JP2006019035A - Fuel cell power generation device for emergency and its management operation method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fuel cell power generation device for emergency capable of continuing operation to supply power to a load when there is no safety problem even when trouble occurs in the device; and to provide its management operation method. <P>SOLUTION: This fuel cell power generation device for emergency is provided with a fuel cell power generation unit having a fuel cell 5 and hydrogen gas cylinders 7-1 and 7-2, and adapted to supply power to an important load 32 by detecting stop of supply of commercial power 30 when it occurs to manually or automatically start the fuel cell 5. The fuel cell power generation device is equipped with a management control means for determining trouble needing to immediately stop the device due to a safety reason from trouble allowing the operation of the device as it is without any safety problem in accordance with a trouble content by forming a trouble content detection means for detecting the content of trouble when the trouble occurs in the device during operation of the device or in a waiting time and a trouble content notification means for notifying to the outside, and thereby for carrying out stop of the device based on the determination result, continuation of the operation or continuation of a waiting state. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention is an emergency fuel that activates a fuel cell power generation unit and supplies power to an important power load when power supply from commercial power to an important power load represented by a traffic signal management system or the like is stopped due to a power failure or the like. The present invention relates to a battery power generation device and a management operation method thereof.

  For important power loads represented by traffic management systems, etc., emergency power is supplied instead of the emergency power supply when the power supply from the commercial power system is stopped due to a power failure. Power supply means is provided. Power generation equipment using an internal combustion engine such as a diesel engine has been used as such emergency power supply means so far, but the power generation equipment using an internal combustion engine such as a diesel engine emits pollutants during operation. In addition, there are problems such as a large noise value during operation.

  Fuel cells are characterized by a clean power generation system that uses only water and heat and a low noise level during operation, along with recent developments in fuel cell development. It has been proposed to use this fuel cell in the apparatus, and its operation method has been studied. In particular, a polymer electrolyte fuel cell using hydrogen as a fuel has attracted attention as being most suitable for an emergency power generation facility because it has a short startup time and can be started quickly.

  The load to which the emergency power generator intends to supply power when commercial power is stopped is an important power load typified by a traffic management system and the like, so it is necessary to maintain the supply of power as much as possible. However, this type of conventional emergency power generator has a problem that the emergency power generator is stopped and the power supply to the important load is stopped even if there is no problem even if a minor device failure or safety operation continues. there were.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and an emergency fuel cell capable of continuing operation and supplying power to a load when there is no safety problem even when an abnormality occurs in the apparatus. An object of the present invention is to provide a power generation apparatus and a management operation method thereof.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention described in claim 1 includes a fuel cell power generation unit and a hydrogen gas container containing hydrogen gas serving as the fuel, and detects when the supply of commercial power is stopped, manually or In an emergency fuel cell power generator that automatically activates the fuel cell power generation unit and supplies the generated power to a load, if an abnormality occurs in the device during operation or standby of the fuel cell power generation unit, the contents of the abnormality An abnormality content detection means for detecting the abnormality content and an abnormality content notification means for reporting the abnormality content to the outside, and the abnormality that requires the fuel cell power generation unit to be stopped immediately for safety reasons due to the abnormality content, and safety It is determined that there is no problem above and the operation of the fuel cell power generation unit can be continued as it is, and based on the determination result, the fuel cell power generation unit is stopped, Or it is characterized in that a management control means for continuation of the standby state.

  The invention according to claim 2 is the emergency fuel cell power generator according to claim 1, wherein the load is a traffic management system represented by a traffic light.

  The invention according to claim 3 is the emergency fuel cell power generator according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the fuel cell of the fuel cell power generation unit is a solid polymer fuel cell.

  The invention according to claim 4 includes a fuel cell power generation unit and a hydrogen gas container that contains hydrogen gas serving as the fuel. When the supply of commercial power is stopped, it is detected and the fuel cell is manually or automatically operated. In the management operation method of the emergency fuel cell power generation apparatus that supplies the generated power to the load, when the abnormality occurs in the apparatus during operation or standby of the fuel cell power generation unit, an abnormality is detected An abnormality content reporting means for reporting the content of the abnormality to the outside is provided, and the abnormality that requires the fuel cell power generation unit to be stopped immediately for safety reasons due to the content of the abnormality, The fuel cell power generation unit is determined to be abnormal so that the operation of the fuel cell power generation unit can be continued without any change. Based on the determination result, the fuel cell power generation unit is stopped, continued to operate, or And performing.

