JP2003297409A - Fuel cell power supply device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fuel cell power supply device capable of constructing its unit case compactly and protecting a control device against heat conduction and water leakage. <P>SOLUTION: The unit case of this fuel cell power supply device has a frame 1, where a fuel reforming device 2 is installed on a crosswise bar 1a at the upper stage of the frame 1 while a control device 5 and a fuel cell body 6 are installed on a crosswise bar 1b at the middle stage in the back-to-back arrangement. A heat insulation 5a is provided on the back surface of the control device 5 while an heat insulator 5b is provided at the periphery so as to protect the control device 5 from the ambient high temperature. Auxiliary units such as a fuel pump 8 to send the crude fuel into the fuel reforming device 2, an air pump 9 to send the reaction air to the fuel cell body 6, etc., are installed on a bottom plate at the lower stage. This constitution does not require provision of any partitioning wall or heat insulating bulkhead to partition inside the unit case into two compartments, which liberates any water pipe(s) to be installed for cooling the control device 5. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a fuel cell power generator.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A stationary fuel cell power supply device is being developed. For example, direct current power is generated in a polymer electrolyte fuel cell, and this direct current power is converted into alternating current power through an inverter and taken out. There is something. When a hydrocarbon fuel such as city gas is used as a raw fuel in this type of fuel cell power supply, a fuel reformer for reforming hydrogen-based fuel is contained in a single unit case. Built in. In addition to this, in the unit case, a fuel cell main body, a control device for controlling the whole, and auxiliary equipment such as a pump and a fan provided in relation to the fuel cell are incorporated.

A fuel reformer is usually composed of a reformer, a CO shift converter, and a CO remover. Each of these devices is filled with a predetermined catalyst, and each of these catalysts has a high temperature. It needs to be heated to work. For this reason, a burner is installed side by side with the reformer, and the raw fuel is burned by this burner at the time of start-up, and the catalyst in the reformer is heated to about 650-7.
Raise the temperature to 00 ° C. Further, the catalysts of the CO shift converter and the CO remover gradually rise in temperature with the temperature rise of the reformer, but the reformed gas at start-up is unstable, so that the PG is not immediately supplied to the fuel cell. It is sent to the burner and burned.

On the other hand, the control device is composed of a large number of electronic components, and the control device must be protected from heat. Therefore, it is necessary to dispose the control device away from the fuel reforming device, and as a means thereof, for example, the unit case is divided into two by a partition wall, and the fuel reforming device is arranged in one of the partition chambers. A control device is arranged in the other partition room (for example, Patent Document 1).

In this case, accessories such as a pump and a fan are installed in the lower stage of the room on the side of the control device, and a fuel cell is arranged in the middle stage in association with a water tank for cooling the fuel cell. Since the middle stage and the lower stage are occupied by these members, the control device is necessarily installed in the upper stage.

Further, the inside of the package is divided by a heat insulating partition into a high temperature device room including a fuel cell and a fuel reformer and an electric device room including a power conversion device and a measurement control device, and is formed on an outer wall of the electric device room. The air sucked from the ventilated ventilation hole is introduced into the high temperature equipment room through the ventilation hole formed in the heat insulation partition, and the air whose temperature has risen has a suction port in the high temperature equipment room (for example, reaction air blower or combustion). A technique has been disclosed in which forced ventilation is performed in the package by a forced air flow generated by inhaling with an air blower (for example, Patent Document 2).

[0007]

[Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-185180

[Patent Document 2] Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 5-290868

[0008]

In the case of the above-mentioned patent document 1, a partition wall that divides the inside of the unit case into two is required, and in the case of patent document 2, the inside of the package is divided into a high temperature device room and an electric device room. Since a partition wall is needed to define
There is a problem that the unit case or package becomes large and the demand for small size and compactness cannot be satisfied. Further, in Patent Document 1, when the fuel cell is also a solid polymer type, the operating temperature rises to about 80 ° C., so there is a problem that the control device immediately above is heated by the rise of hot air. In order to prevent this, a water pipe is arranged above the partition wall for cooling, but there is a problem that water droplets condensed on the outer peripheral surface of the water pipe drip into the control device. In Patent Document 2, since the fuel reforming device and the fuel cell are laterally adjacent to each other in the high temperature device chamber, forced ventilation is performed, but the fuel cell is thermally affected by the high temperature fuel reforming device and its performance is degraded. There is a problem that causes.

