JP2003072675A - Hydrogen recovery system provided with hydrogen manufacturing plant - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a hydrogen recovery system provided with freely movable hydrogen manufacturing plants using natural energy most efficiently and easily controllable from land, and capable of planning an optimum sailing schedule for a hydrogen transport tanker. SOLUTION: The hydrogen recovery system is provided with the hydrogen manufacturing plants 20 manufacturing hydrogen by converting natural energy such as tidal energy into electrical energy and electrolyzing sea water by the electrical energy. A ground control base 10 remotely controlling the plant positioned at sea is provided with a weather data and oceanographic observation data receiving function of acquiring weather data and oceanographic observation data, a plant operation monitoring data receiving function of grasping operation statuses of the hydrogen manufacturing plants, and a transport tanker sailing schedule planning function of allocating the transport tanker 11 to respective plants on the basis of the receiving functions. It is characterized by that the sailing schedule planning function is carried out by grasping a position of each plant by signals from a GPS or the like.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a hydrogen production plant for converting natural energy such as tidal current energy, wind energy and solar energy into electric energy, and electrolyzing seawater with the electric energy to produce hydrogen. The present invention relates to a hydrogen recovery system including a hydrogen production plant that transports hydrogen produced in this plant as liquid hydrogen, compressed hydrogen gas, or the like.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, energy resources utilizing hydrogen have been attracting attention in place of fossil resources such as oil and natural gas. Unlike fossil fuels, hydrogen fuel does not emit harmful exhaust gas such as sulfurous acid gas and nitrous oxide, and is a clean, highly efficient, economically and environmentally attractive fuel. This hydrogen fuel has already been studied in various countries, and fuel cells and hydrogen fueled vehicles, buses,
Introductory plans are being made for transportation equipment such as ships, factory facilities such as steel mills, and private power generation systems for homes.

However, in order to use hydrogen as energy, it has been necessary to solve various problems. For example, development of hydrogen production method, hydrogen storage method, large tank for liquid hydrogen storage, liquid hydrogen, compressed hydrogen gas transportation technology, etc. is a subject, and various solutions have been proposed for practical use. There is. Among these, a hydrogen production method, which produces hydrogen by using a fuel that is environmentally friendly and does not deplete, is drawing attention. It uses natural energy to generate electricity,
A method of producing hydrogen by the generated electric energy,
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-59472 proposes a marine energy production system using such a method.

This is a wind power generator, a solar cell panel, a mega-float, which is a floating body that can be moored on the sea.
A wave power generator is provided, and seawater is electrolyzed in the energy conversion storage unit by the electric power generated by these, and oxygen gas and hydrogen gas generated by the electrolysis are liquefied and stored in a storage container. It is configured so that it can be moved freely according to the conditions. According to this, the energy existing on the sea can be efficiently used and the energy can be easily stored.

[0005]

However, in the above-mentioned prior art, no means for controlling such a plant is shown, and it is presumed that the plant will be operated manually. Being resident is a great burden to the worker and may be a safety issue. Further, in such an invention, it is easy to install the plant in a bay or on the coast, but it is difficult to install the plant in the vicinity of the equator where the sunlight is strong or in the ocean where the wave power is large, and natural energy is used most efficiently. It is hard to say that Further, although there is a description of means for carrying out liquid hydrogen, there is no mention of means for efficient transportation. In view of the problems of the prior art, the present invention extracts natural energy most efficiently and operates a hydrogen production plant with high efficiency, and is freely movable and easily moved from land even if it is located in the ocean. An object of the present invention is to provide a hydrogen recovery system equipped with a hydrogen production plant, which is controllable and can plan a schedule for efficiently distributing ships when transporting hydrogen.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above problems, the invention according to claim 1 converts natural energy such as tidal current energy, wind energy and solar energy into electric energy. In a hydrogen recovery system including a hydrogen production plant for electrolyzing seawater with the electric energy to produce hydrogen, a ground control base for remotely controlling the hydrogen production plant located at sea is provided, and the ground control base is Means for acquiring meteorological data and ocean observation data which are elements for changing the position of the hydrogen production plant, means for ascertaining the operating status of the hydrogen production plant, and shipping tankers to respective plants based on the ascertaining means And means for setting a ship allocation schedule,
The schedule setting means is a GPS (Global P
It is characterized in that the position of each plant is grasped by a signal from the positioning system or the like.

