JP2004162735A - Valve cover - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a valve cover for a redox flow cell capable of preventing electrolyte leaking from a valve part from diffusing to the outside to prevent grounding and electric shock, inspecting leakage of electrolyte easily from the outside of the cover, and adjusting amount of electrolyte stored in the cover. <P>SOLUTION: This valve cover 1 for the redox flow cell has the valve part B in a pipe P for supplying and discharging electrolyte into/from the redox flow cell. It is provided with an insulating main body 2 covering the outer periphery of the valve part B and having color, a liquid absorption body 3 stored in the main body 2 and changing its color by absorbing electrolyte leaking from the valve part B, and an insulating window part 4 provided in the main body 2. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a valve cover used in a redox flow battery capable of preventing diffusion of an electrolyte from a valve portion provided in a pipe for supplying and discharging an electrolyte solution to a cell, and a redox flow including a valve cover in the valve portion. The present invention relates to a battery piping structure. In particular, the present invention relates to a valve cover used for a redox flow battery in which leakage of an electrolyte solution from a valve portion can be easily confirmed, and a piping structure of a redox flow battery provided with a cover in the valve portion.
[0002]
[Prior art]
The redox flow battery has been conventionally used for load leveling and countermeasures against momentary power failure, and FIG. 4 shows the operation principle. This battery includes a cell 100 separated into a positive electrode cell 100A and a negative electrode cell 100B by a diaphragm 103 made of an ion exchange membrane. Each of the positive electrode cell 100A and the negative electrode cell 100B has a built-in positive electrode 104 and a negative electrode 105. A positive electrode tank 101 for supplying and discharging a positive electrode electrolyte is connected to the positive electrode cell 100A via conduits 106 and 107. A negative electrode tank 102 for introducing and discharging a negative electrode electrolyte is also connected to the negative electrode cell 100B via conduits 109 and 110. An aqueous solution of ions whose valence changes, such as vanadium ions, is circulated by the pumps 108 and 111 for each electrolyte, and charge and discharge are performed in accordance with the valence change reaction of the ions at the positive and negative electrodes 104 and 105. For example, when an electrolyte containing vanadium ions is used, the reactions that occur during charging and discharging in the cell are as follows.
Positive electrode: V ⁴⁺ → V ⁵⁺ + e ⁻ (charge) V ⁴⁺ ← V ⁵⁺ + e ⁻ (discharge)
Negative electrode: V ³⁺ + e ⁻ → V ²⁺ (charge) V ³⁺ + e ⁻ ← V ²⁺ (discharge)
[0003]
On the other hand, at a connection portion of a pipe that supplies and discharges a fluid, internal fluid may leak from the connection portion due to aging or the like. Then, conventionally, in order to prevent the fluid from diffusing to the outside, the outer periphery of the connection portion is covered with a flange cover. FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing a state in which the outer periphery of the connection portion is covered with a conventional flange cover, and the flange cover is shown in cross section. Usually, flanges 51a and 51b are provided at the ends of the pipes 50a and 50b, respectively, and a connecting portion 54 is formed by inserting a bolt 52 into the flanges 51a and 51b and tightening a nut 53. The flange cover 60 that covers the outer periphery of the connecting portion 54 has a cylindrical shape along the outer periphery of the connecting portion 54, and both ends of the flange cover 60 are fastened by holding bands 61 along the pipes 50 a and 50 b.
[0004]
In addition, a technique described in Patent Literature 1 and a technique described in Patent Literature 2 are known as covers for pipe connection parts.
[0005]
[Patent Document 1]
Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open No. 2-83411 (Claims for registering utility model (1), see FIG. 1)
[Patent Document 2]
Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-open No. Sho 62-146094 (refer to claims (1) and (2) in FIG. 2).
