JP2024027821A - fuel cell device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a fuel cell device with excellent maintainability that allows internal apparatuses to be accessed with ease when a panel is removed.SOLUTION: Provided is a fuel cell device 100 that has a rectangular parallelepiped housing 50 having an upper panel 52, a plurality of side panels 53 to 56, and a bottom plate 51. The plurality of side panels 53 to 56 comprise a set of short side panels 53 and 54 and a set of long side panels 55 and 56. The short side panels 53 and 54 are locked with the bottom plate 51 to self-stand. The long side panels 55 and 56 are locked with the bottom plate 51 and the short side panels 53 and 54 and temporarily fixed. Thereby, the side panels 53 to 56 can be attached to the bottom plate 51 without using a frame for fixing the panels. Therefore, this can prevent occurrence of such a problem that the frame obstructs the access to an apparatus to be repaired, which can result in excellent maintainability.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

The present invention relates to a fuel cell device.

2. Description of the Related Art Fuel cell devices are known that generate electricity using hydrogen-containing fuel gas and oxygen-containing gas (air) and supply the electricity to the outside. As shown in Patent Document 1, for example, the structure of such a fuel cell device includes a plurality of devices constituting a system within a housing, and the housing is composed of a plurality of panels and frames. Specifically, a base panel that forms the bottom wall of the housing is installed, and a center frame is assembled to the center of this base panel. Furthermore, a plurality of side frames are also provided separately from the center frame. These frames serve as a skeleton for maintaining the strength of the system, and also serve as supporting members for attaching the panels that make up the side surfaces.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-152150

The above-mentioned configuration has the advantage that the strength of the casing can be improved by providing the frame, and that it is possible to position the panels to be attached later. However, even if the panel is removed, the frame remains, so when the panel is removed for maintenance or the like, the frame may get in the way and make it difficult to reach the internal equipment.

Particularly in general homes, fuel cell devices are installed in narrow spaces and it is expected that there will not be enough space for maintenance. Therefore, it is an important issue to have a structure that is easy to maintain.

The present invention is intended to solve the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a fuel cell device with excellent maintainability.

The present invention provides a rectangular parallelepiped-shaped housing having a top panel, a plurality of side panels, and a bottom plate.
A fuel cell device equipped with a fuel cell module that generates power using fuel gas and oxygen-containing gas,
The plurality of side panels include a set of short side panels and a set of long side panels,
the short side panel is anchored to the bottom plate and stands on its own;
The long side panel is a fuel cell device that is temporarily fixed by being engaged with the bottom plate and the short side panel.

By configuring as described above, the casing can be assembled without using a frame, so when the panel is removed, the internal equipment can be easily accessed, making the fuel cell with excellent maintainability. It becomes a device.

FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram of a fuel cell device of this embodiment. FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the casing of the fuel cell device according to the present embodiment. It is a figure showing the structure of the 1st locking part of this embodiment. It is a figure showing the structure of the 2nd locking part of this embodiment. It is a top view of the 2nd locking hole of this embodiment. It is a figure showing the structure of the 3rd locking part of this embodiment. It is a figure showing the structure of the right side panel of this embodiment. FIG. 2 is a top view of a casing showing a coupling member of the present embodiment. It is a sectional view showing a fitted state of a short side panel and a long side panel of this embodiment.

Embodiments of the present invention that are considered suitable will be briefly described by showing the effects of the present invention.

The present invention is a fuel cell device having a rectangular parallelepiped-shaped casing including a top panel, a plurality of side panels, and a bottom plate, wherein the plurality of side panels include a set of short side panels and a set of long side panels. The short side panel is engaged with the bottom plate to stand on its own, and the long side panel is temporarily fixed by being engaged with the bottom plate and the short side panel. Thereby, the side panel can be attached to the bottom plate without using a frame for fixing the panel. Therefore, when the panel is removed for maintenance, the problem that the frame gets in the way and makes it difficult to reach the equipment to be repaired does not occur, and maintainability is improved. Furthermore, since a frame is not required, the weight of the fuel cell device can be reduced and the cost of components can also be reduced.

