JP2009266472A - Heating system of movable body including fuel cell - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system capable of quickly heating the indoor of a movable body in the movable body including a fuel cell as a driving source. <P>SOLUTION: A heating system of a movable body including a fuel cell includes a combustor for burning offgas exhausted from an anode of the fuel cell; a combustion-heat heating device introducing heat produced in the combustor by combustion of offgas into the indoor of the movable body; and a control part driving the combustion-heat heating device based on an operation state of the fuel cell. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a heating system for a moving body including a fuel cell.

  In recent years, fuel cells have attracted attention as a driving source for moving objects. For example, Patent Document 1 below discloses a moving body that includes both a fuel cell and an engine as drive sources. The moving body performs heating of the moving body by properly using heat generated by power generation of the fuel cell and heat generated by driving the engine in accordance with the operating state of the moving body.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2001-233044 Japanese Patent No. 3997264 JP 2007-184202 A

  However, even if the moving body includes both the fuel cell and the engine as drive sources, it is normal that both drive sources are cooled immediately after the moving body is started, and these are used as heat sources in the moving body. It was difficult to heat quickly.

  In view of such problems, the problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a system capable of quickly heating the interior of a mobile body including a fuel cell as a drive source.

  SUMMARY An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to solve at least a part of the problems described above, and the invention can be implemented as the following forms or application examples.

Application Example 1 A moving body heating system including a fuel cell,
A combustor for burning off-gas discharged from the anode of the fuel cell;
A combustion heat heating device that introduces heat generated in the combustor by combustion of the off-gas into the interior of the moving body;
A heating system comprising: a control unit that drives the combustion heat heating device based on an operating state of the fuel cell.

  According to such a heating system, the heat generated with the combustion of the off-gas of the fuel cell can be used as a heat source for heating. Therefore, the interior of the moving body can be quickly warmed.

Application Example 2 In the heating system according to Application Example 1, a cooling device that cools the fuel cell, and heat generated in the cooling device as the fuel cell is cooled is introduced into a room of the moving body. A cooling system comprising: a cooling / heating apparatus, wherein the control unit drives the combustion / heating apparatus or the cooling / heating apparatus based on an operating state of the fuel cell.

  According to such a heating system, the heat generated by the combustion of the fuel cell off-gas and the heat generated by the cooling of the fuel cell are introduced into the room of the moving body, thereby effectively using these heats. A heating system can be provided.

[Application Example 3] The heating system according to Application Example 2, wherein the control unit drives the combustion heat heating device when the operating temperature of the fuel cell is lower than a predetermined threshold, and the fuel cell A heating system that drives the cooling and heating device when the operating temperature of the is higher than the threshold.

  If it is such a heating system, the heat source utilized for heating according to the operating temperature of a fuel cell can be selected from a combustor and a cooling device. For example, if the combustion heat heating device is driven when the operating temperature of the fuel cell is lower than that during steady operation of the fuel cell, the interior of the moving body can be quickly heated immediately after the moving body is started. Become.

Application Example 4 The heating system according to Application Example 3, wherein the control unit stops the cooling device when the combustion heat heating device is driven.

  With such a heating system, since the cooling device can be stopped when the operating temperature of the fuel cell is low, such as immediately after the moving body is started, the temperature of the fuel cell can be quickly raised.

Application Example 5 In the heating system according to Application Example 3 or Application Example 4, in the case where the control unit drives the combustion heat heating apparatus, the control unit is more than the case where the cooling heat heating apparatus is driven. A heating system that increases the concentration of reaction gas contained in off-gas.

  With such a heating system, when the operating temperature of the fuel cell is low, the concentration of the reaction gas contained in the off gas can be increased, so the amount of off gas burned by the combustor increases, and the interior of the moving body is increased. Can be heated quickly.

Application Example 6 In the heating system according to Application Example 5, the heating system includes an adjustment unit that adjusts the amount of reaction gas supplied to the fuel cell, and the control unit controls the adjustment unit, thereby A heating system that adjusts the concentration of reaction gas contained in off-gas.

  With such a heating system, the concentration of the reaction gas contained in the offgas can be adjusted by controlling the amount of the reaction gas supplied to the fuel cell.

Application Example 7 In the heating system according to Application Example 5, the heating system includes a circulation unit that circulates and supplies the off gas to the fuel cell, and the control unit controls the circulation amount of the off gas by the circulation unit. A heating system that adjusts the concentration of the reaction gas contained in the off-gas by controlling.

  With such a heating system, the concentration of the reaction gas in the off-gas discharged to the combustor can be increased by reducing the amount of off-gas circulation. That is, the concentration of the reaction gas contained in the off gas can be adjusted by controlling the circulation amount of the off gas.

