a tank truck or the like.

[0041] The synthesis unit 31 is a unit that synthesizes valuable materials, and synthesizes valuable material A using gas obtained by condensing carbon dioxide sent from the recovery unit 30 or the storage tank 36. In this embodiment, the valuable materials to be synthesized are carbon compounds synthesized using carbon dioxide as one of the raw materials, and include, for example, methane (CH), methanol (CHOH), ethane (CH), ethylene (CH), ethanol (CHOH), and carbon monoxide (CO). For example, carbon monoxide is synthesized as valuable material A in the synthesis unit 31. The auxiliary material supply unit 34 supplies auxiliary materials (oxygen, hydrogen, etc.) necessary for synthesizing valuable materials to the synthesis unit 31 as needed during the synthesis of valuable materials. When supplying the auxiliary materials, the sensor S4 measures the composition, temperature, supply amount, etc. of the auxiliary materials, and supplies an appropriate amount of the auxiliary materials to the synthesis unit 31.

[0042] The valuable materials synthesized in the synthesis unit 31 may be stored in the storage tank 37 after the composition, concentration of each composition (composition ratio), temperature, etc. are measured by the sensor S9. Alternatively, the valuable materials synthesized in the synthesis unit 31 may be sent to the synthesis unit 32 after the composition, concentration of each composition (composition ratio), temperature, etc. are measured by the sensor S10. The valuable materials stored in the storage tank 37 may be sent to the synthesis unit 32 after the composition, concentration of each composition (composition ratio), temperature, etc. are measured by the sensor S11, or may be transported to a demand area by a tank truck or the like.

[0043] The synthesis unit 32 is a unit for synthesizing valuable materials (carbon compounds) and synthesizes valuable material B using valuable material A sent from the synthesis unit 31 or storage tank 37. Valuable material B includes, for example, methane. The auxiliary material supply unit 35 supplies auxiliary materials necessary for synthesizing valuable materials to the synthesis unit 32 as needed when synthesizing valuable materials. When supplying auxiliary materials, sensor S5 measures the composition, temperature, supply amount, etc. of the auxiliary materials, and supplies an appropriate amount of auxiliary material (such as HO) to the synthesis unit 32. The valuable materials synthesized in the synthesis unit 32 are stored in storage tank 38 after sensor S12 measures the composition, concentration (composition ratio) of each component, temperature, etc. The valuable materials stored in the storage tank 38 are transported to the demand area by tank truck or the like.

[0044] Although the storage tanks 36, 37, and 38 are not essential components, providing the storage tanks 36, 37, and 38 allows concentrated carbon dioxide and valuable materials to be provided (sold) to the market at an appropriate time.

[0045] Although the recovery unit 30, synthesis units 31, 32, and other equipment may be owned by each of the multiple production facilities 100, it is preferable that they be loaned to each other, which reduces the burden of purchasing the equipment.

[0046] The operation control device 2 is a control device that controls the operation of each device such as the recovery unit 30, the synthesis units 31 and 32, and the auxiliary material supply units 33, 34, and 35. The operation control device 2 includes a control unit 21 and a communication unit 22.

[0047] The communication unit 22 includes a communication module, and acquires instruction information for recovering exhaust gas and synthesizing valuable materials from the server 1 via the network N.

[0048] The control unit 21 includes a controller, a memory, etc., and controls the operation of devices such as the recovery unit 30 and the synthesis units 31 and 32 based on instruction information acquired via the communication unit 22. For example, when instruction information to recover exhaust gas is acquired, the control unit 21 controls the operation of the recovery unit 30 and, if necessary, controls the operation of the auxiliary material supply unit 33. Furthermore, when instruction information to synthesize valuable materials is acquired, the control unit 21 controls the operation of the synthesis units 31 and 32 and, if necessary, controls the operation of the auxiliary material supply units 34 and 35.

[0049] The server 1 is an information processing device capable of various information processing, and identifies valuable materials to be synthesized in the synthesis units 31 and 32 according to exhaust gas information (gas composition, concentration, temperature, flow rate, etc.) measured by sensors S1, S2, etc. The server 1 then recovers the exhaust gas emitted from the production facility 100, and outputs instruction information for synthesizing the above-identified valuable materials to the operation control device 2, causing the operation control device 2 to synthesize the valuable materials.