The present invention has been made in order to cope with such a conventional situation, and makes a unit case small and compact without the need for a partition wall or a heat insulating partition wall, and the arrangement (temperature) can be set high due to the high (low) operating temperature of the constituent members. By deciding from the top in order from the top, the influence of high heat is avoided as much as possible so that each component can operate without causing performance deterioration, and the controller is protected from heat and also from water droplets on the water pipe. It is an object of the present invention to provide a fuel cell power supply device as described above.

[0010]

[Means for Solving the Problems] As a means for achieving the above object, the first aspect of the present invention is to provide a direct current generated in a fuel cell body, a fuel reformer and a fuel cell in a single unit case. In a power conversion device that converts electric power to a power output specification, a control device that controls the entire power supply device, and a fuel cell power supply device that incorporates auxiliary equipment, the fuel reformer is arranged in the upper stage of the unit case, and the control device Is a fuel cell power supply device characterized in that it is arranged in the middle position together with the fuel cell body.

A second aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in the fuel cell power source device of the first aspect, the control device is covered with a heat insulating material.

Further, a third aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in the fuel cell power source device of the first or second aspect, a heat exchanger is provided between the control device and the fuel cell main body.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the fuel cell power supply device according to the third aspect, the heat exchanger exchanges heat between the reaction gas discharged from the fuel cell body and the water in the hot water storage tank. Characterize.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the fuel cell power source device according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, a duct for connecting the first intake port provided in the unit case and the control device is provided. A second intake port and an exhaust port are provided in the heat insulating material.

In the present invention having the above-mentioned structure, since the fuel reforming device is arranged in the upper stage of the unit case, it is not necessary to provide a partition wall or a heat insulating partition, and the control device is arranged in the middle stage position together with the fuel cell. Therefore, the thermal influence of the fuel reformer in the high temperature atmosphere can be avoided as much as possible. In addition, by covering the control device with a heat insulating material, further providing a heat exchanger between the control device and the fuel cell, or by cooling the control device with air taken from the outside, the control device is heated. Can be sufficiently protected from In this case, the conventional cooling water pipe is not required, and the control device can be protected from water droplets.

[0016]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Next, an embodiment of a fuel cell power supply device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of the front side of a single unit case with the exterior plate removed. FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of the back side. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing the system configuration of the fuel cell power supply device. FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing another embodiment of the fuel cell power supply device according to the present invention. 5A is a schematic front view of the fuel cell power supply device according to the present invention, FIG. 5B is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line YY, and FIG. 5C is a schematic perspective view showing the flow of air in the control device. .

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 denotes a frame of a single unit case, which is divided into upper, middle and lower stages by horizontal rails 1a and 1b forming a shelf, and an auxiliary shelf 1c is provided on the side of the upper stage. There is.

Reference numeral 2 denotes a fuel reforming device disposed on the upper horizontal rail 1a, which is entirely covered with a heat insulating material, and although not shown, a reformer and a reformer burner are provided inside. A CO transformer and a CO remover are provided.

An air pump 3 for a reformer burner is arranged on the auxiliary shelf 1c and is connected to the reformer in the fuel reformer 2 by a pipe. P in front of the reformer burner air pump 3
The G burner 4 is fixed in a suspended state on the auxiliary shelf 1c, and is connected to the CO remover in the fuel reformer 2 by pipe connection.

Reference numeral 5 denotes a control device mounted on the middle horizontal rail 1b, which is formed by mounting a large number of electronic components on a board. The back side and outer peripheral portion of the control device 5 have a heat insulating material 5a. And 5b, respectively.