Application Example 8 In the heating system according to Application Example 5, an adjustment unit that adjusts the amount of reaction gas supplied to the fuel cell, and a circulation unit that circulates and supplies the off gas to the fuel cell. The control unit controls the amount of reaction gas supplied to the fuel cell by the adjustment unit, and controls the circulation amount of the off gas by the circulation unit, so that the reaction gas contained in the off gas can be controlled. Heating system that adjusts the concentration.

  With such a heating system, the concentration of the reaction gas contained in the off gas can be adjusted by controlling both the amount of the reaction gas supplied to the fuel cell and the circulation amount of the off gas.

[Application Example 9] A moving object comprising the heating system according to any one of Application Examples 1 to 8, and a motor that drives the moving object by the fuel cell. Thus, this invention can be comprised not only as the aspect as a heating system mentioned above but as a mobile body provided with this heating system. For example, a vehicle, an aircraft, a ship, or the like can be applied as the moving body.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in the following order based on examples.
A. Heating system configuration:
B. Heating control process:
C. Other examples:

A. Heating system configuration:
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a heating system 100 as an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in the figure, a heating system 100 according to the present embodiment is a heating system mounted on a vehicle 10. A motor 11 that drives the vehicle 10, a fuel cell 12 that serves as a power source of the motor 11, and high-pressure hydrogen gas A hydrogen cylinder 20 to be stored, an air compressor 30 for supplying compressed air to the fuel cell 12, a blower 40 for sending heating air into the passenger compartment, a catalytic combustor 50 for burning anode off-gas by catalytic reaction, and the fuel cell 12 by cooling liquid And a control unit 70 for controlling the operation of the heating system 100.

  The fuel cell 12 is a solid polymer electrolyte type fuel cell, and has a stack structure in which a plurality of unit cells as a structural unit are stacked. Each single cell has a configuration in which a hydrogen electrode (hereinafter referred to as an anode) and an oxygen electrode (hereinafter referred to as a cathode) are arranged with an electrolyte membrane interposed therebetween. When a fuel gas containing hydrogen is supplied to the anode of each single cell and an oxidizing gas containing oxygen is supplied to the cathode, an electrochemical reaction proceeds and an electromotive force is generated. The electric power generated in this way is supplied to a vehicle driving motor 11 connected to the fuel cell 12. The operating temperature of the fuel cell 12 is generally 70 ° C to 100 ° C.

  A water jacket 63 through which the coolant flows is formed inside the fuel cell 12. A radiator 60 is connected to the water jacket 63 through a coolant flow path 61. A coolant pump 62 and a water temperature sensor 64 are provided in the coolant channel 61. The control unit 70 controls the coolant pump 62 to send the coolant to the water jacket 63 in the fuel cell 12 and cool the fuel cell 12. The coolant heated by the cooling of the fuel cell 12 returns to the radiator 60 and is heat-exchanged by the fins 65 provided on the radiator 60. The water temperature sensor 64 detects the operating temperature of the fuel cell 12 by measuring the temperature of the coolant.

  An oxidizing gas supply pipe 32 is connected to the cathode side inlet of the fuel cell 12, and a cathode offgas discharge pipe 34 is connected to the outlet. The air compressed by the air compressor 30 is supplied as the oxidizing gas to the cathode of the fuel cell 12 through the oxidizing gas supply pipe 32. This air consumes hydrogen as a result of power generation accompanying an electrochemical reaction in the fuel cell 12 and is introduced into the catalytic combustor 50 through the cathode offgas discharge pipe 34 as cathode offgas.

  A fuel gas supply pipe 42 is connected to the anode side inlet of the fuel cell 12, and an anode offgas discharge pipe 44 is connected to the outlet. Hydrogen as fuel gas is supplied from the hydrogen cylinder 20 to the anode of the fuel cell 12 through the fuel gas supply pipe 42. As a result of power generation accompanying the electrochemical reaction in the fuel cell 12, this fuel gas consumes hydrogen and is introduced into the catalytic combustor 50 through the anode off-gas discharge pipe 44 as anode off-gas. The fuel gas supply pipe 42 is provided with a shut valve 46 and a pressure regulating valve 48. The shut valve 46 is a valve for shutting off the supply of fuel gas from the hydrogen cylinder 20. The pressure regulating valve 48 is a valve for reducing the pressure of the fuel gas supplied from the hydrogen cylinder 20 to a pressure suitable for power generation by the fuel cell 12.