[0050] 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the server 1. The server 1 includes a control unit 11, a main memory unit 12, a communication unit 13, and an auxiliary memory unit . The control unit 11 has one or more arithmetic processing devices such as a central processing unit (CPU), a micro-processing unit (MPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), etc., and performs various information processing, control processing, etc. by reading and executing a program P stored in the auxiliary storage unit 14. The main storage unit 12 is a temporary storage area such as a static random access memory (SRAM) or a dynamic random access memory (DRAM), and temporarily stores data necessary for the control unit 11 to execute arithmetic processing. The communication unit 13 is a communication module for performing communication-related processing, and transmits and receives information to and from the outside. The auxiliary storage unit 14 is a non-volatile storage area such as a large-capacity memory or a hard disk, and stores the program P (program product) and other data necessary for the control unit 11 to execute processing.

[0051] The auxiliary storage unit 14 may be an external storage device connected to the server 1. The server 1 may be a multi-computer consisting of multiple computers, or may be a virtual machine virtually constructed by software.

[0052] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the server 1 is not limited to the above configuration, and may include, for example, an input unit that accepts operation input, a display unit that displays images, etc. Furthermore, the server 1 may be provided with a reading unit that reads a portable storage medium 1a such as a CD (Compact Disk)-ROM or a DVD (Digital Versatile Disc)-ROM, and may read and execute the program P from the portable storage medium 1a.

[0053] Next, the process performed when the exhaust gas is recovered by the recovery unit 30 will be described.

[0054] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a first example of an electrolytic cell provided in the recovery unit 30. The electrolytic cell (electrochemical cell) shown in FIG. 3 is an SOEC (Solid Oxide Electrolysis Cell). When the exhaust gas from the production facility 100 is composed of carbon dioxide, oxygen, and nitrogen and the nitrogen content is relatively low, the exhaust gas is introduced into the cathode of an electrolytic cell (SOEC) that uses yttria-stabilized zirconia as an electrolyte. According to the reaction formula of Case 1 shown in FIG. 3, oxygen is converted into oxygen ions (O 2- ) and transported to the cathode. This removes or reduces the oxygen concentration at the cathode. As a result, a concentrated gas of carbon dioxide containing nitrogen but with a low oxygen concentration is discharged from the cathode. If the oxygen concentration is not sufficiently reduced, the gas discharged from the cathode can be reintroduced into the cathode of the electrolytic cell. Case 2 will be described later.

[0055] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a second example of an electrolytic cell provided in the recovery unit 30. The electrolytic cell (electrochemical cell) shown in FIG. 4 is an MCEC (Molten Carbonate Electrolysis Cell). When the exhaust gas from the production facility 100 is composed of carbon dioxide, oxygen, and nitrogen and the nitrogen content is relatively high, an MCEC using molten carbonate as an electrolyte is used, and the exhaust gas is introduced into the cathode of the electrolytic cell (MCEC). According to the reaction formula shown in FIG. 4, oxygen and carbon dioxide receive electrons at the cathode, and CO3 3- The gas becomes ions, moves through the electrolyte, and becomes oxygen and carbon dioxide again at the anode. With the nitrogen removed, carbon dioxide is concentrated at the anode. If you want to remove the oxygen in this concentrated gas or reduce the oxygen concentration, you can feed the concentrated gas into the cathode of an SOEC (solid oxide electrochemical cell) as shown in Figure 3. The oxygen concentration can be reduced according to the reaction formula in Case 2 in Figure 3.

[0056] As mentioned above, when using MCEC to electrochemically concentrate and recover carbon dioxide, the ratio of oxygen to carbon dioxide is preferably 1:2. If the oxygen composition ratio is lower than 1 / 2 of carbon dioxide, some of the carbon dioxide will react with oxygen to form CO3 2-This is because carbon dioxide cannot ionize and move through the electrolyte, resulting in the gas released from the cathode into the atmosphere containing a large amount of carbon dioxide. Therefore, when the oxygen concentration in the exhaust gas fed to the electrolytic cell is half or less of that of carbon dioxide, the release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere can be prevented by supplying oxygen gas or oxygen-containing air from the auxiliary material supply unit 33 to the recovery unit 30. Furthermore, when the oxygen composition ratio exceeds half that of carbon dioxide, the carbon dioxide concentration may decrease, resulting in a decrease in the carbon dioxide reaction rate. In this case, it is preferable to reduce the oxygen composition ratio using the SOEC shown in FIG. 3 and then recover carbon dioxide using the MCEC.