Moreover, it has a first locking part that locks the bottom plate and the short side panel, and this first locking part consists of a first locking piece and a first locking hole. This first locking portion allows the short side panel to stand on its own with respect to the bottom plate, so that the long side panel can be easily attached.

It also has a second locking part that locks the bottom plate and the long side panel, and a third locking part that locks one of the short side panels and the long side panel. The second locking piece and the third locking piece provided on the short side panel protrude upward. That is, both the second locking piece and the third locking piece for locking the long side panel to be attached later protrude upward. Thereby, when attaching the long side panel, it can be easily locked to the second and third locking pieces, resulting in excellent assembly efficiency.

Regarding the locking between the bottom plate and the long side panel, the second locking hole has a trapezoidal shape, and the second locking piece has a trapezoidal shape with a short width at the tip. That is, when inserting the second locking piece into the second locking hole, since the width of the tip of the second locking piece is short, there is a large clearance with respect to the locking hole and it is easy to insert the second locking piece. In addition, when the second locking piece is inserted and the long side panel reaches the specified position, the thick part at the base of the second locking piece fits into the second locking hole and is positioned, which improves assembly. It will be excellent.

It also includes a coupling member that couples the set of long side panels and one of the short side panels at their upper ends. As a result, the three panels constituting the side surface are joined by one member, so that the strength of the casing can be improved.

Further, a recess is provided at the end of the short side panel, and a bent portion is provided at the end of the long side panel, and the bent portion is fitted into the recess. . This prevents rainwater and the like from entering the inside of the device between adjacent side panels, resulting in excellent durability.

Further, one of the short side panels is a maintenance panel, which is made up of a plurality of panels that can be divided, and one of them is latched to the bottom plate and stands on its own. As a result, during maintenance, the inside of the device can be easily accessed by removing the panel that is not secured to the bottom plate among the plurality of panels, thereby improving maintainability.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram of the fuel cell device of this embodiment. The fuel cell device 100 includes a fuel cell module 1, and includes a first heat exchanger 2, a heat storage tank 3, a condensed water tank 4, a radiator 5, an air supply device 14, and a fuel supply for operating the fuel cell module 1. A plurality of auxiliary machines such as the device 15 and the reformed water supply device 16 are housed in the housing 50. It is not necessary that all of the above-described devices be housed within the housing 50; for example, the first heat exchanger 2 and the heat storage tank 3 may be provided outside the housing 50. Furthermore, a fuel cell device in which some of the above-described devices are omitted is also possible.

The fuel cell module 1 includes, inside a box-shaped storage container 10, a fuel cell 11 that generates electricity using fuel gas and oxygen-containing gas, and a reformer 12 that generates fuel gas to be supplied to the fuel cell 11. Contains and consists of.

Although the structure of the fuel cell 11 is not particularly limited, it may have, for example, a cell stack structure in which a plurality of fuel cells are arranged. The fuel cell 11 having a cell stack structure is constructed by, for example, fixing the lower end of each fuel cell to a manifold using an insulating bonding material such as a glass sealing material.

The reformer 12 steam-reforms raw fuel gas such as natural gas or LP gas to generate fuel gas to be supplied to the fuel cell 11 . A fuel supply device 15 that supplies raw fuel gas and a reformed water supply device 16 that supplies reformed water are connected to the reformer 12, and the raw fuel gas and reformed water are heated and reformed. A reforming reaction occurs in the reactor 12, and fuel gas containing hydrogen is generated.

The fuel cell 11 is supplied with fuel gas generated by a reformer 12 and air (oxygen-containing gas) introduced by an air supply device 14 . When the fuel gas passes through the fuel cell, it reacts with the oxygen-containing gas to generate electricity. The fuel gas and oxygen-containing gas not used for power generation are combined and combusted at the upper part of the fuel cell 11. Combustion of this fuel gas produces high-temperature exhaust gas, and the reformer 12 is heated by this heat. The exhaust gas thus generated within the fuel cell module 1 is supplied to the first heat exchanger 2.

