Patent ID: 8323512

Claim:
A method of producing sub-critical water decomposition products, comprising: continuously supplying material to be processed that contains solid matter having a slow decomposition rate with sub-critical water and a different specific gravity from that of the sub-critical water, into a vertical reactor whose interior is kept at sub-critical conditions for water, through an inlet provided for the reactor; selecting an outlet from which a liquid containing a decomposition product is let out and adjusting an outlet amount thereof, to make a steady flow in the sub-critical water in a steady state with a plurality of outlets provided at a position different in height from where the inlet is provided for the reactor, the steady flow flowing in an opposite direction to a direction in which the solid matter sinks or floats up and being slower than a sinking velocity or floating velocity of the solid matter; forming in the steady flow, in the following order from upstream of the flow, at least a fluidized bed in which the solid matter is decomposed into fine particles by the sub-critical water and the fine particles fluidize in the flow, and a sub-critical water dissolution part in which the material to be processed is turned into further finer particles or completely turned into a soluble material to flow with the sub-critical water; further forming, depending on a type of the material to be processed, a fixed bed in which solid matter stays in a fixed location even with the flow, the fixed bed being formed upstream of the fluidized bed; and taking out the liquid containing a desired decomposition product from the sub-critical water dissolution part from the reactor, using at least one of the outlets.