  The catalytic combustor 50 includes a catalyst such as platinum that promotes the reaction between hydrogen and oxygen. When the cathode offgas and the anode offgas flow into the catalytic combustor 50 through the cathode offgas discharge pipe 34 and the anode offgas discharge pipe 44, residual hydrogen contained in the anode offgas and the cathode offgas are caused by the action of the catalyst in the catalyst combustor 50. Reacts with oxygen contained in water to produce water. The water thus generated and the nitrogen in the cathode off gas are discharged to the outside of the vehicle 10.

  A circulation pipe 45 is connected to the upstream side (fuel cell side) of the purge valve 43 of the anode off gas discharge pipe 44. The other end of the circulation pipe 45 is connected to the fuel gas supply pipe 42. The circulation pipe 45 is provided with a circulation pump 80. When the purge valve 43 is closed by the control unit 70 and the circulation pump 80 is driven, the anode off gas discharged to the anode off gas discharge pipe 44 is supplied to the fuel gas supply pipe 42 through the circulation pipe 45. The At this time, the circulation pipe 45 is provided with a check valve 82 so that hydrogen does not flow out from the fuel gas supply pipe 42 to the anode off-gas discharge pipe 44. Thus, if the anode off gas is circulated and supplied to the fuel cell 12 again, the residual hydrogen in the anode off gas can be used again for power generation by the fuel cell 12, so that hydrogen is efficiently used. be able to. In addition, while the anode off gas is circulated by the circulation pump 80, the control unit 70 discharges the anode off gas by periodically opening the purge valve 43. By doing so, impurities such as nitrogen permeating from the cathode to the anode can be reduced from the circulating anode off-gas.

  The catalyst combustor 50 is provided with fins 55 as a heat exchange mechanism for releasing heat generated by the catalytic reaction to the outside. A first air passage 56 through which air is blown from the blower 40 is connected to the fin 55. The first air passage 56 communicates with the passenger compartment through the fins 55. The radiator 60 is also provided with fins 65 as a heat exchange mechanism for releasing the heat of the coolant heated by the fuel cell 12 to the outside. A second air passage 66 through which air is blown from the blower 40 is connected to the fin 65. The second air passage 66 also communicates with the passenger compartment through the fins 65.

  Whether the air blown from the blower 40 is blown to either the first air passage 56 or the second air passage 66 is selected by the air passage switch 90. The air path switch 90 includes a damper provided at the entrance of the first air path 56 and the second air path 66 and an actuator that drives the damper. When the actuator is driven by the control by the control unit 70, the damper opens and closes, and the blower 40 communicates with the first air path 56 or the second air path 66.

  In the present embodiment, the air passage switching device 90 causes the blower 40 and the first air passage 56 to communicate with each other, and the heating state in which the air is warmed by the fins 55 provided in the catalytic combustor 50 and introduced into the vehicle interior. It is called “strong heating mode”. Further, the “normal heating mode” refers to a heating state in which the blower 40 and the second air passage 66 are communicated with each other by the air passage changer 90 and the atmosphere is heated by the fins 65 provided in the radiator 60 and introduced into the vehicle interior. That's it. Each device related to the strong heating mode corresponds to the combustion heat heating device of the present invention, and each device related to the normal heating mode corresponds to the cooling heat heating device of the present invention.

  The control unit 70 includes a CPU, RAM, and ROM. In the ROM, a program for controlling the operation of the vehicle 10 and the heating system 100 is recorded. The CPU implements control processing to be described later by executing this program using the RAM as a work area.

  The control unit 70 includes a plurality of I / O ports. The I / O port includes a heating switch 92 provided on the center console of the vehicle 10, a blower 40, an air path switch 90, a water temperature sensor 64, a coolant pump 62, a circulation pump 80, an air compressor 30, a shut valve. 46, a pressure regulating valve 48, a purge valve 43 and the like are connected. The control unit 70 controls these devices through the I / O port.

B. Heating control process:
Then, the process for controlling the heating system 100 mentioned above is demonstrated.
FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a heating control process routine executed by the control unit 70. This heating control processing routine is repeatedly executed when the vehicle is activated.

  When the execution of the heating control processing routine is started, first, the control unit 70 detects whether the heating switch 92 is turned on (step S10). When the heating switch 92 is off, the control unit 70 ends the routine. On the other hand, when the heating switch 92 is turned on, the control unit 70 measures the operating temperature T of the fuel cell 12 using the water temperature sensor 64 (step S12).

  When the operating temperature T of the fuel cell 12 is measured, the control unit 70 determines whether this operating temperature T is lower than a predetermined threshold (step S14). The predetermined threshold value can be appropriately determined according to the steady operation temperature of the fuel cell, and can be, for example, a temperature of 40 to 60 ° C. slightly lower than the steady operation temperature.