A heat storage tank 3, a heat medium pump P1, and a radiator 5 are connected to the first heat exchanger 2 via piping, and a first heat medium circulation line HC1 is formed. A heat medium is introduced into the first heat medium circulation line HC1, and in the first heat exchanger 2, heat is exchanged between the heat medium and the above-mentioned exhaust gas to heat the heat medium. Water or the like can be used as the heat medium, and the heat storage tank 3 stores the heat medium whose temperature has increased through heat exchange. The heat medium stored in the heat storage tank 3 is sent to the heat radiator 5 and cooled, and after exchanging heat with the exhaust gas again in the first heat exchanger 2, it flows back to the heat storage tank 3. As a result, a high-temperature heat medium is stored in the heat storage tank 3 from the upper part, and temperature stratification is formed.

Further, a condensed water tank 4 is connected to the first heat exchanger 2 via a condensed water recovery path 20. When the exhaust gas generated in the fuel cell module 1 is cooled by heat exchange, the water vapor contained in the exhaust gas is separated into water and gas, and the separated water passes through the condensed water recovery channel 20 to the condensed water tank 4. will be collected. In the condensed water tank 4, impurities are removed from the recovered water through an ion exchanger (not shown), etc., to purify the water. The purified water is supplied to the reformer 12 by the water supply device 16 and used as reformed water. On the other hand, the gas from which moisture has been removed passes through the exhaust flow path 21 and is then exhausted to the outside of the casing 50.

A fuel supply device 15 that supplies raw fuel to the reformer 12 includes a first electromagnetic valve V1, a pressure sensor PS, a desulfurizer DS, a gas flow meter FM1, and a fuel flow path 22 connected to a fuel supply source. Auxiliary machines such as a pump B1 and a second solenoid valve V2 are provided. A reformed water supply device 16 that supplies reformed water to the reformer 12 is provided with auxiliary equipment such as a reformed water pump P3 on a reformed water flow path 23 connected from the condensed water tank 4. The air supply device 14 that supplies oxygen-containing gas to the fuel cell module 1 is provided with auxiliary equipment such as an air flow meter FM2 and a blower B2 on the oxygen-containing gas flow path 24. Note that the auxiliary machines listed here are merely examples, and a configuration including other auxiliary machines may also be used.

Furthermore, the fuel cell device 100 is provided with a control device 30 that controls the operation of various devices, and also converts the DC power generated by the fuel cell module 1 into AC power, and uses the converted electricity externally. A power supply adjustment unit (power conditioner) 40 is provided to adjust the amount of power supplied to the load.

Further, the fuel cell device 100 may include a second heat exchanger 6, a heating pump P2 that circulates the heat medium from the heat storage tank 3, and a second heat medium circulation line HC2 that includes piping that connects these. In the second heat medium circulation line HC2, tap water supplied from the outside via the supply channel 25 is heated in the second heat exchanger 6 using the high temperature heat medium stored in the heat storage tank 3. The heated water can be delivered via the delivery channel 26 to an external reheating device such as a water heater. The fuel cell device 100 may be a so-called monogeneration system that does not supply hot water to the outside.

Next, the casing 50 of the fuel cell device 100 will be explained using FIGS. 2 to 9. In the following figures, the fuel cell module 1, auxiliary equipment, etc. housed in the casing 50 may be omitted for the sake of explanation.

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the casing of the fuel cell device of this embodiment. The casing 50 of the fuel cell device 100 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape and includes a bottom plate 51, a top panel 52, and a plurality of side panels 53-56. The side panel includes a left side panel 53, a right side panel 54, a front panel 55, and a back panel 56. In this embodiment, the left side panel 53 and the right side panel 54 are short side panels with a short width, The front panel 55 and the back panel 56 are long side panels with a long width. In the following description, the left side panel 53 and the right side panel 54 may be collectively referred to as a short side panel, and the front panel 55 and rear panel 56 may be collectively referred to as a long side panel. The bottom plate 51 and each of the panels 52 to 56 are formed by bending a sheet metal member. Further, each of the panels 52 to 56 may be composed of a single member, or may be a combination of a plurality of members in advance.

