JP7315453B2 - CONTROL DEVICE FOR FUEL CELL COGENERATION SYSTEM, CONTROL METHOD AND PROGRAM FOR FUEL CELL COGENERATION SYSTEM - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a fuel cell cogeneration system control device, a fuel cell cogeneration system control method, and a program.

A fuel cell cogeneration system generates electricity and heat by reacting hydrogen in a reformed gas reformed from city gas with oxygen in the air. Generally, a fuel cell cogeneration system includes a fuel cell unit that generates power, and a hot water storage tank that stores hot water heated by heat generated when the fuel cell unit generates power.

For such a fuel cell cogeneration system, there have been proposed various technologies related to self-sustaining operation control for controlling self-sustaining operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system when a power failure occurs while the system is in operation.

For example, the first prior art (Patent Document 1) executes islanded operation at least at the system shutdown start time, and performs islanded operation preparation control, which is preparation for islanded operation, before executing islanded operation. In this first prior art, the self-sustaining operation preparation control includes control for canceling output suppression control and control for discharging water from the hot water storage tank.

In the second prior art (Patent Document 2), the maximum power generated by the fuel cell during a power failure is made larger than during normal times. This second prior art is equipped with a storage battery that charges electricity from the grid power source and the fuel cell system and is used during a power outage.

A third prior art (Patent Document 3) is to supply power to a storage battery in rated operation during a power outage, and switch to idling operation when the storage battery is fully charged.

JP 2019-71169 A JP 2016-162606 A JP 2013-247846 A

In the fuel cell cogeneration system, when the amount of heat stored in the hot water tank increases, it becomes difficult for the hot water tank to recover the heat generated by the fuel cell unit, and the temperature of the power generation section of the fuel cell unit rises. One method of avoiding this is to stop the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system, for example, when the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank increases.

However, in this method, it is assumed that the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system is stopped when the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank is large before the power failure. In this case, even if an attempt is made to cause the fuel cell cogeneration system to operate in a self-supporting manner, there is a risk that it will not be possible to shift to self-supporting operation.

The first prior art (Patent Document 1) performs self-sustained operation preparation control before self-sustained operation in the event of a power failure. However, as the self-sustained operation preparation control, control is performed to cancel the output suppression control, and the lowest output operation is not performed before self-sustained operation in the event of a power failure.

In the second prior art (Patent Document 2), the maximum power generated during a power failure is made larger than that in normal times, but the power is not operated at the minimum output before the power failure.

In addition, the third prior art (Patent Document 3) switches to idling operation when the storage battery is fully charged at the time of power failure, but it is not a control before power failure.

In other words, the first to third prior arts are not controls for continuing power generation during a power outage.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a control device for a fuel cell cogeneration system, a control method for a fuel cell cogeneration system, and a program capable of continuing power generation in the event of a power failure.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, when a power failure occurs while the fuel cell cogeneration system is in operation, a self-sustaining operation control unit performs control to allow the fuel cell cogeneration system to operate in a self-sustained manner; when the amount of heat stored in a hot water storage tank provided in the fuel cell cogeneration system exceeds a predetermined upper limit while the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating, a shutdown control unit performs control to stop the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system; and the fuel cell cogeneration system is in operation. a minimum output operation control unit that performs control to operate the fuel cell cogeneration system at a predetermined minimum output when an operation switching command to the minimum output operation or power failure prediction information is acquired in a state;a first charging control unit that performs control to charge a storage battery with power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system when the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating at the minimum output;A control device for a fuel cell cogeneration system.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, when a power failure occurs while the fuel cell cogeneration system is in operation, a self-sustaining operation control step of controlling the self-sustaining operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system is performed; when the amount of heat stored in a hot water storage tank provided in the fuel cell cogeneration system exceeds a predetermined upper limit while the fuel cell cogeneration system is in operation, a shutdown control step of performing control to stop the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system, and the fuel cell cogeneration system is in operation. a minimum output operation control step of performing control to operate the fuel cell cogeneration system at a predetermined minimum output when an operation switching command to the minimum output operation or power failure prediction information is acquired in a state;a first charging control step of performing control to charge a storage battery with power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system when the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating at the minimum output;A control method for a fuel cell cogeneration system comprising