[0006]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
In the above-mentioned redox flow battery, a valve portion provided in a pipe (in FIG. 4, conduits 106, 107, 109, and 110 in FIG. 4) for supplying and discharging an electrolytic solution due to thermal expansion and contraction and vibration generated when the battery system is started and stopped, A small amount of electrolyte may leak. If the leaked electrolyte comes in contact with external bolts, supports, etc., there is a risk of ground fault. And the battery may be destroyed by the ground fault. Further, if the leaked electrolyte comes into contact with the worker, there is a risk of electric shock.
[0007]
From the above problem, it is preferable to detect the leakage of the electrolyte containing vanadium ions, which is usually used in a redox flow battery, at an early stage and replace the valve portion. However, the electrolyte commonly used in redox flow batteries is similar in color to the pipes and valves, making it difficult to detect leakage. Conventionally, it has been difficult to detect electrolyte leakage from the valve early. Was.
[0008]
In addition, the valve part in which the electrolyte has leaked needs to be replaced, but at the time of replacement, the operation of the redox flow battery must be stopped in order to stop the supply and discharge of the electrolyte. Therefore, not only the workability is poor, but also the battery cannot be used during replacement.
[0009]
Therefore, by covering the outer periphery of the valve section with a conventional flange cover and retaining the electrolytic solution inside the cover, it is possible to prevent the electrolytic solution from adhering to equipment or the human body, or to adjust the replacement time of the valve section. It is possible to do. However, conventionally, the insulating properties of the cover have not been considered, and if an external bolt, an operator, or the like comes into contact with the cover in contact with the electrolytic solution, a ground fault or electric shock may occur. Further, in the conventional flange cover, there is a problem that leakage of the electrolyte cannot be checked from outside the cover. Further, in the conventional flange cover, since the amount of the electrolyte retained in the cover is limited by the size of the cover, in the worst case, the electrolyte may leak from the cover again. Then, as described above, a risk of ground fault or electric shock may occur. In addition, if the connection portion of the pipe is covered with the flange cover as in the related art, the bolt or the nut may come into contact with the electrolytic solution fixed in the cover, and the bolt or the nut may be corroded.
[0010]
Therefore, a main object of the present invention is to prevent the electrolyte leaked from the valve portion from diffusing to the outside to prevent a ground fault and an electric shock, and to easily check the electrolyte leak from the outside of the cover. An object of the present invention is to provide a valve cover for use in a vehicle.
[0011]
Another object of the present invention is to provide a piping structure of a redox flow battery having the valve cover provided in a valve portion.
[0012]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The present invention achieves the above object by providing a liquid adsorbent that changes color by adsorbing an electrolytic solution in an insulating cover, and providing an insulating window in a main body of the cover.
[0013]
That is, the present invention is a valve cover used for a redox flow battery having a valve section in a pipe for supplying and discharging an electrolytic solution to and from a cell. A colored and insulative main body that covers the outer periphery of the valve portion; a liquid adsorbent that is housed in the main body and that changes color by absorbing electrolyte leaked from the valve portion; And an insulating window. In the present invention, the valve portion refers to a pipe into which a handle having a valve material is inserted.
[0014]
Conventionally, in a redox flow battery, when an electrolyte leaks from a valve portion provided in a pipe for supplying and discharging the electrolyte, no measure has been considered for preventing the diffusion of the electrolyte. On the other hand, in the conventional flange cover, insulation is not considered, and it is difficult to confirm leakage of the electrolyte from the outside of the cover. There was a limit. Therefore, the present invention provides a liquid adsorbent in the cover so as to more securely hold the electrolytic solution in the cover, and a window portion so that leakage of the electrolytic solution from the outside of the cover can be easily confirmed. I can. The main body and the window are formed of an insulating material so that a ground fault or electric shock can be prevented even if the cover comes in contact with the electrolyte. Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail.