In the fuel cell device 100, maintenance aspects for performing maintenance are set in advance. The top panel 52 and a portion of the plurality of side panels 53 to 56 are maintenance panels that are removed during maintenance.

When assembling the housing 50, first the left side panel 53 and the right side panel 54 are assembled to the bottom plate 51. The left side panel 53 and the right side panel 54, which are short side panels, are configured to be able to stand on their own by being locked to the bottom plate 51. Since the short side panels 53 and 54 have short widths, a relatively stable state can be maintained simply by locking the members without fixing them with screws or the like. After the short side panels 53 and 54 are assembled, the long side panels, the front panel 55 and the back panel 56, are locked to the bottom plate 51 and to the previously assembled short side panels 53 and 54. . Since the long side panels 55 and 56 have long widths, it is difficult to stabilize them just by locking the bottom portions, but it can be stabilized by locking both side portions to other panels. With the side panels latched to the bottom plate 51, the side panels 53 to 56 are fixed by screwing or the like. With the above configuration, the side panels 53 to 56 can be attached to the bottom plate 51 without using a frame. Finally, the top panel 52 is attached.

In this way, the fuel cell device 100 can be assembled without using a frame, thereby improving maintainability. In other words, when the maintenance panel is removed, problems such as the auxiliary equipment to be repaired being hidden behind the frame, or the problem of being difficult to work on because you cannot reach between the frames, do not occur. Furthermore, in addition to ease of maintenance, since no frame is required, the weight of the fuel cell device 100 can be reduced, and the cost of components can also be reduced.

The housing 50 also includes a first locking portion 61 that locks the bottom plate 51 and the short side panels 53 and 54, a second locking portion 62 that locks the bottom plate 51 and the long side panels 55 and 56, A third locking portion 63 is provided for locking one of the short side panels and the long side panels 55, 56.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the structure of the first locking portion of this embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing the structure of the second locking portion of this embodiment, and FIG. 5 is a top view of the second locking hole of this embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing the structure of the third locking portion of this embodiment.

The first locking portion 61 includes a first locking piece 61a provided in the left side panel 53 and a first locking hole 61b provided in the bottom plate 51, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. The first locking pieces 61a are small pieces bent toward the inside of the housing 50 at the lower part of the left side panel 53, and are provided at two locations on the left and right ends. The bottom plate 51 is provided with a flange portion 511 by bending the peripheral edge portion upward, and the first locking hole 61b is formed in this flange portion 511. The first locking piece 61a of the left side panel 53 is fitted into the first locking hole 61b of the bottom plate 51 from the outside.

The first locking portion 61 is not limited to the structure shown in FIG. 3. It is also possible to have a configuration in which the left side panel 53 is provided with a first locking hole and the bottom plate 51 is provided with a first locking piece. Further, the number, positions, and shapes of the first locking pieces and first locking holes are not limited to this embodiment, and can be set as appropriate.

As shown in FIG. 2, FIG. 4, and FIG. Consisting of The second locking pieces 62a are small pieces provided at the upper end of the flange portion 511 of the bottom plate 51, and are provided at two locations on each of the front panel 55 side and the back panel 56 side. The long side panels 55 and 56 have folded parts 552 and 562 formed by folding sheet metal members at their lower ends, and the second locking hole 62b extends from the tip of the folded parts 552 and 562 to the inside of the casing 50. It is formed into small pieces 555, 565 bent in the direction. It is attached to the second locking piece 62a of the bottom plate 51 by fitting the second locking hole 62b of the long side panels 55, 56 from above.