[0057] In addition to the electrolytic cell, the recovery unit 30 may also be equipped with devices using chemical absorption, physical adsorption, membrane separation, or cryogenic separation. It may also be equipped with devices that combine these methods. This allows for the production of a concentrated gas with a high concentration of carbon dioxide. A concentrated gas with a high concentration of carbon dioxide is preferable because it suppresses the generation of impurities due to unnecessary side reactions during the synthesis of valuable products.

[0058] Next, the processing contents when valuable resources are synthesized in the synthesis units 31 and 32 will be described.

[0059] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a first example of an electrolytic cell provided in the synthesis unit 31. The electrolytic cell (electrochemical cell) shown in FIG. 5 is an SOEC. In the example of FIG. 5, carbon monoxide is synthesized at the cathode of the electrolytic cell. The carbon dioxide-enriched gas recovered in the recovery unit 30 has its composition, composition ratio, etc. measured by sensor S7, and is then sent to the cathode of the electrolytic cell provided in the synthesis unit 31. H2O, which is an auxiliary material for valuable resource synthesis, is supplied to the cathode of the electrolytic cell from the auxiliary material supply unit 34 in an amount three times that of carbon dioxide in composition ratio. In the electrolytic cell (SOEC) using yttria-stabilized zirconia as an electrolyte provided in the synthesis unit 31, water and carbon dioxide are reduced at the cathode to produce a mixed gas of hydrogen and carbon monoxide, as shown in FIG. 5. Oxygen is produced at the anode and released into the atmosphere.

[0060] The mixed gas of hydrogen and carbon monoxide produced at the cathode of the electrolysis cell in synthesis unit 31 has its composition and composition ratio measured by sensor S10, and is then sent to synthesis unit 32, which is equipped with a methane synthesis device. In the methane synthesis device, methane (CH4) is synthesized using a catalyst such as a nickel alloy according to the reaction formula 3H2 + CO → CH4 + H2O.

[0061] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a second example of an electrolytic cell provided in the synthesis unit 31. The electrolytic cell (electrochemical cell) shown in FIG. 6 is a DMEC (direct methanol electrolytic cell) using an ion exchange membrane as an electrolyte. In the example shown in FIG. 6, methanol (CHOH) is synthesized at the cathode of the electrolytic cell. The carbon dioxide-enriched gas recovered in the recovery unit 30 has its composition and composition ratio measured by sensor S7, and is then sent to the cathode of the electrolytic cell provided in the synthesis unit 31. H2O, which is an auxiliary material for valuable resource synthesis, is supplied to the cathode of the electrolytic cell from the auxiliary material supply unit 34 in an amount three times the amount in terms of composition ratio. In the DMEC electrolytic cell using an ion exchange membrane as an electrolyte provided in the synthesis unit 31, carbon dioxide is reduced at the cathode to produce methanol water containing methanol and H2O, as shown in FIG. 6. At the anode, H2O is oxidized to produce oxygen, which is released into the atmosphere.

[0062] Next, the processing contents when identifying valuable materials to be synthesized in the synthesis units 31 and 32 according to the exhaust gas recovered in the recovery unit 30 will be described.

[0063] The exhaust gas emitted from the production facility 100 may vary depending on the type of product, materials, production volume, etc. produced in the production facility 100. The server 1 acquires exhaust gas information (gas composition, concentration, temperature, flow rate, etc.) measured by sensors S1 and S2 on the exhaust gas emitted from each of the multiple production facilities 100 via the operation control device 2.

[0064] In this embodiment, the measurement values obtained by the sensors S1 and S2 are assumed to be the exhaust gas information, but as in a second embodiment described later, the exhaust gas information may be predicted from information (production plan information) such as the type of product and production volume in the production facility 100. In other words, the exhaust gas information may use either measured values or predicted values.

[0065] The server 1 identifies valuable materials to be synthesized in the synthesis units 31 and 32 according to the acquired exhaust gas information. As described above, the valuable materials are carbon compounds such as methane, methanol, ethane, ethylene, ethanol, and carbon monoxide. In this system, various valuable materials can be synthesized by replacing the electrolysis cells of the recovery unit 30 and the synthesis units 31 and 32. The server 1 identifies the valuable materials to be synthesized from the valuable materials that can be synthesized according to the cost required to synthesize the valuable materials and the amount of carbon dioxide reduction that will be achieved by synthesizing the valuable materials.

[0066] As a first method, the server 1 identifies a valuable substance to be synthesized according to the amount of auxiliary material required to recover a unit mass of exhaust gas (concentrate carbon dioxide) and / or synthesize a unit mass of valuable substance. Specifically, the server 1 identifies a valuable substance that requires the smallest amount of auxiliary material to recover a unit mass of exhaust gas and / or synthesize a unit mass of valuable substance as the valuable substance to be synthesized.