Reference numeral 6 denotes a fuel cell main body, which is fixed in the middle position as shown in FIG. 2 so as to be back-to-back with the control device 5. The back side heat insulating material 5 a of the control device 5 prevents heat generation of the fuel cell main body 6 from being conducted to the control device 5. Further, the heat insulating material 5b on the outer peripheral side of the control device 5 blocks radiant heat from the fuel reforming device 2 or the PG burner 4.

Reference numeral 7 denotes a power converter (power supply box) disposed on the side of the fuel cell main body 6, which has a built-in DC / AC inverter, a DC / DC converter, a converter for auxiliary equipment, and the like. The DC power generated in step (1) is converted into AC power, or the DC power is stabilized in order to drive auxiliary equipment and the like.

On the bottom plate of the lower stage, auxiliary equipment such as a fuel pump 8 for feeding the raw fuel to the reformer of the fuel reformer 2 and an air pump 9 for feeding the reaction air to the fuel cell body 6 are provided. It is arranged. In addition, as shown in FIG.
A water tank 10 for cooling and humidifying the gas is provided below.

In FIG. 2, 4a is a fan for supplying air to the PG burner 4, and 2a is a fuel reformer 2.
It is a fan for cooling the CO remover. Other,
Although not described, a plurality of heat exchangers for heat recovery are arranged at appropriate places, and piping and electrical wiring for connecting each member are mounted.

Although not shown, exterior plates are attached to the front surface, both side surfaces, back surface and top surface of the frame 1 to form a single unit case 11 (FIG. 4). Exhaust gas exhaust port 11a
Is provided, and an exhaust duct (not shown) is connected to the inside of the discharge port 11a.

In order to generate electric power with the fuel cell power supply device constructed as described above, a raw fuel such as natural gas or methanol is fed into the fuel reforming device 2 by the fuel pump 8 as shown schematically in FIG. At startup, the raw fuel is sent to the reformer burner and burned, and the combustion gas causes the catalyst of the reformer to rise to a predetermined temperature.

Although the hydrogen-based reformed gas is generated by the fuel reformer 2, the reformed gas is not stable at the start-up stage as described above, so the reformed gas is fed to the PG burner 4.
Send it to and burn it.

When the reformed gas from the fuel reformer 2 becomes stable, the combustion in the PG burner 4 is stopped and the reformed gas is supplied to the fuel cell body 6 to generate electricity. In this case, the fuel cell body 6 is a polymer electrolyte fuel cell, the reformed gas is supplied to the anode (fuel electrode), and the reaction air is supplied to the cathode (air electrode) by the air pump 9. Direct current power is generated by an electrochemical reaction occurring through the solid polymer electrolyte membrane.

At this time, in order to keep the solid polymer electrolyte membrane in a wet state, the reformed gas and / or the reaction air are humidified in the water tank 10 and then supplied to the fuel cell body 6. Further, although the temperature of the fuel cell body 6 gradually rises due to the electrochemical reaction,
In order to maintain this at an appropriate operating temperature (about 80 ° C.), cooling water is supplied from the water tank 10 to the cooling section of the fuel cell main body 6 to be cooled, and then returned to the water tank 10 after cooling.

The DC power generated by the fuel cell body 6 is introduced into the power converter 7 and boosted by the DC / DC converter, or converted into AC power by the DC / AC inverter and output. Further, the DC power stabilized by the auxiliary machine converter is used as a drive power supply for auxiliary machines such as pumps and fans, and the AC power is used as a drive power supply for household electrical equipment.

In the series of power generation operations, the control device 5 controls the operations of the fuel reforming device 2, the fuel cell main body 6, the power conversion device 7, and other accessories.

As described above, the control device 5 is arranged back-to-back with the fuel cell main body 6 at the middle position in the unit case 11, and is insulated from the fuel cell main body 6 by the back side heat insulating material 5a, and the outer peripheral portion thereof. The heat insulating material 5b is used to cut off heat from the fuel reformer 2 immediately above and the PG burner 4 on the side. As a result, the control device 5 is hardly affected by high heat. Further, in this case, since there is no water pipe for cooling above the control device 5, condensed water is not dropped at all and the water is completely protected from being wet.