[0015]
(Body)
The main body is for preventing the electrolyte from diffusing to the outside, and may be made of a material that does not leak the electrolyte and is resistant to the electrolyte. In particular, in the present invention, it is insulative. Since the main body is insulative, a ground fault does not occur even when the main body comes into contact with an external bolt or support while in contact with the electrolytic solution. Also, even if an operator comes in contact with the main body in contact with the electrolyte, there is no electric shock. The main body only needs to have a size and a shape that can sufficiently cover the outer periphery of the valve portion. When the handle is formed to protrude from the main body, the handle has good operability. The configuration of the main body includes, for example, a combination of divided pieces suitable for the shape of the valve portion, and a flexible sheet-like shape that can be wound around the outer periphery of the valve portion. The latter includes, for example, those made of a resin sheet such as PVC. In the present invention, the main body is colored. The color is preferably excellent in aesthetics, for example, in a color close to that of a pipe or a valve portion. Further, it may be colored and transparent, but if it is colored and opaque, it has good weather resistance. In particular, when it is installed outdoors, a color close to black such as black or purple is excellent in weather resistance and is preferable. Since the main body is provided with a later-described window, leakage of the electrolyte can be easily confirmed regardless of the color of the main body.
[0016]
When the main body has a sheet shape, it is preferable that the main body is joined with a fastener or a hook-and-loop fastener so as to cover the outer periphery of the valve portion. Fasteners and hook-and-loop fasteners are easy to attach and detach, have excellent workability in attachment, and have a good appearance.
[0017]
Further, when the main body has a sheet shape, it is preferable to provide a restricting mechanism capable of reducing the diameter on both sides of the main body while covering the outer periphery of the valve portion. In the present invention, the main body is preferably larger than the outer periphery of the valve section in order to keep the electrolytic solution in the main body, that is, the space formed between the main body and the outer peripheral surface of the valve section. At this time, since the electrolyte may leak from both sides of the main body, in order to adjust both sides of the main body to the diameter of the pipe of the valve section, a restricting mechanism is provided on both sides of the main body so that the diameter can be reduced. Examples of the aperture stop mechanism include a tightening band, a string-like body, and a hook-and-loop fastener. The tightening band may be provided separately from the main body and tightened from outside the main body. The string-shaped body may be inserted into an insertion portion provided in the main body to be integrated with the main body, and may be squeezed after covering the outer periphery of the valve portion. Alternatively, a hook-and-loop fastener may be provided at the end of the main body, and the diameter may be reduced by appropriately changing the joining position.
[0018]
(Liquid adsorbent)
The liquid adsorbent is made of a material capable of adsorbing and retaining the leaked electrolyte. In order to confirm from the window that the electrolytic solution has been adsorbed, a color that changes color by adsorbing the electrolytic solution or a material that has a property of changing color by reacting with the electrolytic solution is used. For example, a material made of fibers such as cotton or cloth having a color close to white can be used. The liquid adsorbent made of fibers such as cotton and cloth easily diffuses into the liquid adsorbent due to the capillary phenomenon even if the amount of the adsorbed electrolyte is very small, so the leakage of the electrolyte from the window can be more reliably and early. You can check. In such a liquid adsorbent, the amount of stored electrolyte can be adjusted by increasing or decreasing the amount, and the replacement time of the valve unit can be lengthened. That is, since the valve section can be replaced while the operation of the redox flow battery is stopped, such as during a periodic inspection, it is possible to reduce the need to stop the operation of the battery only for replacement of the valve section. . The liquid adsorbent is preferably attached to the main body because it can be easily attached to the outer periphery of the valve section.
[0019]
(Window)
The window allows the inside of the main body to be checked from outside the main body without removing the colored main body from the valve section. Therefore, the window portion is made of a material having resistance to the electrolytic solution, and may be a colorless and transparent one. In addition, similar to the main body, it is made of an insulating material so that the window part is in contact with the electrolytic solution and does not touch an external bolt or support, which may lead to ground fault or contact with the human body to avoid electric shock. Is used. For example, a material made of a resin such as colorless and transparent PVC can be used. At this time, the window may be integrated by welding to the main body. In particular, it is preferable that the window portion and the main body are formed of the same insulating material, because the main body and the window portion can be more securely bonded to each other, so that the liquid sealing property can be improved. By increasing the liquid sealing property, the possibility that an operator or the like comes into contact with the electrolytic solution is reduced, so that the occurrence of a ground fault or electric shock can be further suppressed.