[0067] As a second method, the server 1 identifies a valuable substance to be synthesized according to the amount of carbon contained in the auxiliary material required to recover a unit mass of exhaust gas and / or synthesize a unit mass of valuable substance. Specifically, the server 1 identifies a valuable substance that has the smallest amount of carbon contained in the auxiliary material required to recover a unit mass of exhaust gas and / or synthesize a unit mass of valuable substance as the valuable substance to be synthesized.

[0068] In a third method, the server 1 identifies the valuables to be synthesized based on the amount of carbon dioxide reduction achieved when synthesizing a unit mass of valuables. Specifically, the server 1 identifies the valuables that will have the greatest carbon dioxide reduction achieved by electrochemical reaction when synthesizing a unit mass of valuables. The term "the greatest carbon dioxide reduction" refers to the largest difference between the amount of carbon dioxide emitted when synthesizing a unit mass of valuables using conventional synthesis methods from fossil fuels in the region where the valuables are synthesized or the region where the valuables are supplied, and the amount of carbon dioxide emitted when synthesizing a unit mass of the same valuables using the present invention. The carbon dioxide emission coefficient (kg-CO2 / kWh or t-CO2 / kWh) of the electricity used to synthesize the valuables is used to calculate the amount of carbon dioxide emitted. For example, the carbon dioxide emission coefficient published by the national government or published by the electric utility that supplies the electricity is preferably used.

[0069] When calculating the amount of carbon dioxide reduction due to the synthesis of valuable resources, the amount of carbon dioxide reduction may be calculated taking into account the amount of carbon dioxide generated when generating the electricity required to operate the recovery unit 30, etc.

[0070] As a fourth method, the server 1 identifies the valuable material to be synthesized according to the cost of the auxiliary material required to recover a unit mass of exhaust gas and / or synthesize a unit mass of valuable material. Specifically, the server 1 calculates the cost of the auxiliary material by multiplying the mass of the auxiliary material required to recover a unit mass of exhaust gas and / or synthesize a unit mass of valuable material by the price per unit mass of the auxiliary material. The server 1 identifies the valuable material with the lowest calculated cost as the valuable material to be synthesized.

[0071] As a fifth method, the server 1 identifies valuables to be combined according to the utility costs required to recover a unit mass of exhaust gas and / or combine a unit mass of valuables. Specifically, the server 1 calculates the utility costs required to recover a unit mass of exhaust gas and / or combine a unit mass of valuables, and identifies the valuables with the lowest utility costs as the valuables to be combined.

[0072] The server 1 may identify valuable materials using any one of the first to fifth methods described above, or may identify valuable materials by combining two or more of the first to fifth methods. The server 1 acquires exhaust gas information from each of the multiple production facilities 100, and identifies valuable materials to be synthesized from the exhaust gas emitted from each of the multiple production facilities 100.

[0073] It should be noted that the above first to fifth methods are all examples, and alternatively, the valuable materials to be synthesized may be identified based on, for example, the price or profit per unit mass of the valuable materials to be synthesized.

[0074] When the valuables to be combined are identified, the server 1 calculates the sales and profits to be obtained from the sale of the combined valuables. Specifically, the server 1 calculates the sales and profits to be obtained from the valuables by multiplying the sales price and sales profit per unit mass of the valuables by the estimated combined mass of the valuables. Note that the sales and profits may be calculated based on volume rather than mass. For example, the server 1 may output (display) the calculated sales and profits on a terminal (not shown) and present them to a user of the system (e.g., the administrator of the production facility 100).

[0075] The server 1 outputs instruction information instructing the synthesis of the identified valuable materials to the operation control device 2. When the instruction information is acquired, the operation control device 2 controls each device such as the recovery unit 30, synthesis units 31 and 32, and auxiliary material supply units 33, 34, and 35 in accordance with the instruction information. As a result, the identified valuable materials are synthesized.

[0076] The synthesized valuables are temporarily stored in a storage tank 38 and then offered (sold) on the market. When the valuables are bought and sold, the server 1 uses a predetermined remittance method to pay part or all of the sales amount to the user of this system (the manager of the production facility 100). This makes it possible to provide an incentive to the production facility 100.