The second locking piece 62a is formed into a trapezoidal shape with a short width at the tip. The second locking hole 62b is also trapezoidal like the second locking piece 62a. As a result, when inserting the second locking piece 62a into the second locking hole 62b, since the width of the tip of the second locking piece 62a is short, the clearance with respect to the hole width of the second locking hole 62b is large, and the width of the second locking piece 62a is large. The height of the second locking hole 62b (the height of the trapezoid) has sufficient play with respect to the thickness of the second locking piece 62a, so that it can be easily inserted. Then, when the second locking piece 62a is inserted into the second locking hole 62b and the long side panels 55, 56 reach the specified positions, the thick part of the base of the second locking piece 62a is inserted into the second locking hole. 62b to prevent rattling in the left-right direction (longitudinal direction of the housing 50) and front-rear direction (short-side direction of the housing 50). In this way, the long side panels 55 and 56 can be easily positioned with respect to the bottom plate 51, resulting in excellent assembly efficiency. Particularly, work efficiency in panel assembly work in narrow spaces is improved.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 6, the third locking portion is formed from a third locking piece 63a provided on the left side panel 53 and a third locking hole 63b provided on the long side panels 55, 56. Become. The third locking pieces 63a are small pieces that protrude upward from the upper end of the left side panel 53, and are provided at two locations on the left and right ends. The front panel 55 is provided with a flange portion 551 whose upper end portion is bent toward the inside of the housing 50, and the third locking hole 63b is formed in this flange portion 551. The third locking piece 63b of the front panel 55 is fitted into the third locking piece 63a of the left side panel 53 from above. In addition, although the left side panel 53 and the front panel 55 were shown and demonstrated in FIG. 6, the back panel 56 also has the same structure as the front panel 55.

A second locking piece 62a provided on the bottom plate 51 and a third locking piece 63a provided on the left side panel 53 protrude upward. That is, both the second locking piece 62a and the third locking piece 63a for locking the long side panels 55 and 56 that are attached later protrude upward. Thereby, when attaching the long side panels 55 and 56, the second locking pieces 62a and the third locking pieces 63a can be easily locked, so that assemblability is not impaired.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the structure of the right side panel 54 of this embodiment. In this embodiment, the right side panel 54 is a maintenance panel that is removed during maintenance, and is composed of two divisible upper and lower panels. The upper panel 541 includes a cover portion 541a that can be opened and closed, and when the cover portion 541a is removed, the power switch and breaker switch of the fuel cell device 100 can be operated. Fuel and water piping, etc. are connected to the lower panel 542. At the time of maintenance, only the upper panel 541 can be removed while the lower panel 542 remains attached. The upper panel 541 has a flat plate shape in consideration of the workability of attaching and detaching. The panels that can be removed during maintenance are not limited to the above-mentioned upper panel 541, but other panels can also be designed to be removable.

The lower panel 542 is engaged with the bottom plate 51 and stands on its own. The lower panel 542 includes a pipe connection plate 542a to which pipes and the like are connected, and holding frames 542b attached to both left and right ends of the pipe connection plate 542a. In such a configuration, when attaching the lower panel 542 to the bottom plate 51, the piping connection plate 542a and the holding frame 542b are first assembled. A speed nut may be used for the female thread to assemble the piping connection plate 542a and the holding frame 542b. This makes it possible to reduce the number of assembly steps. Since a gap is formed between the piping connection plate 542a and the holding frame 542b, the flange portion 511 of the bottom plate 51 can be easily attached by sandwiching the flange portion 511 in this gap.

The front panel 55 and the back panel 56 are locked to the lower panel 542. The piping connection plate 542a has stepped portions 542c formed at both left and right ends, and the ends of the front panel 55 and the back panel 56 are locked by abutting against the stepped portions 542c.

Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the fuel cell device 100 may include a coupling member 64. The coupling member 64 is attached to the upper ends of the side panels 53 to 56 and connects the plurality of side panels to each other.