[0007] In the present invention, the meteorological data and ocean observation data, which are elements for changing the position of the hydrogen production plant, are data such as tidal current, direction and size of wind or sunlight, and the natural conditions. Accordingly, the natural energy can be collected under the most favorable conditions by moving the position of the plant. That is, for example, when using tidal power generation, by installing the plant in a place where the tidal current is large and in the direction in which the tidal current can be most efficiently collected, natural energy can be collected with maximum efficiency. it can. The natural energy includes ocean current energy, solar heat energy, wave energy, and hydraulic energy. The meteorological data and ocean observation data are preferably obtained from meteorological satellites and ocean observation data.

Further, the operation status grasping means is preferably provided with a monitoring system provided with a sensor, an image pickup means and the like in the plant, and grasps the operation status by this. Furthermore, the schedule setting means is means for planning a ship allocation schedule based on the grasping means, and is calculated from the hydrogen storage rate of each hydrogen production plant, the distance between the plants, and the like as claimed in claim 4. To be done. With such a configuration, control and management from the ground control base can be easily performed, and it can be installed not only near the coast but also in the ocean off the coast. Further, it is possible to reduce the number of people or the number of people in the hydrogen production plant. In addition, the hydrogen production plant is configured to be movable,
By utilizing the data of weather satellites, ocean observation satellites, and GPS data, the energy can be obtained most efficiently, and hydrogen can be produced and recovered with high efficiency. Further, since an optimum ship allocation schedule can be planned from the GPS data and the hydrogen storage rate, efficient ship allocation can be achieved and the transportation cost can be minimized.

Further, the invention according to claim 2 is a hydrogen production plant for converting natural energy such as tidal current energy, wind energy and solar energy into electric energy, and electrolyzing seawater with the electric energy to produce hydrogen. In a hydrogen recovery system comprising, a ground control base for remotely controlling the hydrogen production plant located at sea is provided, and the ground control base is an element for changing the position of the hydrogen production plant. And means for grasping the operating status of the hydrogen production plant, and means for setting a ship allocation schedule for allocating transport tankers to the respective plants based on the grasping means,
The schedule setting means is carried out while grasping the position of each plant by a signal from GPS or the like, and controls the operating condition of each hydrogen production plant based on the ship allocation schedule.

According to the present invention, for example, a shipping schedule is prepared based on the current position information of the hydrogen production plant obtained from a signal from GPS, and the hydrogen production plant is operated and controlled according to the schedule. The hydrogen storage tank of the plant is controlled to a predetermined amount by the time the transport tanker arrives, and is controlled not to exceed the predetermined amount. As described above, the operation based on the ship allocation schedule enables efficient hydrogen production and recovery.

Furthermore, the invention according to claim 3 is the same as claim 1.
Alternatively, the hydrogen production plant according to 2 is a power generation device for converting natural energy into electric energy, a seawater electrolysis hydrogen production device for electrolyzing seawater with the electric energy, and a hydrogen liquefaction device for liquefying hydrogen by compression, cooling, or the like. A liquefied hydrogen storage tank for storing the liquefied hydrogen produced, and a control device for controlling these devices, wherein the control device is
Each of the devices is controlled based on a control signal received from the ground control base via a wireless line. Thus, by using natural energy as a raw material and a fuel, hydrogen can be produced at low cost and a clean system free from harmful substances as a by-product of production can be constructed. Further, since most of the control of the plant is performed from the ground control base, it is possible to make the plant unmanned or to reduce the number of people.

Further, according to the invention of claim 5, the ground control base transmits a control signal for changing the position of the energy conversion unit according to natural energy such as the tidal current, wind power, and sunlight. With the feature, these natural energies can be efficiently collected. Still further, in the invention according to claim 6, the hydrogen production plant is a tidal current MHD.
(Magnetic fluid dynamics) It is equipped with a power generation device and is characterized by converting tidal current energy into electric energy, which is based on the law of electromagnetic induction, and the electromotive force induced when a conductive liquid crosses a magnetic field. The enthalpy of the fluid is converted into electric power by the electric current flowing by the electric current. The tidal current is used as the working fluid, and the electromotive force induced when the tidal current passes through the magnetic field is recovered as electric current by the superconducting coil. As a result, clean power energy can be generated with high efficiency.

In the invention according to claim 7, the ground control base compares the ocean map information including meteorological data and ocean observation data stored in advance with the current position information of the hydrogen production plant received by GPS. It is characterized in that the optimum position where natural energy can be obtained with maximum efficiency is determined. According to this invention, natural energy can be extracted most efficiently by ocean map information including meteorological data such as the size and direction of tidal current, wind power, and sunlight, and ocean observation data, and reliable position information by GPS. The plant can be accurately guided to a position.