[0077] 7 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure executed by the server 1. The processing contents executed by the server 1 will be described with reference to FIG. The control unit 11 of the server 1 acquires exhaust gas information related to exhaust gas emitted from the production facilities 100 from the sensors S1 and S2 via the operation control device 2 (step S11). The exhaust gas information includes gas composition, concentration, temperature, flow rate, etc. The control unit 11 acquires the exhaust gas information for each of the multiple production facilities 100.

[0078] The control unit 11 identifies valuable materials to be synthesized from among multiple valuable materials that can be synthesized in the synthesis units 31 and 32, based on the acquired flue gas information (step S12). For example, as a first method, the control unit 11 identifies valuable materials to be synthesized based on the amount of auxiliary materials required for recovering the flue gas and / or synthesizing the valuable materials. As a second method, the control unit 11 identifies valuable materials to be synthesized based on the amount of carbon contained in the auxiliary materials required for recovering the flue gas and / or synthesizing the valuable materials. As a third method, the control unit 11 identifies valuable materials to be synthesized based on the amount of carbon dioxide reduction achieved by synthesizing the valuable materials. As a fourth method, the control unit 11 identifies valuable materials to be synthesized based on the cost of auxiliary materials required for recovering the flue gas and / or synthesizing the valuable materials. As a fifth method, the control unit 11 identifies valuable materials to be synthesized based on the utility costs required for recovering the flue gas and / or synthesizing the valuable materials. The control unit 11 identifies valuable resources to be synthesized using at least one of the first to fifth methods. The control unit 11 identifies valuable resources to be synthesized from the exhaust gas emitted from each of the multiple production facilities 100, according to the exhaust gas information of each of the multiple production facilities 100.

[0079] The control unit 11 calculates the sales and profits to be obtained by combining the identified valuable materials (step S13). The control unit 11 may output (display) the calculated sales and profits and present them to a user of the system. The control unit 11 outputs instruction information to the operation control device 2 to recover the exhaust gas using the recovery unit 30 and combine the valuable materials identified in step S12 using the combining units 31 and 32 (step S14), thereby completing the series of processes.

[0080] As described above, according to the first embodiment, it is possible to effectively utilize the exhaust gas discharged from the production facility.

[0081] (Embodiment 2) In this embodiment, a prediction model 50 (see FIG. 8) constructed by machine learning is used to predict exhaust gas information related to exhaust gas emitted from a production facility 100. Note that the same reference numerals are used to designate the same parts as in the first embodiment, and the description thereof will be omitted.

[0082] Fig. 8 is a diagram relating to the prediction model 50. Fig. 8 illustrates how, when production plan information for a product in a production facility 100 is input to the prediction model 50, exhaust gas information for the production facility 100 is output.

[0083] In the first embodiment, it has been described that the composition, concentration, temperature, flow rate, etc. of gas measured by the sensors S1 and S2 are used as exhaust gas information. On the other hand, the server 1 may predict the exhaust gas information from a production plan for a product in the production facility 100. In this embodiment, a prediction model 50 shown in FIG. 8 is used to predict the exhaust gas information.

[0084] The prediction model 50 is a machine learning model that has learned predetermined training data, and is a model that inputs product production plan information and outputs exhaust gas information. The prediction model 50 is, for example, a neural network, but may also be a machine learning model other than a neural network, such as a decision tree or SVM (Support Vector Machine).

[0085] The production plan information is information indicating a production plan for products to be produced by the production facility 100, and includes, for example, the type of product to be produced, materials, and production volume per unit period (for example, one day).

[0086] The server 1 generates a prediction model 50 using training data in which correct exhaust gas information is associated with training production plan information. The server 1 inputs the training production plan information into the prediction model 50 to output (predict) exhaust gas information, and updates parameters such as the weights between neurons so that the two approximate each other by comparing the output exhaust gas information with the correct value. The server 1 sequentially supplies the training production plan information to the prediction model 50 to update the parameters, and ultimately generates a prediction model 50 with optimized parameters.

[0087] When actually predicting exhaust gas information using the prediction model 50, for example, the server 1 acquires production plan information for the product on that day before the production facility 100 starts operation (for example, the day before). The server 1 inputs the acquired production plan information into the prediction model 50, and thereby acquires from the prediction model 50 information on exhaust gas predicted to be emitted from the production facility 100 on that day.

[0088] The subsequent processing is the same as in the first embodiment, and the server 1 identifies valuable materials to be combined according to the exhaust gas information acquired from the prediction model 50. Then, the server 1 outputs instruction information to the operation control device 2 to instruct the combination of the identified valuable materials, and causes the operation control device 2 to recover the exhaust gas and combine the valuable materials.