[0020]
The attachment position of the window portion is preferably a portion where the state of leakage of the electrolyte from the valve portion can be easily confirmed from outside the cover. Here, the piping of the valve portion is generally circular in cross section, and the electrolyte leaking from the valve portion is opposed to the side (usually the upper side in the piping cross section) of the handle provided in the valve portion (the same as the upper side). Downward). Therefore, when the valve cover of the present invention is arranged along the shape of the pipe of the valve section, the electrolytic solution is retained on the side opposite to the side on which the handle is mounted. In view of this, it is preferable that the window portion be provided in a cross section covering the outer periphery of the valve portion in a range of 60 ° or less left and right around the axis of a handle provided in the valve portion, below the pipe.
[0021]
It is preferable that the valve cover of the present invention covers only the valve portion so as not to include a connection portion between the valve portion and other piping, particularly, a tightening mechanism for connecting the piping of the valve portion and other piping. That is, the piping structure of the redox flow battery of the present invention is a piping structure of a redox flow battery having a valve portion in a piping for supplying and discharging an electrolytic solution to and from a cell, and a valve portion and other piping are provided on the outer periphery of the valve portion. The valve cover is arranged so as not to include the fastening mechanism to be connected. Electrolyte used in redox flow batteries usually has a large corrosive force, and when it comes into contact with a tightening mechanism such as a bolt that tightens the flanges of pipes, the tightening mechanism may corrode, making valve replacement difficult. There is. Therefore, in the present invention, the above-mentioned tightening mechanism is not covered with a valve cover in which the electrolytic solution is retained so that the electrolytic solution does not come into contact with the tightening mechanism connecting the valve portion and another pipe. In the valve cover of the present invention, since the liquid adsorbent prevents the diffusion of the electrolytic solution to the outside more reliably, there is almost no possibility that the electrolytic solution comes into contact with the tightening mechanism.
[0022]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described.
FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway view showing a state in which the valve cover of the present invention is mounted on a valve portion, FIG. 2 is a developed view of the valve cover of the present invention, and FIG. 3 shows a mounting position of a window in the valve cover of the present invention. FIG. The valve cover 1 of the present invention includes a main body 2 that covers the outer periphery of the valve portion B, a liquid adsorbent 3 that is housed in the main body 2 and adsorbs the electrolyte leaked from the valve portion B, and a window portion 4 on the surface of the main body 2. And
[0023]
The valve portion B is a pipe P into which a handle H having a valve material (not shown) is inserted, and has a flange F on both sides (left and right sides in FIG. 1). Connection between the valve portion B and other pipe P ₀ is a flange F, by joining a flange F ₀ other pipe P _0, tightened with nuts 11 through the bolt 10 to the flanges F and F ₀ It is done by that. Width Hw of the shaft portion of the pipe diameters of P and _{P 0} is 75 mm, the handle H was used in this example 60 mm, width Fw between the flanges is 335 mm.
[0024]
In this example, the main body 2 is made of a PVC sheet (thickness 0.5 mm) which is insulative, has excellent resistance to an electrolyte solution containing vanadium ions (usually dark blue), and is highly flexible. . The color was purple in consideration of weather resistance. Joining is performed with the hook-and-loop fastener 6 (in FIG. 2, a hatched portion). Further, in this example, when the outer periphery of the valve portion B is covered with the cover 1, the main body 2 is adjusted to the diameter of the pipe P so that the electrolyte does not leak from both sides (left and right sides in FIG. 1) of the cover 1. Was configured to be able to be reduced in diameter. Specifically, a string 5 (see FIG. 2) is provided at one end. In this example, the string-shaped body 5 was made of plastic. The other end of the main body 2 is provided with a hook-and-loop fastener 6, and by adjusting the joining position of the hook-and-loop fastener 6 along the pipe P, the diameter of the main body 2 can be reduced according to the diameter of the pipe P.