[0014]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be exemplarily described in detail below with reference to the drawings. However, the dimensions, materials, shapes, relative positions, etc. of the components described in this embodiment are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention thereto unless specifically stated otherwise, and are merely illustrative examples. Not too much. FIG. 1 is an overall schematic view of a hydrogen recovery system according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing functions provided in a ground control base of the present invention.

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the seawater is electrolyzed using the electric energy generated by the natural energy and suspended in the ocean 15, and then compressed and cooled to produce liquid hydrogen. Or a plurality of hydrogen production plants 20
And a ground control station 10 for remotely operating the hydrogen production plant 20 from the land 14, and a liquid hydrogen transport tanker 11 for transporting the liquid hydrogen produced by the hydrogen production plant 20 to the land, each of which is a wireless network. Connected through. In the present embodiment, the communication satellite 13 is used for the wireless network, but not limited to this,
If a terrestrial radio base is available, it may be used as appropriate.

The communication satellite 13 transmits the operation status of the hydrogen production plant 20 and the liquid hydrogen storage amount to the ground control base 10, and controls and manages the hydrogen production plant 20 from the ground control base 10. , Is used when allocating a liquid hydrogen transport tanker 11 and
Even if the plant 20 or the transport tanker 11 is located away from the coast, reliable communication can be performed. Also,
Reference numeral 12 is a meteorological satellite / ocean observation satellite having a function of constantly transmitting meteorological data / ocean observation data to the ground control base 10 and having a function of transmitting weather, wind speed, ocean current, and tidal current at sea.

The function of the ground control base 10 will be described with reference to FIG. 2. The GPS provided in the ground control base 10 will be described.
The data receiving function 50 can receive the position information and the navigation direction information of the hydrogen production plant 20 and the liquid hydrogen transport tanker 11. Further, the weather / ocean observation data reception function 51 acquires observation data such as weather, wind speed, ocean current, and tidal current observed by the meteorological satellite / ocean observation satellite 12, and the plant operation monitoring data reception function 52 uses the hydrogen gas. It has a function of grasping the operating status of the manufacturing plant 20, the amount of liquid hydrogen stored, and the like.

The various data received by these functions are stored in the map creating function 53 and the plant position calculating function 5.
5, the plant control / management function 57, the transportation tanker ship dispatch schedule planning function 59. The map creating function 53 is used for the liquid hydrogen storage rate map 4 shown in FIG.
5, the plant operation monitoring data reception function is provided on the basic map created based on the data required by the weather / ocean observation data reception function 51 such as weather, wind speed, ocean current, and tidal current. This is a function of creating a map to which the hydrogen storage rate data acquired in 52 is added. The arrow in Fig. 7 (a) indicates the direction and magnitude of the ocean current and tidal current.
Is a liquid hydrogen recovery base (may be the same as the ground control base 10), and B, C, D and E are hydrogen production plants.

Further, FIG. 7B shows a plant movement map 4
At 6, the position information and navigation direction of the plant acquired by GPS are added to a basic map in which data such as ocean currents and tidal currents are input in the same manner as the ocean bottom topography and surrounding obstacles, and the hydrogen storage rate map 45. It is the map shown, by controlling the plant based on this movement map 46,
The plant can be safely navigated and can be unmanned. The map output function 54 outputs the map thus created. The plant position calculation function 55 is the weather / ocean observation data reception function 51.
Is a function of calculating the position where the energy source used, such as ocean current, tidal current, sunlight, and wind power, can be acquired most efficiently based on the data received by the plant movement instruction command function 56. To move the plant.

Further, the plant control / management calculation function 5
7 controls the manufacturing process of the hydrogen production plant 20, manages the operating rate, controls the natural energy conversion unit, and the like. This is to analyze and calculate various data received by the plant operation monitoring data receiving function 52, for example, data transmitted from a control device installed in the plant, a plurality of image pickup means provided in each device, various sensors, and the like. Remote control, the function to adjust the plant operation rate according to the amount of recoverable natural energy and the storage amount of the liquid hydrogen storage tank, the most efficient control of the device when recovering natural energy, that is, When using the tidal current, the direction of the tidal current,
When using a wind turbine, it has a function of controlling the device according to the wind direction and the like. The plant remote control function 58 controls the plant based on the plant control / management calculation function 57.