  According to the invention described in claim 1, since the abnormality content reporting means and the management control means are provided, when an abnormality occurs in the apparatus during operation or standby, the content of the abnormality is detected, and the abnormality content is detected. In addition to reporting to the outside, if the abnormality is not a safety problem, the fuel cell power generation unit can continue to operate and continue to supply power to the load.

  According to the second aspect of the present invention, when the abnormality is not a safety problem, it is possible to continue the operation of the fuel cell power generation unit and continue to supply power to the traffic management system which is an important load.

  According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the fuel cell of the fuel cell power generation unit is a polymer electrolyte fuel cell, the startup time is short, and the fuel cell is quickly started and the power is loaded when the supply of commercial power is stopped. Can supply.

  According to the fourth aspect of the present invention, when an abnormality occurs during operation or standby of the emergency fuel cell power generator, the content of the abnormality is reported to the outside, and the abnormality is not a safety problem. Can continue to operate the fuel cell power generation unit and continue to supply power to the load.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an emergency fuel cell power generator according to the present invention. The emergency fuel cell power generator includes a housing body 1, and the housing body 1 has a partition wall (partition wall) 2. The fuel cell chamber 3 and the hydrogen gas container chamber (hydrogen gas cylinder chamber) 4 are partitioned. A fuel cell 5 and a control panel 6 are disposed in the fuel cell chamber 3, and a hydrogen gas cylinder 7 is disposed in the hydrogen gas container chamber 4 as a hydrogen gas container.

  An exhaust port 10 is provided in the fuel cell chamber 3, and a fuel cell chamber ventilation fan 8 is provided in the exhaust port 10. Air in the fuel cell chamber 3 is exhausted from the exhaust port 10. Further, the fuel cell chamber 3 is further provided with an intake port 11, and the intake port 11 is provided with a pre-filter 12. Outside air is sucked into the fuel cell chamber 3 from the intake port 11 through the prefilter 12. A space heater 13 is arranged in the battery chamber 3. The fuel cell room ventilation fan 8 is operated / stopped by the operation / stop command S1 of the control panel 6.

  The hydrogen gas cylinder chamber 4 is provided with a first hydrogen gas cylinder 7-1, a second hydrogen gas cylinder 7-2, and a nitrogen gas cylinder 14. The hydrogen gas in the first hydrogen gas cylinder 7-1 passes through the manual valve 15-1 and the pneumatic operation valve 16-1, the pressure thereof is adjusted by the automatic valve with regulator or the semi-automatic switching valve 17, and further the fuel through the operation valve 18. The battery 5 is supplied. The hydrogen gas in the second hydrogen gas cylinder 7-2 passes through the manual valve 15-2 and the pneumatic operation valve 16-2, the pressure is adjusted through the automatic valve with regulator or the semi-automatic switching valve 17, and further through the operation valve 18. The fuel cell 5 is supplied. Further, the pressure of the nitrogen gas in the nitrogen gas cylinder 14 is adjusted by the regulator 19, and is supplied to the pneumatic operating valves 16-1, 16-2 by the operation of the electromagnetic valves 20, 21, and the pneumatic operating valves 16-1, 16- 2 is opened and closed, and the solenoid valve 20.21 is operated by the control panel 6.

  The hydrogen gas pressure in the first hydrogen gas cylinder 7-1 is detected by the pressure sensor 22-1, and the detection output is input to the control panel 6. The hydrogen gas pressure in the second hydrogen gas cylinder 7-2 is detected by the pressure sensor 22-2, and the detection output is input to the control panel 6. The nitrogen gas pressure in the nitrogen gas cylinder 14 is detected by the pressure sensor 23, and the detection output is input to the control panel 6. The gas pressure of hydrogen gas supplied to the fuel cell 5 is detected by a pressure sensor 24, and the detection output is input to the control panel 6.