[0089] 9 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing procedure executed by the server 1 according to the embodiment 2. The processing contents executed by the server 1 in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. The control unit 11 of the server 1 acquires production plan information indicating a production plan for products to be produced by the production equipment 100 (step S201). The production plan information includes, for example, the type of product to be produced, materials, production volume per unit period, etc. The control unit 11 acquires the production plan information for each of the multiple production equipment 100.

[0090] The control unit 11 acquires exhaust gas information from the prediction model 50 by inputting the acquired production plan information into the prediction model 50, which has been trained to output exhaust gas information when production plan information is input (step S202). The control unit 11 acquires exhaust gas information for each of the multiple production facilities 100 by inputting the production plan information for each of the multiple production facilities 100 into the prediction model 50. The control unit 11 proceeds to step S12.

[0091] As described above, according to the second embodiment, it is possible to predict exhaust gas information of the production facility 100 from production plan information of the product in the production facility 100, and identify valuable materials to be synthesized.

[0092] The embodiments disclosed herein are illustrative in all respects and should not be considered limiting. The scope of the present invention is defined by the claims, not by the above meaning, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims.

[0093] The matters described in each embodiment can be combined with each other. Furthermore, the independent claims and dependent claims described in the claims can be combined with each other in any combination, regardless of the reference format. Furthermore, although the claims use a format in which a claim references two or more other claims (multi-claim format), this is not limited to this format. A format in which multiple claims (multi-multi-claims) that reference at least one other multiple claim may also be used. [Explanation of symbols]

[0094] 1. Server (information processing device) 11 Control section 12 Main memory 13 Communications Department 14 Auxiliary storage P Program 2 Operation control device 21 Control section 22 Communications Department 30 Recovery Unit 31, 32 Synthesis Unit 33~35 Auxiliary material supply unit 36~38 Storage tank 100 production facilities S1~S12 sensors

Claims

1. An operation assistance system having a recovery device that recovers exhaust gas emitted from a production facility, a synthesis device that synthesizes valuable materials from the exhaust gas, and an information processing device, the information processing device includes a control unit, The control unit acquiring exhaust gas information regarding the exhaust gas recovered by the recovery device; The valuable material to be synthesized from the exhaust gas by the synthesis device is identified according to the exhaust gas information. Driver assistance system.

2. Output instruction information instructing synthesis of the specified valuable material. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 .

3. The recovery device or synthesis device is a device that utilizes an electrochemical reaction. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 .

4. Calculate the sales or profits obtained from the synthesized valuable materials. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 .

5. Acquire the exhaust gas information for each of a plurality of production facilities; Identifying the valuable material to be synthesized from the exhaust gas emitted from each of the plurality of production facilities according to the exhaust gas information. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 .

6. the recovery device is a device for generating a gas in which carbon dioxide is concentrated from the exhaust gas, The synthesis device is a device for synthesizing a carbon compound from the gas in which carbon dioxide is concentrated. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 .

7. The valuable material to be synthesized is identified according to the amount of auxiliary material required for recovering a unit mass of the exhaust gas or synthesizing a unit mass of the valuable material. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 .

8. The valuable material to be synthesized is identified according to the amount of carbon contained in an auxiliary material required for recovering a unit mass of the exhaust gas or synthesizing a unit mass of the valuable material. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 .

9. The valuable material to be synthesized is identified according to the amount of carbon dioxide reduced when synthesizing the valuable material by unit mass. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 .

10. The valuable material to be synthesized is identified according to the cost of auxiliary materials required for recovering a unit mass of the exhaust gas or synthesizing a unit mass of the valuable material. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 .

11. The valuable material to be synthesized is identified according to the utility costs required for recovering a unit mass of the exhaust gas or synthesizing a unit mass of the valuable material. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 .

12. Acquire production plan information indicating the production plan for products to be produced by the production equipment; The acquired production plan information is input into a model that has been trained to output the exhaust gas information when the production plan information is input, thereby acquiring the exhaust gas information from the model. The driving assistance system according to claim 1 .

13. Obtaining exhaust gas information on exhaust gases emitted from production facilities, A valuable material to be synthesized from the exhaust gas is identified according to the exhaust gas information. An information processing method in which processing is performed by a computer.

14. Obtaining exhaust gas information on exhaust gases emitted from production facilities, A valuable material to be synthesized from the exhaust gas is identified according to the exhaust gas information. A program that causes a computer to perform a process.

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