Transport tanker ship dispatch schedule planning function 59
Is a function of making a plan for allocating ships so that liquid hydrogen can be efficiently recovered from a plant having a high storage rate based on the liquid hydrogen storage rate map 45. As shown in FIG. A ship allocation plan is made from the high plant A as shown by an arrow in the figure, and the ship is allocated by the transportation tanker ship allocation instruction command function 60. As described above, by connecting to the wireless network using a communication satellite or the like, almost all control and management can be easily performed from the ground control base 10, and the hydrogen production plant 20 is unmanned. The number of people can be reduced and it can be installed not only near the coast but also in the ocean off the coast. In addition, hydrogen can be produced and recovered with high efficiency by creating a map using data of weather satellites, ocean observation satellites, and GPS data. As described above, in addition to the method of planning a ship allocation schedule based on the hydrogen storage rate, for example, a ship allocation schedule is set based on the distance between the plants, and the operation rate and the like of the plant are operated based on the schedule. It is also possible to control the situation.

Next, an example of the hydrogen production plant 20 according to this embodiment will be described in detail. FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of a hydrogen production plant according to the first embodiment of the present invention,
FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of the MHD power generator in the first embodiment, and FIGS. 5 and 6 show second and third embodiments of the hydrogen production plant, respectively. In FIG. 3, in such an embodiment, the hydrogen production plant 20 is a floating structure, so the cable 28
It is assumed that it is anchored to the ocean 15 by an anchor 27 connected to and equipped with a propulsion engine (not shown) for moving the plant. In this embodiment, 15a indicates the sea surface and 15b indicates the sea floor. Such hydrogen production plant 2
0 generates electricity by the tidal current MHD power generation device 30 described later, and is introduced into the seawater electrolysis hydrogen production device 23 via the transformer 22. An intake port 29a and a drain port 20b are provided at the bottom of the seawater electrolysis hydrogen production device 23 so as to project into the sea. The seawater taken in from the intake port 29a is electrolyzed by the seawater electrolysis hydrogen production device 23. To generate hydrogen gas, and the residual water is discharged from the drain port 29b.

The hydrogen gas thus generated is liquefied by the hydrogen liquefaction device 24 including a compressor and stored in the liquid hydrogen storage tank 25. The storage tank 25 is provided with a sensor for detecting the storage amount, and is configured to constantly transmit the storage amount to the ground control base 10. When the liquid hydrogen transport tanker 11 comes alongside the shore, the valve 26 is opened to supply liquid hydrogen to the transport tanker 11.
The tidal current MHD power generation device 30 is configured to be able to change the direction according to the tidal current direction based on the ocean observation satellite data. As described above, by configuring the hydrogen production plant 20 to be movable, the hydrogen production plant 20 can be moved to a position where energy can be acquired most efficiently, and by using the tidal current MHD power generation device 30, highly efficient energy conversion can be performed. .

The tidal current MHD generator 30 will be described with reference to FIG. This device is a device that is composed of an electrode 31, a superconducting coil 32, a cryostat 33, and a floating body 34, and converts tidal current energy into electric energy. This is to convert the enthalpy of a fluid into electric power by an electromotive force induced when a conductive liquid crosses a magnetic field based on the law of electromagnetic induction, and an electric current flowing by the electromotive force. The electromotive force induced when the tidal current passes through the magnetic field created by the electrode 31 is recovered as a current by the superconducting coil 32. As a result, clean power energy can be generated with high efficiency.

The second embodiment of the hydrogen production plant 20 shown in FIG. 5 has substantially the same configuration as the above-mentioned first embodiment.
The power generator is replaced with a propeller-type generator 40. The propeller-type generator 40 is provided with a floating body, a generator, a speed increasing machine, and the like, and can change the direction according to the direction of the tidal current based on the ocean observation satellite data, as in the first embodiment. The configuration.

FIG. 6 shows a hydrogen production plant 20.
The third embodiment of the present invention is similar to the first embodiment in the main configuration, but is configured to include a plurality of power generators. In this embodiment, the electric energy generated by laying solar cell panels 42 on the surface of the hydrogen production plant 20 as much as possible and the electric energy generated by the wind turbine generator 43 installed on the plant 20 are not generated. After being stored in the battery shown in the figure, it is sent to the seawater electrolysis hydrogen production apparatus 23. At the same time, since the electric energy generated by the above-mentioned propeller-type generator 40 is also used, it is possible to realize a plant in which sufficient electric energy can be used and natural energy is effectively used. In the present embodiment as well, control is performed so that sunlight, wind power, tidal power, etc. can be efficiently converted into electrical energy based on the meteorological satellite data and ocean observation satellite data. Further, the natural energy is not particularly limited, and it goes without saying that it may be solar heat energy, wave energy, or ocean current energy.