A third aspect of the present invention includes a self-sustaining operation control step of controlling the fuel cell cogeneration system to operate independently when a power failure occurs while the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating, a shutdown control step of performing control to stop the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system when the amount of heat stored in a hot water tank provided in the fuel cell cogeneration system exceeds a predetermined upper limit while the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating, and the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating. a minimum output operation control step of performing control to operate the fuel cell cogeneration system at a predetermined minimum output when an operation switching command to the minimum output operation or power failure prediction information is acquired in a state;a first charging control step of performing control to charge a storage battery with power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system when the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating at the minimum output;It is a program that causes a computer to execute

According to the present invention, when an operation switching command to the minimum output operation or power failure prediction information is acquired while the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating, control is performed to operate the fuel cell cogeneration system at a predetermined minimum output. As a result, it is possible to prevent the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank from exceeding the upper limit, so that it is possible to avoid stopping the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system before the power failure. As a result, in the event of a power failure, the fuel cell cogeneration system can be operated in a self-sustained manner, so power generation can be continued even in the event of a power failure.

1 is a diagram showing an example of a network system including a user's home in which a fuel cell cogeneration system is installed; FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing configurations of a control device and a fuel cell cogeneration system according to a first embodiment; FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing an operation of switching the control device of FIG. 2 from a normal operation mode to an independent operation mode or a shutdown mode. 3 is a flow chart showing the operation of the control device in FIG. 2 for switching from the normal operation mode to the typhoon mode and the operation in the typhoon mode; It is a figure explaining the difference of a comparative example and 1st embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a control device and a fuel cell cogeneration system according to a second embodiment; FIG. FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing the operation of the control device in FIG. 6 for switching from the normal operation mode to the typhoon mode and the operation in the typhoon mode.

[First embodiment]
First, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of a network system including a user's home 60 in which a fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is installed. As shown in FIG. 1, a fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is installed in a user's home 60 . The fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is, for example, ENE-FARM (registered trademark).

A user's home 60 is communicably connected to a management server 70 via a network N such as the Internet. The management server 70 has a function of transmitting typhoon approach information to the user's house 60 and a function of transmitting typhoon passing information to the user's house 60 .

The typhoon approaching information is transmitted from the management server 70 to the user's home 60, for example, when a power outage is predicted to occur in the area of the user's home 60 due to an approaching typhoon. Typhoon approach information is an example of "blackout prediction information". The typhoon passing information is transmitted from the management server 70 to the user's home 60 when, for example, the possibility of a power outage occurring in the area of the user's home 60 due to the passing of the typhoon has disappeared.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing configurations of the control device 10 and the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2 , the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 includes a fuel cell unit 42 and a hot water storage tank 44 .

The fuel cell unit 42 has a fuel cell stack. A fuel cell stack is configured to generate electricity and heat by reacting hydrogen in a reformed gas reformed from city gas with oxygen in the air. The fuel cell unit 42 includes accessories such as valves and pumps for adjusting the amount of reformed gas and air supplied. Further, the fuel cell unit 42 is provided with a heat exchanger.

In this fuel cell cogeneration system 40, when water is supplied to the hot water storage tank 44, water is supplied from the hot water storage tank 44 to the heat exchanger of the fuel cell unit 42, where the water is heated by the heat of the fuel cell stack. When water is heated in a heat exchanger, the water becomes hot water. This hot water is supplied to a hot water storage tank 44 and stored in this hot water storage tank 44 . The hot water storage tank 44 includes auxiliary equipment such as valves and pumps for transferring water and hot water to and from the fuel cell unit 42, and valves and pumps for discharging hot water stored in the hot water storage tank 44 as described later.