The fuel reformer 2 is a unit case 1
Since it is located in the upper stage of 1, the inside of the unit case 11 does not need to be divided into two by a partition wall or a heat insulating partition as in the conventional case. The combustion exhaust gas from the reformer burner of the fuel reformer 2 or the PG burner 4 flows into the exhaust duct and is discharged to the outside from the exhaust port 11a (FIG. 5) on the front surface of the unit case 11. Although not shown in the figure, a heat exchanger is provided at a main part of the exhaust duct to exchange heat with the combustion exhaust gas, lower the temperature of the combustion exhaust gas, and discharge it from the exhaust port to the outside. Further, the heat is recovered from the heat exchanger and the water in the hot water storage tank 12 (FIG. 4) is heated to co-generate heat and electricity. It is preferable to provide a heat exchanger (not shown) inside the fuel reformer 2 to recover heat.

FIG. 4 is a schematic explanatory view showing another embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, a heat exchanger 13 is provided between the control device 5 and the fuel cell body 6. The heat exchanger 13 exchanges heat between the reaction gas discharged from the fuel cell body 6 and the water in the hot water storage tank 12. For example, the unreacted air discharged from the cathode has a temperature substantially equal to the operating temperature of the fuel cell body 6 (about 80%).
C.), and can efficiently exchange heat with the water from the hot water storage tank 12. Thus, the control device 5 is protected from the heat of the fuel cell body 6 and the heat of the exhaust reaction gas is effectively used as a heat source for heating the water in the hot water storage tank 12.

Of the reaction gas discharged from the fuel cell body 6, unreacted reformed gas discharged from the anode (reformed gas that has not reacted) is used for heat exchange by the heat exchanger 13. You can also In this case, heat is exchanged between the unreacted reformed gas discharged from the anode of the fuel cell body 6 and the water in the hot water storage tank 12. The unreacted reformed gas discharged from the anode has a temperature (about 80 ° C.) that is substantially the same as the operating temperature of the fuel cell body 6, and can efficiently exchange heat with the water in the hot water storage tank 12. . The unreacted reformed gas after heat exchange is introduced into the reformer burner of the fuel reformer 2 and burned.

In this way, the unreacted air or unreacted reformed gas discharged from the fuel cell body 6 and the hot water storage tank 12
By exchanging heat with the water in the heat exchanger 13, the control device 5 can be protected from heat by preventing high heat from being transferred from the fuel cell main body 6 side to the control device 5, and the water in the hot water storage tank 12 can be protected. Can be effectively used as a heat source for heating. The heat exchanger 13 can be used together with the heat insulating materials 5a and 5b.

FIG. 5 (a) shows an embodiment in which the controller 5 is air-cooled by using the air taken in from the first intake port 11b which is provided in a key part of the unit case 11, for example, in the lower part of the front surface. In this case, the air taken in from the first intake port 11b passes through the duct 14 to the second intake port 5c provided on the bottom surface of the heat insulating material 5b as shown in FIGS. It is made to flow into the front surface side and flow out from the exhaust port 5d provided on the side surface of the heat insulating material 5b. Thereby, the control device 5 can be air-cooled.

Further, the air discharged from the exhaust port 5d of the heat insulating material 5b is supplied with the air pump 3 and / or the fuel for feeding the combustion air to the reformer burner or the PG burner through a conduit (not shown). It can be supplied to an air pump 9 for feeding reaction air into the battery body 6. Although not shown, it is preferable to provide a fan for air intake and a filter for air cleaning in the duct 14.