[0025]
As shown in FIG. 2, such a main body 2 has a circle for projecting a handle of a valve section on both sides (left and right sides in FIG. 2) of a rectangular sheet (length L: 480 mm, width W: 300 mm). An arc-shaped notch 2a (radius r: 50 mm) is provided. When the outer periphery of the valve unit is covered with the cover 1, the main body 2 has both sides of the seat on the handle side (upper side in FIG. 1) and the center of the seat on the side facing the handle (lower side). . On both sides (upper and lower sides in FIG. 2) of the notch 2a, surface fasteners 6 (40 mm in width) for joining are provided, and the upper surface fasteners 6 arranged in the horizontal direction in FIG. It is. In FIG. 2, an insertion portion 2b is provided in the lower side in the horizontal direction, and the cord 5 is inserted into the insertion portion 2b.
[0026]
The liquid adsorbent 3 adsorbs the electrolyte containing vanadium ions well, can retain the sucked electrolyte, and changes the color by the white cotton sheet (thickness 10 mm, length L ₁ : 190 mm, width) W ₁ : 130 mm) was used. In this example, the liquid adsorbent 3 is disposed so as to cover at least a part of the window 4 so that the discolored state can be confirmed from the window 4, and is integrally attached to the main body 2 with an adhesive. Here, as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 1, the electrolyte leaked from the valve portion B normally flows down the surface of the pipe P to the side (the lower side in FIG. 1) facing the side where the handle H is attached. Therefore, the liquid adsorbent 3 is attached to the main body 2 so as to be located near the side facing the handle H when the outer periphery of the valve portion B is covered with the cover 1. In this example, as shown in FIG. 2, the liquid adsorbent 3 is disposed at the center of the sheet constituting the main body 2.
[0027]
The window 4 is colorless and transparent and has the same resistance to the electrolytic solution as the main body 2 so that it can be easily confirmed from the outside of the colored main body 2 that the liquid adsorbent 3 adsorbs the electrolytic solution and changes its color. It was made of an insulating sheet made of PVC (thickness: 0.5 mm). In this example, the same material as the main body 2 was used, which was colorless and transparent. The window portion 2 is formed by providing a window hole in the main body 2 in advance and welding a sheet so as to cover the window hole. In the present example, four circular objects having a diameter of 30 mm were provided. The mounting position of the window portion 4 is such that, when the outer periphery of the valve portion B is covered with the cover 1, the discoloration state of the liquid adsorbent 3 that adsorbs the leaked electrolyte is easy to check under the cross section of the pipe P. the side, and the handle a range of theta = 60 ° or less to the left and right of the axis H ₁ as the center of H as indicated by the arrows in FIG. In this example, as shown in FIG. 2, the window 4 is provided at a position where θ ₁ = 30 ° when the outer periphery of the valve portion B is covered with the cover 1 near the center of the seat constituting the main body 2.
[0028]
By covering the outer periphery of the valve portion with the valve cover of the present invention, the electrolyte leaked from the valve portion is prevented from diffusing to the outside. In addition, since the main body and the window are formed of an insulating material, even if external equipment or an operator comes into contact with the valve cover of the present invention that is in contact with the electrolytic solution, there is almost no risk of ground fault or electric shock. In this example, in particular, since the main body and the window are formed of the same insulating material, they are more securely bonded to each other to enhance the liquid sealing property, and the occurrence of a ground fault or electric shock is more reliably prevented. be able to. Then, since the color change of the liquid adsorbent that has adsorbed the leaked electrolyte can be easily confirmed by the window, the inspection can be performed without removing the cover.