A controller 10 is communicably connected to the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 . A communication device 50 and an operation panel 52 are communicably connected to the control device 10 .

Communicator 50 is, for example, a modem. The communication device 50 receives the typhoon approach information and the typhoon passage information transmitted from the above management server 70 (see FIG. 1). The typhoon approach information and typhoon passage information received by the communication device 50 are transmitted to the control device 10 .

The operation panel 52 has indicators, lamps, switches, and the like. The operation panel 52 has switches for changing the operations and settings of the fuel cell unit 42 and the hot water tank 44 . The operation panel 52 also has a mode changeover switch for switching the operation mode.

The operating modes switched by the mode switch include a normal operating mode, a typhoon mode, and the like. When the typhoon mode is selected on the operation panel 52 , a typhoon mode switching command is transmitted from the operation panel 52 to the control device 10 . The typhoon mode switching command is an example of the "operation switching command to the minimum output operation". Also, when cancellation of the typhoon mode is selected on the operation panel 52 , a typhoon mode cancellation command is transmitted from the operation panel 52 to the control device 10 .

The control device 10 is a computer that controls accessories provided in the fuel cell unit 42 and the hot water storage tank 44 . Control signals for controlling accessories are output from the control device 10 to the fuel cell unit 42 and the hot water storage tank 44, respectively. Further, stored heat amount data corresponding to the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 is output from the hot water storage tank 44 to the control device 10 .

The control device 10 includes a processor 12 and a memory 14 as hardware. The processor 12 has a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and the like. The memory 14 has ROM (Read Only Memory), RAM (Random Access Memory), storage, and the like.

The ROM stores various programs and various data. RAM temporarily stores programs or data as a work area. The storage is configured by a HDD (Hard Disk Drive), SSD (Solid State Drive), or the like, and stores various programs including an operating system and various data. The ROM or storage stores a program 16 for controlling the auxiliary equipment of the fuel cell unit 42 and the hot water storage tank 44 . The processor 12 reads the program 16 and executes the program 16 using the RAM as a work area.

The control device 10 also includes a self-sustaining operation control unit 20, a shutdown control unit 22, a minimum output operation control unit 24, and a discharged hot water supply control unit 26 as functional components. The independent operation control unit 20 , the operation stop control unit 22 , the minimum output operation control unit 24 and the discharged hot water supply control unit 26 are implemented by the processor 12 executing the program 16 .

The self-sustaining operation control unit 20, the operation stop control unit 22, the minimum output operation control unit 24, and the discharged hot water supply control unit 26 have the function of executing the operation stop control step, the minimum output operation control step, and the discharged hot water supply control step, respectively. Details of the functions of the independent operation control unit 20, the operation stop control unit 22, the minimum output operation control unit 24, and the discharged hot water supply control unit 26 will be described together with the operation of the control device 10, which will be described later.

This control device 10 has a normal operation mode, a typhoon mode, an independent operation mode, and a shutdown mode. The normal operation mode is a mode in which the power generation amount is adjusted according to the learned power usage amount. Controller 10 is normally in a normal operating mode. When in the normal operation mode, the control device 10 performs control to adjust the power generation amount according to the learned power consumption amount.

The typhoon mode is a mode switched when the control device 10 receives a typhoon mode switching command transmitted from the operation panel 52 or when the control device 10 receives typhoon approach information transmitted from the management server 70 . In the typhoon mode, the control device 10 performs control to operate the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 at a predetermined minimum output.

The independent operation mode is a mode that is switched to when a power failure occurs while the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is operating in the normal operation mode or the typhoon mode. When the control device 10 enters the self-sustained operation mode, it controls the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 to operate self-sustainably.

The shutdown mode is a mode that is switched when the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 exceeds a predetermined upper limit while the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is operating in the normal operation mode or the typhoon mode. The control device 10 performs control to stop the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 in the operation stop mode.