  When the operating temperature T of the fuel cell 12 is lower than a predetermined threshold value, the control unit 70 controls the air path switch 90 to cause the blower 40 and the first air path 56 to communicate with each other. Heating operation is performed in a strong heating mode in which the air warmed by the combustor 50 is introduced into the passenger compartment (step S16). On the other hand, when the operating temperature T of the vehicle is higher than the predetermined threshold, the control unit 70 controls the air path switching device 90 so that the blower 40 and the second air path 66 are communicated with each other. Heating operation is performed in the normal heating mode in which the atmosphere warmed by 60 is introduced into the passenger compartment (step S18). The control unit 70 performs the heating operation according to the operation temperature T of the fuel cell 12 by repeatedly executing the processing described above.

  According to the heating system 100 of the present embodiment described above, when the operating temperature of the fuel cell 12 is low, the atmosphere heated by the heat generated in the catalytic combustor 50 can be introduced into the vehicle interior. Therefore, the vehicle interior can be immediately warmed immediately after the vehicle 10 is started. Further, if the operating temperature of the fuel cell 12 is sufficiently raised, the atmosphere warmed by the radiator 60 can be introduced into the vehicle interior. Therefore, the heat generated by the power generation by the fuel cell 12 can be efficiently used as heating.

C. Other examples:
As mentioned above, although one Example of this invention was described, it cannot be overemphasized that this invention is not limited to such an Example, but can take a various structure in the range which does not deviate from the meaning. For example, in the above embodiment, the heating mode is switched according to the operating temperature of the fuel cell, but depending on the amount of power generated by the fuel cell, the voltage value, the current value, the elapsed time since the fuel cell was started, etc. It may be switched. Further, for example, the following modifications are possible.

  In the above-described embodiment, in the strong heating mode, the blower 40 and the first air passage 56 are communicated with each other by the air passage switch 90, and the atmosphere is warmed by the catalytic combustor 50 and introduced into the vehicle interior. Further, in the normal heating mode, the blower 40 and the second air passage 66 are communicated with each other by the air passage switch 90, and the air is warmed by the radiator 60 and introduced into the vehicle interior. In addition to such control, the control unit 70 can perform the following control. That is, the control may be performed such that the coolant pump 62 is stopped in the strong heating mode and the coolant pump 62 is driven in the normal heating mode. In this way, by controlling the driving of the radiator 60 according to the operating temperature of the fuel cell 12, the temperature of the fuel cell 12 is rapidly increased when the operating temperature of the fuel cell 12 is low, such as immediately after the start of the vehicle 10. It becomes possible.

  Further, the control unit 70 controls the air compressor 30 to increase the amount of oxygen supplied to the fuel cell 12 in the strong heating mode, and further controls the pressure regulating valve 48 to supply to the fuel cell 12. The amount of hydrogen may be increased. Thus, when the operating temperature of the fuel cell 12 is low, the electromotive force of the fuel cell 12 can be quickly increased by increasing the supply amount of the reaction gas (oxygen or hydrogen). Moreover, if the supply amount of the reaction gas supplied to the fuel cell 12 is increased, the concentration of the reaction gas contained in the off gas will inevitably increase. As a result, the amount of heat generated by the catalytic combustor 50 also increases, so that the vehicle interior can be quickly warmed when the vehicle 10 is started. In order to increase the concentration of hydrogen flowing into the catalytic combustor 50, for example, a bypass passage for supplying hydrogen directly from the fuel gas supply pipe 42 to the catalytic combustor 50 is provided, and the catalyst is passed through the bypass passage. Hydrogen may be directly supplied to the combustor 50.

  In the normal heating mode, the control unit 70 drives the circulation pump 80 to circulate hydrogen. In the strong heating mode, the control unit 70 controls the circulation pump 80 to stop the hydrogen circulation, It is good also as reducing the amount of circulation. When such control is performed, when the operating temperature of the fuel cell 12 is low, such as immediately after the start of the vehicle, the circulation amount of the anode off gas is reduced, so that the anode off gas containing a relatively large amount of hydrogen flows into the catalytic combustor 50. To do. As a result, the combustion amount of the catalytic combustor 50 increases, and the vehicle interior can be warmed up quickly.