[0029]
Then, the cover is arranged so as not to include a clamping mechanism such as bolts 10, nuts 11 are tightened the flanges F ₀ of the flange F and the other pipe P ₀ of the valve section B as shown in FIG. 1 . With this arrangement, the electrolytic solution held in the cover does not come into contact with the tightening mechanism, and the tightening mechanism such as the bolt 10 and the nut 11 is hardly corroded by the electrolytic solution leaking from the valve portion.
[0030]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the valve cover of the present invention, the following excellent effects can be obtained.
{Circle around (1)} The electrolyte leaked from the valve portion can be retained in the cover to prevent diffusion of the electrolyte.
(2) Since the main body and the window are made of an insulating material, even if an external bolt or a worker contacts the main body or the window in contact with the electrolytic solution, a ground fault or an electric shock may occur. rare.
{Circle around (3)} The liquid adsorbent provided in the cover adsorbs the leaked electrolytic solution and changes its color, so that leakage of the electrolytic solution in the valve section can be easily confirmed. Further, the amount of the electrolytic solution retained in the cover can be adjusted by the amount of the liquid adsorbent.
{Circle around (4)} The discoloration of the liquid adsorbent can be easily confirmed by the window, so that it is not necessary to remove the cover at the time of inspection.
[0031]
In addition, the valve cover is arranged so as not to include a tightening mechanism for tightening the connection portion of the pipe, particularly, the flanges, so that the tightening mechanism is hardly corroded by the electrolyte leaking from the valve portion.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway view showing a state where the valve cover of the present invention is attached to a valve portion.
FIG. 2 is a development view of the valve cover of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing a mounting position of a window in the valve cover of the present invention.
FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the operation principle of a redox flow battery.
FIG. 5 is an explanatory view showing a state in which the outer periphery of a connection portion of a pipe is covered with a conventional flange cover.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Valve cover 2 Main body 2a Notch 2b Penetration part 3 Liquid adsorbent 4 Window part 5 String-like body 50a, 50b Piping 51a, 51b Flange 52 Bolt 53 Nut 54 Connection part 60 Flange cover 61 Holding band 100 Cell 100A Positive cell 100B Negative electrode cell 101 positive electrode tank 102 negative electrode tank 103 membrane 104 positive electrode 105 negative electrode 106,107,109,110 conduit 108 and 111 liquid feed pump F, _{F 0} flange H handle H ₁ axis P, _{P 0} piping

Claims (6)

A valve cover for use in a redox flow battery having a valve portion in a pipe for supplying and discharging an electrolytic solution to a cell,
A colored and insulative body that covers the outer periphery of the valve portion,
A liquid adsorbent housed in the main body and discoloring by adsorbing the electrolyte leaked from the valve section,
A valve cover, comprising: an insulating window provided in the main body. 2. The valve cover according to claim 1, wherein the main body has a flexible sheet shape that can be wound around the outer periphery of the valve portion, and covers the outer periphery of the valve portion by joining with a fastener or a surface fastener. 3. . The valve cover according to claim 2, further comprising a throttle stop mechanism capable of reducing the diameter on both sides of the main body while covering the outer periphery of the valve portion. 2. The window according to claim 1, wherein, in the cross section covering the outer periphery of the valve portion, the window portion is provided below the pipe and in a range of 60 ° or less to the left and right about the axis of a handle provided on the valve portion. The described valve cover. 2. The valve cover according to claim 1, wherein the main body and the window are formed of the same insulating material. A pipe structure of a redox flow battery having a valve section in a pipe for supplying and discharging an electrolytic solution to a cell,
On the outer periphery of the valve portion, a valve cover is arranged so as not to include a tightening mechanism for connecting the valve portion and another pipe,
The valve cover is
A colored and insulative body that covers the outer periphery of the valve section,
A liquid adsorbent housed in the main body and discoloring by adsorbing the electrolyte leaked from the valve section,
A pipe structure for a redox flow battery, comprising: a window provided in the main body.

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