Next, the operation of the control device 10 according to the first embodiment, that is, the method of controlling the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 will be described.

First, the operation of switching the control device 10 from the normal operation mode to the independent operation mode or the shutdown mode will be described. FIG. 3 is a flow chart showing the operation of switching the control device 10 of FIG. 2 from the normal operation mode to the independent operation mode or the shutdown mode. Steps S1 to S4 shown in FIG. 3 are executed when fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is operating in the normal operation mode.

(Step S1: power failure occurrence determination step)
In step S1, the control device 10 determines whether or not a power failure has occurred by detecting, for example, the voltage of the grid power. When a power failure occurs, the control device 10 determines that a power failure has occurred (step S1: YES), and proceeds to step S2.

(Step S2: Independent operation step)
In step S2, the control device 10 assumes that a power failure has occurred and shifts to the self-sustained operation mode. The control device 10 (self-sustained operation control unit 20) controls the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 to operate in a self-sustained manner.

On the other hand, when power failure has not occurred, the control device 10 determines that power failure has not occurred (step S1: NO), and proceeds to step S3.

(Step S3: heat storage amount determination step)
In step S3, control device 10 determines whether or not the amount of heat stored in hot water storage tank 44 has exceeded a predetermined upper limit value. If the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 does not exceed the upper limit, the control device 10 determines that the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 does not exceed the upper limit (step S3: NO), and proceeds to step S11 (see FIG. 4), which will be described later.

On the other hand, when the heat storage amount of the hot water storage tank 44 exceeds the upper limit value, the control device 10 determines that the heat storage amount of the hot water storage tank 44 has exceeded the upper limit value (step S3: YES), and proceeds to step S4.

(Step S4: Operation stop control step)
In step S4, the control device 10 determines that the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 has exceeded the upper limit value, and shifts to the shutdown mode. Then, the control device 10 (operation stop control unit 22 ) performs control to stop the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 .

Next, the operation of switching the control device 10 from the normal operation mode to the typhoon mode and the operation in the typhoon mode will be described. FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing the operation of the control device 10 of FIG. 2 switching from the normal operation mode to the typhoon mode and the operation in the typhoon mode. Steps S11 to S14 shown in FIG. 4 are executed when control device 10 determines in step S3 that the amount of heat stored in hot water storage tank 44 does not exceed the upper limit value (step S3: NO).

(Step S11: Typhoon mode switching determination step)
In step S11, the control device 10 determines whether or not a typhoon mode switching command or typhoon approaching information has been received. If the typhoon mode switching command or the typhoon approaching information has not been sent to the control device 10, the control device 10 determines that the typhoon mode switching command or the typhoon approaching information has not been received (step S11: NO), and returns to step S1 (see FIG. 3).

On the other hand, if the typhoon mode switching command or the typhoon approaching information has been sent to the control device 10, the control device 10 determines that the typhoon mode switching command or the typhoon approaching information has been received (step S11: YES), and proceeds to step S12. Note that when the control device 10 receives the typhoon mode switching command or the typhoon approaching information, the minimum output operation control unit 24 acquires the typhoon mode switching command or the typhoon approaching information. Then, the minimum output operation control unit 24 executes the following step S12.

(Step S12: Minimum output operation control step)
At step S12, the control device 10 shifts to the typhoon mode. The controller 10 (minimum output operation control unit 24) controls the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 to operate at a predetermined minimum output. This prevents the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 from exceeding the upper limit.

(Step S13: heat storage amount determination step)
In step S13, control device 10 determines whether or not the amount of heat stored in hot water storage tank 44 has reached the upper limit. The upper limit value in step S13 is the same as the upper limit value in step S3 described above. If the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 has not reached the upper limit, the controller 10 determines that the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 has not reached the upper limit (step S13: NO), and returns to step S1 (see FIG. 3).