  Reference numerals 25-1 and 25-2 denote hydrogen sensors that detect leaked hydrogen gas in the fuel cell chamber 3 and the hydrogen gas cylinder chamber 4, respectively, and their detection outputs are input to the control panel 6. Reference numeral 26 denotes a temperature sensor for detecting outside air sucked into the fuel cell chamber 3 from the intake port 11, that is, an outside air temperature, and 27 is a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature in the fuel cell chamber 3. The detection outputs of the temperature sensors 26 and 27 are input to the fuel cell 5. Reference numeral 28 denotes an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) that supplies power to the control panel 6. Water W generated by the operation of the fuel cell 5 is drained out of the housing body 1 through the pipe 29. Further, the cathode exhaust KE of the fuel cell 5 is performed through the pipe 33.

  In addition, 30 is a commercial power source, 31 is a distribution board, 32 is an important load represented by a traffic signal management system and the like. While commercial power is being fed from the commercial power source 30, the power switch 9 is switched to the commercial power source side 9b, and commercial power is supplied from the distribution board 31 to the uninterruptible power supply (UPS) 28 and the important load 32. Yes. Further, the control panel 6 monitors the outside air temperature based on the outside air temperature detection output from the temperature sensor 26, and when the outside air temperature is low, the temperature in the fuel cell chamber 3 falls within a predetermined temperature range suitable for starting and operating the fuel cell 5. The space heater 13 is operated / stopped so that it can be maintained.

  When the commercial power supply 30 fails, the control panel 6 opens the pneumatic operation valves 16-1 and 16-2 by operating the solenoid valves 20 and 21, and thereby the first hydrogen gas cylinder 7-1 or the second hydrogen gas cylinder. The hydrogen gas whose pressure is adjusted is supplied to the fuel cell 5 from the automatic valve with regulator or the semi-automatic switching valve 17 from 7-2, and the fuel cell 5 is activated to start power generation. Further, the power switch 9 is switched to the fuel cell 9 a side, and the electric power generated by the fuel cell 5 is supplied to the important load 32.

  In the emergency fuel cell power generator configured as described above, as shown in FIG. 2, the abnormality detection items include (a) hydrogen gas leakage (fuel cell chamber), (b) hydrogen gas leakage (cylinder chamber), ( There are six items: c) fuel cell abnormality, (d) high hydrogen gas supply pressure, (e) low nitrogen gas cylinder pressure, and (f) low hydrogen gas cylinder pressure.

  The “content” of hydrogen gas leakage in the abnormal item (a) is when hydrogen gas leaks in the fuel cell chamber 3. In this case, the “treatment” immediately stops the operation of the system (device), and the shut-off valve (pneumatically operated valve 16-1) installed in the immediate vicinity of the hydrogen gas container (first hydrogen gas cylinder 7-1, second hydrogen gas cylinder). 16-2), it is necessary to shut off the supply of hydrogen gas. The grade of abnormality is “A”, that is, “immediately shuts down the device”. Since the leakage of hydrogen gas in the fuel cell chamber 3 is detected by the hydrogen sensor 25-1 and input to the control panel 6, this determination is made by the control panel 6.

  The “content” of hydrogen gas leakage in the abnormal item (b) is when hydrogen gas leaks in the hydrogen gas container chamber (hydrogen gas cylinder chamber) 4. In this case, the “treatment” is the same as the abnormal item (a), immediately shutting down the operation of the system (device), and shutting off the hydrogen gas container (first hydrogen gas cylinder 7-1, second hydrogen gas cylinder) installed. It is necessary to shut off the supply of hydrogen gas by the valves (pneumatically operated valves 16-1, 16-2). The grade of abnormality is “A”, that is, “immediately shuts down the device”. Since the leakage of hydrogen gas into the hydrogen gas container chamber 4 is detected by the hydrogen sensor 25-2 and input to the control panel 6, this determination is made by the control panel 6.

  The “content” of the fuel cell abnormality in the abnormality item (c) is a failure of the fuel cell unit (fuel cell 5). In this case, the “treatment” is immediately performed by the system (device) as in the abnormality item (a). The operation is stopped, and the grade of abnormality is “A”, that is, “immediately stop the device”. This determination is made by the control panel 6.