[0027]

As described above, according to the present invention, it becomes possible to easily perform control and management from the ground control base, and to install not only near the coast but also in the ocean off the coast. I can. Further, it is possible to reduce the number of people or the number of people in the hydrogen production plant. In addition, the hydrogen production plant is configured to be movable,
By using the data from the ocean observation satellites and GPS data, it is possible to obtain the energy most efficiently and to produce and recover hydrogen with high efficiency. Further, since an optimum ship allocation schedule can be planned from the GPS data and the hydrogen storage rate, efficient ship allocation can be achieved and the transportation cost can be minimized. Further, it is possible to perform highly efficient energy conversion by using the tidal current MHD power generation device, and when electric energy is insufficient, it is possible to extract sufficient energy by using wind power generation, solar power generation, etc. together. Is.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall schematic diagram of a hydrogen recovery system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing functions provided in the ground control base of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a schematic configuration diagram of a hydrogen production plant according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic configuration diagram of an MHD power generator according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a schematic configuration diagram of a hydrogen production plant according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic configuration diagram of a hydrogen production plant according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a liquid hydrogen storage rate map (a) and a plant movement map (b) according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 Ground control base 11 Liquid hydrogen transport tanker 12 Meteorological Satellite / Ocean Observation Satellite 13 communication satellites 20 Hydrogen production plant 21 Control room 23 Seawater electrolysis hydrogen production equipment 24 Hydrogen liquefaction device 25 Liquid hydrogen storage tank 30 tidal current MHD generator 40 Propeller type generator 43 wind turbine generator 45 Liquid Hydrogen Storage Rate Map 46 Plant locus map 50 GPS data receiving function 51 Meteorological / ocean observation data reception function 52 Plant operation monitoring data reception function 53 Map creation function 55 Plant position calculation function 57 Plant control / management calculation function 59 Tanker dispatch schedule planning function

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. A hydrogen recovery system provided with a hydrogen production plant for converting natural energy such as tidal current energy, wind energy, and solar energy into electric energy, and electrolyzing seawater with the electric energy to produce hydrogen. A ground control base for remotely controlling the hydrogen production plant located on the sea is provided, and the ground control base obtains meteorological data and ocean observation data which are elements for changing the position of the hydrogen production plant, and the hydrogen. The system includes: a means for grasping the operating status of the manufacturing plant; and means for setting a ship allocation schedule for allocating a transport tanker to each plant based on the grasping means, wherein the schedule setting means is a GPS (Global P
A hydrogen recovery system equipped with a hydrogen production plant, which is characterized in that the position of each plant is grasped by a signal from the positioning system or the like. 2. A hydrogen recovery system comprising a hydrogen production plant for converting natural energy such as tidal current energy, wind energy and solar energy into electric energy, and electrolyzing seawater with the electric energy to produce hydrogen. A ground control base for remotely controlling the hydrogen production plant located on the sea is provided, and the ground control base obtains meteorological data and ocean observation data which are elements for changing the position of the hydrogen production plant, and the hydrogen. And a means for setting an operating schedule of the manufacturing plant, and a means for setting a ship allocation schedule for allocating a transportation tanker to each plant based on the means for understanding. It is carried out while grasping the position of the plant, and each hydrogen production plan based on the ship allocation schedule. A hydrogen recovery system equipped with a hydrogen production plant that controls the operating status of the plant. 3. The hydrogen production plant, a power generation device for converting natural energy into electric energy, a seawater electrolysis hydrogen production device for electrolyzing seawater with the electric energy, and a hydrogen liquefaction for liquefying hydrogen by compression, cooling, etc. A device, a liquefied hydrogen storage tank for storing the produced liquefied hydrogen, and a control device for controlling these devices, wherein the control device is based on a control signal received from the ground control base via a wireless line, A hydrogen recovery system comprising the hydrogen production plant according to claim 1 or 2, wherein each device is controlled. 4. A hydrogen recovery system having a hydrogen production plant according to claim 1, wherein the ship allocation schedule is set based on a hydrogen storage rate of each hydrogen production plant. 5. The ground control base controls the tidal current, wind power,
The hydrogen recovery system comprising the hydrogen production plant according to claim 1 or 2, which transmits a control signal for changing the position of the energy conversion unit according to natural energy such as sunlight. 6. The hydrogen recovery system having a hydrogen production plant according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the hydrogen production plant is provided with a tidal current MHD (magnetohydrodynamic) power generation device and converts tidal flow energy into electric energy. system. 7. The ground control base includes ocean map information including meteorological data and ocean observation data stored in advance, G
3. The hydrogen recovery system having a hydrogen production plant according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the optimal position at which natural energy can be obtained with maximum efficiency is determined by comparing the present position information of the hydrogen production plant received by PS. system.