On the other hand, when the heat storage amount of the hot water storage tank 44 reaches the upper limit, the control device 10 determines that the heat storage amount of the hot water storage tank 44 has reached the upper limit (step S13: YES), and proceeds to step S14.

(Step S14: Discharged hot water supply control step)
In step S14, the control device 10 (discharged hot water supply control unit 26) performs control to discharge hot water accumulated in the hot water storage tank 44 and to supply water to the hot water storage tank 44 on the assumption that the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 has reached the upper limit. As a result, the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 is reduced.

Note that the typhoon mode is ended by interrupt processing when the control device 10 receives a typhoon mode cancellation command transmitted from the operation panel 52 or receives typhoon passage information transmitted from the management server 70 . After ending the typhoon mode, the control device 10 returns to the normal operation mode and starts the above-described step S1 (see FIG. 3).

Further, the above steps S1 to S4 (see FIG. 3) are executed even when the control device 10 shifts to the typhoon mode.

That is, when a power failure occurs while the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is operating in the typhoon mode, the control device 10 shifts to the self-sustaining operation mode and controls the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 to operate in a self-sustaining manner.

Further, when the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 exceeds the upper limit while the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is being operated in the typhoon mode, the control device 10 shifts to the operation stop mode and performs control to stop the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system 40.

Next, the action and effects of the first embodiment will be described.

First, a comparative example will be described in order to clarify the action and effect of the first embodiment. FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the difference between the comparative example and the first embodiment. In the comparative example, the control device 10 does not have the typhoon mode, and even if a typhoon approaches, the control device 10 continues the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 in the normal operation mode.

However, in this comparative example, when the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 exceeds the upper limit, the control device 10 determines that the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 has exceeded the upper limit, shifts to the operation stop mode, and performs control to stop the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system 40.

Therefore, in this comparative example, it is assumed that the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is stopped when the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 is large before the power failure. In this case, even if an attempt is made to cause the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 to operate in a self-sustaining manner, there is a possibility that it will not be possible to shift to self-sustaining operation. That is, in this comparative example, power generation cannot be continued during a power failure if the fuel cell cogeneration system is stopped before the power failure.

In contrast, according to the first embodiment described above, when a typhoon mode switching command or power failure prediction information is acquired while the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is operating, control (step S12) is performed to operate the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 at a predetermined minimum output. As a result, it is possible to prevent the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 from exceeding the upper limit value, thereby avoiding stopping the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 (step S4) before the power failure. As a result, in the event of a power failure, the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 can be operated in a self-sustained manner (step S2), so power generation can be continued in the event of a power failure.

Further, when the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank 44 reaches the upper limit while the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is operated at the minimum output, the hot water stored in the hot water storage tank 44 is discharged and the hot water storage tank 44 is supplied with water (step S14). As a result, the heat storage amount of the hot water storage tank 44 is reduced, so that it is possible to more effectively suppress the heat storage amount of the hot water storage tank 44 from exceeding the upper limit value. This makes it possible to more effectively avoid stopping the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 (step S4) before the power failure.

Next, a modified example of the first embodiment will be described.

In the above-described first embodiment, when receiving typhoon approach information transmitted from the management server 70, the control device 10 performs control to operate the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 at the minimum output. However, when the control device 10 receives power outage prediction information such as power outage plan information transmitted from the management server 70 when a power outage is scheduled in the area of the user's home 60 due to electrical work or the like, or power outage prediction information such as power outage plan information transmitted from the management server 70 when a power outage is planned in the area of the user's home 60 due to rolling power outages, the control device 10 may perform control to operate the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 at the minimum output.

Further, when receiving a typhoon mode switching command transmitted from the operation panel 52, the control device 10 performs control to operate the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 at the minimum output. However, when the control device 10 receives an operation switching command to the minimum output operation transmitted from the operation panel 52 other than the typhoon mode switching command, the control device 10 may perform control to operate the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 at the minimum output.