  The “content” of the hydrogen gas supply pressure high in the abnormal item (d) is when the hydrogen gas pressure supplied to the fuel cell unit (fuel cell 5) becomes higher than a set value. The normal hydrogen gas supply pressure is about 0.2 MPa, and a safety valve is provided in the fuel cell 5, so that there is no risk of equipment damage even if the hydrogen gas supply pressure becomes abnormally high. If the safety valve is activated, the hydrogen sensor in the housing immediately stops the system. Accordingly, the “treatment” is continuation of the operation of the apparatus, and the grade is “B”, that is, “operation can be continued”. Since the hydrogen gas supply pressure is detected by the pressure sensor 24 and input to the control panel 6, this determination is made by the control panel 6.

  The “content” of the nitrogen gas cylinder pressure low in the abnormal item (e) is when the filling pressure of the nitrogen gas cylinder 14 is lowered to a set value or less. Pneumatically operated valves 16-1 and 16-2 are used as hydrogen gas shutoff valves, and nitrogen gas from the nitrogen gas cylinder 14 is used as a drive source for the pneumatically operated valves 16-1 and 16-2. Accordingly, when the nitrogen gas is exhausted, the supply of hydrogen gas is stopped, so that the nitrogen gas cylinder 14 needs to be replaced as soon as the nitrogen gas pressure is reduced. The nitrogen gas pressure low alarm informs the replacement timing, and the system (device) can be operated until the nitrogen gas is really exhausted even after the warning occurs. Accordingly, the “treatment” is continuation of the operation of the apparatus, and the grade is “B”, that is, “operation can be continued”. Since the nitrogen gas cylinder pressure is detected by the pressure sensor 23 and input to the control panel 6, this determination is made by the control panel 6.

  The “content” of the hydrogen gas cylinder pressure low in the abnormal item (f) is when the filling pressure in the hydrogen gas container (the first hydrogen gas cylinder 7-1 or the second hydrogen gas cylinder 7-2) drops below a set value. is there. This is for reporting the replacement timing of the hydrogen gas cylinder, and the system (device) can be operated until the hydrogen gas actually disappears even after the alarm is generated. Therefore, the “treatment” is to continue the operation of the apparatus, and the grade is “B”. Since the hydrogen gas cylinder pressure is detected by the pressure sensors 22-1 and 22-2 and inputted to the control panel 6, this determination is made by the control panel 6.

  When each of the above abnormal items occurs, the control panel 6 reports the content of the abnormality to the outside, for example, a center that manages a plurality of emergency fuel cell power generators.

  In the abnormal item (e), the nitrogen gas cylinder low pressure alarm and the hydrogen gas cylinder low pressure alarm (f) are both reduced, and the nitrogen gas cylinder 14, the first hydrogen gas cylinder 7-1 or the second hydrogen gas cylinder 7-2 is almost reached. It is an alarm to notify the replacement time of the engine. Even if this alarm is issued, even if emergency operation continues until the gas pressure really disappears and the emergency fuel cell power generator cannot be operated There is no problem.

  When the low pressure setting value of the nitrogen gas cylinder 14 is set to 1 MPa, the shutoff valves (pneumatically operated valves 16-1 and 16-2) using nitrogen gas as a drive source can be operated if the drive source pressure is 0.3 MPa or more. Therefore, there is a delay of 0.7 MPa even after the alarm is issued. In addition, nitrogen gas is not constantly consumed, but is consumed only when a shut-off valve is operated. Therefore, if there is a grace period of 0.7 MPa as long as there is no leakage, a considerable amount of time is required. It can be said that there is room.

  The lower pressure setting value of the first and second hydrogen gas cylinders 7-1 and 7-2 is higher than the switching pressure setting value of the normal automatic or semi-automatic switching valve 17. When both set values are close to each other, if there is an error in the pressure detection of the automatic or semi-automatic switching valve 17 and the pressure detection of the hydrogen gas cylinders 7-1 and 7-2, the automatic or semi-automatic switching valve 17 is switched. This is because the hydrogen gas cylinder pressure low alarm may not be output. When the switching pressure setting value of the automatic or semi-automatic switching valve 17 is 1 MPa, if the hydrogen gas cylinder pressure low setting value is set to 1.5 MPa, the amount of hydrogen gas that can be used even after the alarm is generated is as shown in FIG. Become.