  The above-described control of the radiator 60, the control of the concentration of the reaction gas, and the control of the hydrogen circulation amount may be performed in combination. A flow chart for executing these controls is shown in FIG. According to the flowchart shown in FIG. 3, if the control unit 70 determines in step S14 that the operating temperature of the fuel cell 12 is lower than the predetermined threshold value, in step S16, the control unit 70 sets the strong heating mode, and then The radiator is stopped (step S16a), the concentration of the reaction gas is increased (step S16b), and the circulation amount of the anode off gas is reduced (step S16c). If it is determined in step S14 that the operating temperature of the fuel cell 12 is higher than the predetermined threshold value, the control unit 70 sets the normal heating mode in step S18, and then drives the radiator (step S18a). The concentration of the reaction gas is set to the normal concentration (step S18b), and the circulation amount of the anode off gas is set to the normal circulation amount (step S18c). Note that all these controls may be performed, or any combination thereof may be performed. These controls may be executed only when the heating switch 92 is turned on, and it is determined whether or not to execute the control based on the operating temperature of the fuel cell regardless of the state of the heating switch 92. May be.

  In the embodiment described above, the heating switch 92 is provided in the vehicle interior. In addition to this, a temperature setting button may be provided in the passenger compartment. When the control unit 70 receives the setting of the temperature in the passenger compartment by the temperature setting button, the temperature of the passenger compartment is measured by a temperature sensor provided in the passenger compartment, and the rotation speed of the blower 40 is determined based on the measured value. Feedback control. Specifically, the control unit 70 stops the blower 40 or reduces the rotational speed if the room temperature is higher than the set temperature, and increases the rotational speed of the blower 40 if the room temperature is lower than the set temperature. By performing such control, it becomes possible to automatically adjust the temperature in the passenger compartment.

It is a schematic block diagram of the heating system as an Example. It is a flowchart of the heating control processing routine in an Example. It is a flowchart of the heating control processing routine in another Example.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... Vehicle 11 ... Motor 12 ... Fuel cell 20 ... Hydrogen cylinder 30 ... Air compressor 32 ... Oxidation gas supply pipe 34 ... Cathode off gas discharge pipe 40 ... Blower 42 ... Fuel gas supply pipe 43 ... Purge valve 44 ... Anode off gas discharge pipe 45 ... Circulating pipe 46 ... Shut valve 48 ... Pressure regulating valve 50 ... Catalytic combustor 55 ... Fin 56 ... First air passage 60 ... Radiator 61 ... Coolant flow passage 62 ... Coolant pump 63 ... Water jacket 64 ... Water temperature sensor 65 ... Fin 66 ... Second air passage 70 ... Control unit 80 ... Circulating pump 82 ... Check valve 90 ... Air passage switch 92 ... Heating switch 100 ... Heating system

Claims (9)

A heating system for a moving body equipped with a fuel cell,
A combustor for burning off-gas discharged from the anode of the fuel cell;
A combustion heat heating device that introduces heat generated in the combustor by combustion of the off-gas into the interior of the moving body;
A heating system comprising: a control unit that drives the combustion heat heating device based on an operating state of the fuel cell. The heating system according to claim 1,
A cooling device for cooling the fuel cell;
A cooling and heating device that introduces heat generated in the cooling device with cooling of the fuel cell into the interior of the mobile body,
The said control part drives the said combustion heat heating apparatus or the said cooling heat heating apparatus based on the driving | running state of the said fuel cell. The heating system according to claim 2,
The control unit drives the combustion thermal heating device when the operating temperature of the fuel cell is lower than a predetermined threshold, and the cooling thermal heating device when the operating temperature of the fuel cell is higher than the threshold. Driving the heating system. The heating system according to claim 3,
The control unit stops the cooling device when driving the combustion heat heating device. The heating system according to claim 3 or 4, wherein
The said control part raises the density | concentration of the reactive gas contained in the said off gas, when driving the said combustion heat heating apparatus rather than the case where the said cooling heat heating apparatus is driven. The heating system according to claim 5,
An adjustment unit for adjusting the amount of reaction gas supplied to the fuel cell;
The said control part adjusts the density | concentration of the reactive gas contained in the said off gas by controlling the said adjustment part. Heating system. The heating system according to claim 5,
A circulation unit that circulates and supplies the off gas to the fuel cell;
The said control part adjusts the density | concentration of the reactive gas contained in the said off gas by controlling the circulation amount of the said off gas by the said circulation part. The heating system according to claim 5,
An adjusting unit for adjusting the amount of the reaction gas supplied to the fuel cell;
A circulation unit that circulates and supplies the off gas to the fuel cell;
The control unit controls the amount of reaction gas supplied to the fuel cell by the adjustment unit, and controls the circulation amount of the off gas by the circulation unit, thereby reducing the concentration of the reaction gas contained in the off gas. Regulate the heating system. A moving object,
A heating system according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
A moving body comprising: a motor that drives the moving body by the fuel cell.

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