[0039]

As described above, according to the invention of claim 1 of the present invention, in the fuel cell power supply device in which the constituent members are built in a single unit case, the fuel reforming device is a unit case. Since it is installed in the upper stage and the control device is installed back-to-back with the fuel cell through the heat insulating material in almost the middle stage, it is not necessary to provide a partition wall or a heat insulating partition wall to cut off heat, and there is no need for cooling. There is no need to install a water pipe on top. As a result, the unit case can be made compact and compact, and the operating temperature is high (about 7
(00 ° C) reformer in the upper stage, next high temperature (about 80 ° C) fuel cell main body in the middle stage, relatively low temperature (about 60 ° C or less)
By arranging the accessories in the lower stage, the components can be operated without deteriorating their performance, and the control device can be completely protected from water wetting.

According to the invention of claim 2 of the present invention, in the fuel cell power supply device of claim 1, since the control device is covered with a heat insulating material, heat transfer to the control device is cut off. It can be protected from the high temperature of the surroundings.

According to the invention of claim 3 of the present invention, in the fuel cell power supply device of claim 1 or 2, since a heat exchanger is provided between the control device and the fuel cell main body, the control is performed. The heat transfer to the device can be positively blocked and protected from the high temperatures of the surroundings.

According to the invention of claim 4 of the present invention, in the fuel cell power supply device of claim 3, the heat exchanger comprises:
It is characterized in that heat is exchanged between the reaction gas discharged from the fuel cell main body and the water in the hot water storage tank, which protects the control device from the heat on the fuel cell side and heats the water in the hot water storage tank. Can be effectively used as.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the fuel cell power supply device according to any one of the first to fourth aspects, the first intake port provided in the unit case and the control are provided. Since the duct for connecting the device is provided and the second intake port and the exhaust port are provided for the heat insulating material, the air taken in from the intake port of the unit case can be guided to the control device to be air-cooled. By combining with the heat exchanger, the control device can be protected from heat more efficiently.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a fuel cell power supply device according to the present invention, and is a schematic perspective view seen from the front side with an exterior plate removed.

FIG. 2 is likewise a schematic perspective view seen from the back side.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a system configuration of a fuel cell power supply device.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing another embodiment of the fuel cell power supply device according to the present invention.

5A and 5B show still another embodiment of the fuel cell power supply device according to the present invention, wherein FIG. 5A is a schematic front view of the fuel cell power supply device, and FIG. c) is a schematic perspective view showing the flow of air in the control device.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Frame 2 ... Fuel reformer 3 ... Air pump for reformer burner 4 ... PG burner 5 ... Control device 5a, 5b ... Insulation material 6 ... Fuel cell body 7 ... Power converter 8 ... Fuel pump 9 ... Air pump 10 ... Water tank 11 ... Unit case 11b ... Intake port 12 ... Hot water storage tank 13 ... Heat exchanger 14 ... Duct

Continued front page    (72) Inventor Kazuhiro Tajima             2-5-3 Keihan Hondori, Moriguchi City, Osaka Prefecture             Within Yo Denki Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Satoshi Yamamoto             2-5-3 Keihan Hondori, Moriguchi City, Osaka Prefecture             Within Yo Denki Co., Ltd. F-term (reference) 5H026 AA06                 5H027 AA06 BA01 BA16 BA17 CC06                       DD06

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A fuel cell main body, a fuel reformer, a power converter for converting DC power generated in the fuel cell into a power output specification, a controller for controlling the entire power supply, and an auxiliary device in a single unit case. In a fuel cell power supply device with built-in equipment, the fuel reformer is disposed in the upper stage of the unit case, and the control device is disposed in the middle stage position together with the fuel cell main body. 2. The fuel cell power supply device according to claim 1, wherein the control device is covered with a heat insulating material. 3. A heat exchanger is provided between the control device and the fuel cell main body.
The fuel cell power supply device described. 4. The fuel cell power supply device according to claim 3, wherein the heat exchanger exchanges heat between the reaction gas discharged from the fuel cell body and the water in the hot water storage tank. 5. A duct connecting the first intake port provided in the unit case and the control device is provided, and a second intake port and an exhaust port are provided in the heat insulating material. The fuel cell power supply device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.