  In FIG. 3, the vertical axis represents the pressure BP of the hydrogen gas cylinder, and the horizontal axis represents time. P1 (= 14.7 MPa) is the pressure of the first hydrogen gas cylinder 7-1 and the second hydrogen gas cylinder 7-2, P2 (= 1.5 MPa) is the alarm start point of the first hydrogen gas cylinder 7-1, and P3 (= 1) 0.5 MPa) is the second hydrogen gas cylinder 7-2, and P4 (= 0.1 MPa) is the lowest fuel supply pressure at which the fuel cell 5 can operate. GQ1 indicates the amount that the hydrogen gas in the first hydrogen gas cylinder 7-1 can be used even after the alarm is generated, and GQ2 indicates the amount that the hydrogen gas in the second hydrogen gas cylinder 7-2 can be used even after the alarm is generated.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the technical idea described in the claims and the specification and drawings. Is possible.

It is a figure which shows the system structural example of the emergency fuel cell power generation apparatus which concerns on this invention. (Example 1) It is a figure which shows the example of abnormality detection items which generate | occur | produce in an emergency fuel cell power generation device. It is a figure which shows the amount of hydrogen gas which can be utilized after the alarm generation | occurrence | production of a hydrogen gas cylinder in an emergency fuel cell power generator.

Explanation of symbols

1 Housing body 2 Partition wall (partition wall)
3 Fuel cell room 4 Hydrogen gas container room (hydrogen gas cylinder room)
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 5 Fuel cell 6 Control panel 7 Hydrogen gas cylinder 8 Fuel cell room ventilation fan 9 Electric power switch 10 Exhaust port 11 Inlet port 12 Prefilter 13 Space heater 14 Nitrogen gas cylinder 15 Manual valve 16 Pneumatically operated valve 17 Automatic valve or semi-automatic switching valve with regulator 18 Actuating valve 19 Regulator 20 Solenoid valve 21 Solenoid valve 22 Pressure sensor 23 Pressure sensor 24 Pressure sensor 25 Hydrogen sensor 26 Temperature sensor 27 Temperature sensor 28 Uninterruptible power supply (UPS)
29 Piping 30 Commercial power supply 31 Distribution board 32 Critical load 33 Piping

Claims (4)

It is equipped with a fuel cell power generation unit and a hydrogen gas container that contains the hydrogen gas used as its fuel. When the supply of commercial power stops, it is detected, and the fuel cell power generation unit is started manually or automatically to load the generated power. In the emergency fuel cell power generator to supply
When an abnormality occurs in the apparatus during operation or standby of the fuel cell power generation unit, an abnormality content detection means for detecting the content of the abnormality, and an abnormality content reporting means for reporting the abnormality content to the outside,
It is determined that there is an abnormality that needs to immediately stop the fuel cell power generation unit for safety reasons due to the content of the abnormality, and an abnormality that allows the operation of the fuel cell power generation unit to continue without any safety problem. An emergency fuel cell power generator characterized by comprising a management control means for stopping the fuel cell power generation unit, continuing the operation or continuing the standby state based on the above. The emergency fuel cell power generator according to claim 1,
An emergency fuel cell power generator, wherein the load is a traffic management system represented by a traffic light. The emergency fuel cell power generator according to claim 1 or 2,
An emergency fuel cell power generator, wherein a fuel cell of the fuel cell power generation unit is a polymer electrolyte fuel cell. It has a fuel cell power generation unit and a hydrogen gas container that contains the hydrogen gas used as its fuel. When the supply of commercial power stops, it is detected, and the fuel cell is started manually or automatically to supply the generated power to the load. In the management operation method of the emergency fuel cell power generator,
When an abnormality occurs in the apparatus during operation or standby of the fuel cell power generation unit, an abnormality content detection means for detecting the content of the abnormality, and an abnormality content reporting means for reporting the abnormality content to the outside,
It is determined that there is an abnormality that needs to immediately stop the fuel cell power generation unit for safety reasons due to the content of the abnormality, and an abnormality that allows the operation of the fuel cell power generation unit to continue without any safety problem. A method for managing and operating an emergency fuel cell power generator, wherein the fuel cell power generation unit is stopped, continued to operate, or continued in a standby state.

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