FIG. 8 is a top view of the casing showing the coupling member of this embodiment, with the top panel 52 removed. This embodiment includes a left coupling member 64a provided at the left end of the casing 50, and a right coupling member 64b provided at the right end of the casing 50. The left side connecting member 64a connects the left side panel 53, the front panel 55, and the back panel 56. The right side connecting member 64b connects the right side panel 54 (upper panel 541), the front panel 55, and the back panel 56. In this way, by connecting a plurality of side panels with the connecting member 64, the strength of the housing 50 can be increased.

FIG. 9 is a sectional view showing a fitted state of the short side panel and long side panel of this embodiment. In the figure, a left side panel 53 and a front panel 55 are shown. The left side panel 53 is provided with a concave portion 533 by recessing the end portion inside the housing 50 . The front panel 55 is provided with a bent portion 554 by bending the tip of the end portion to the inside of the housing 50 (back side of the panel), and the thickness of the bent portion 554 is approximately the same as the depth of the recessed portion 533. It is formed to be. Both the recess 533 and the bent portion 554 are provided over the entire height of the panel, and the bent portion 554 fits into the recess of the recess 553. This prevents the end faces of the panels from being exposed outside the housing 50, making it possible to prevent rainwater and the like from entering between adjacent side panels. Note that the left side panel 53 and the back panel 56 also have a similar fitting structure.

Furthermore, in the fuel cell device 100 of this embodiment, after the short side panels 53 and 54 are attached to the bottom plate 51, the long side panels are attached to the bottom plates 55 and 56. Therefore, by providing the short side panels 53 and 54 with recessed portions and the long side panels 55 and 56 with bent portions, it becomes easier to assemble the long side panels 55 and 56 that will be attached later.

1 Fuel cell module 50 Housing 51 Bottom plate 52 Top panel 53 Left side panel (short side panel)
54 Right side panel (short side panel)
55 Front panel (long side panel)
56 Back panel (long side panel)
61 First locking part 61a First locking piece 61b First locking hole 62 Second locking part 62a Second locking piece 62b Second locking hole 63 Third locking part 63a Third locking piece 63b 3 locking hole 64 coupling member 533 recess 554 bent portion 100 fuel cell device

Claims (7)

Inside a rectangular parallelepiped-shaped housing having a top panel, a plurality of side panels, and a bottom plate,
A fuel cell device equipped with a fuel cell module that generates power using fuel gas and oxygen-containing gas,
The plurality of side panels include a set of short side panels and a set of long side panels,
the short side panel is anchored to the bottom plate and stands on its own;
In the fuel cell device, the long side panel is temporarily fixed by being engaged with the bottom plate and the short side panel. a first locking portion that locks the bottom plate and the short side panel;
The first locking portion includes a first locking piece provided on either the short side panel or the bottom plate, and a first locking hole provided on the other of the short side panel or the bottom plate. The fuel cell device according to claim 1, comprising: a second locking portion that locks the bottom plate and the long side panel;
a third locking part that locks one of the short side panels and the long side panel, and the second locking part includes a second locking piece provided on the bottom plate and a third locking part that locks one of the short side panels and the long side panel. a second locking hole provided in the panel;
The third locking portion is a third locking piece provided on the short side panel and a third locking hole provided on the long side panel,
3. The fuel cell device according to claim 2, wherein the second locking piece and the third locking piece protrude upward. the second locking hole is trapezoidal;
4. The fuel cell device according to claim 3, wherein the second locking piece has a trapezoidal shape with a short width at the tip. The fuel cell device according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a connecting member that connects a set of the long side panels and one of the short side panels at an upper end. a recess is provided at an end of the short side panel;
An end portion of the long side panel is provided with a bent portion bent inside the housing,
The fuel cell device according to claim 1, wherein the bent portion fits into the recess. One of the short side panels is a maintenance panel that is removed during maintenance, and is composed of a plurality of panels that can be divided,
The fuel cell device according to claim 1, wherein one of the plurality of panels is anchored to the bottom plate and stands on its own.

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