[Second embodiment]
Next, a second embodiment of the invention will be described.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing configurations of the control device 10 and the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 according to the second embodiment. In the second embodiment, fuel cell cogeneration system 40 includes storage battery 46 . The storage battery 46 is charged with power supplied from the fuel cell unit 42 or power supplied from both the fuel cell unit 42 and the grid power.

Moreover, the control device 10 according to the second embodiment has the configuration and operation changed as follows with respect to the control device 10 according to the above-described first embodiment.

That is, the control device 10 according to the second embodiment includes a first charging control section 28 and a second charging control section 30 . The first charging control unit 28 and the second charging control unit 30 are implemented by the processor 12 executing the program 16 . The first charge control unit 28 and the second charge control unit 30 have a function of executing a first charge control step and a second charge control step, which will be described later. Details of the functions of the first charge control unit 28 and the second charge control unit 30 will be described together with the operation of the control device 10, which will be described later.

Next, the operation of the control device 10 according to the second embodiment, that is, the method of controlling the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 will be described.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart showing the operation of the control device 10 of FIG. 6 for switching from the normal operation mode to the typhoon mode and the operation in the typhoon mode. Steps S21 to S25 shown in FIG. 7 are executed when control device 10 determines in above-described step S3 that the amount of heat stored in hot water storage tank 44 does not exceed the upper limit value (step S3: NO).

Steps S21 and S22 in the second embodiment are the same as steps S11 and S12 in the first embodiment described above. The second embodiment differs from the first embodiment in the operation of the control device 10 in the typhoon mode. In the second embodiment, the control device 10 executes steps S23 to S25 when entering the typhoon mode.

(Step S23: first power storage control step)
In step S<b>23 , the control device 10 (first charging control unit 28 ) performs control to charge the storage battery 46 with power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 .

(Step S24: charging determination step)
In step S<b>24 , control device 10 determines whether or not the power generated by fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is sufficient to charge storage battery 46 . If the power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is sufficient to charge the storage battery 46, the controller 10 determines that the power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is sufficient to charge the storage battery 46 (step S24: YES), and returns to step S1 (see FIG. 3).

On the other hand, if the power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is insufficient to charge the storage battery 46, the controller 10 determines that the power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is insufficient to charge the storage battery 46 (step S24: NO), and proceeds to step S25.

(Step S25: second power storage control step)
In step S<b>25 , the control device 10 (second charging control unit 30 ) performs control to charge the storage battery 46 using grid power in addition to the power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 .

Next, the action and effects of the second embodiment will be described.

As described in detail above, according to the first embodiment, when the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is operating at the minimum output before a power outage, control is performed to charge the storage battery 46 with the power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system 40. As a result, in addition to the power generated by the self-sustaining operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system 40, the power of the storage battery 46 can be obtained in the event of a power failure.

Further, when the power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system 40 is insufficient to charge the storage battery 46, control is performed to charge the storage battery 46 using grid power. Thereby, the charge amount of the storage battery 46 can be secured before the power failure.

Next, a modified example of the second embodiment will be described.

In the second embodiment, in addition to steps S21 to S25, steps S13 to S14 (see FIG. 4) in the first embodiment may be performed.

Further, in the above second embodiment, a modification similar to that of the first embodiment may be adopted.

Although the first and second embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above, and it is of course possible to implement various modifications without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

10 Control device 20 Independent operation control unit 22 Operation stop control unit 24 Minimum output operation control unit 26 Drained hot water supply control unit 28 First charge control unit 30 Second charge control unit 40 Fuel cell cogeneration system 42 Fuel cell unit 44 Hot water storage tank 46 Storage battery 60 User home 70 Management server

Claims (9)

a self-sustaining operation control unit that controls self-sustaining operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system when a power failure occurs while the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating;
an operation stop control unit that performs control to stop the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system when the amount of heat stored in a hot water storage tank provided in the fuel cell cogeneration system exceeds a predetermined upper limit while the fuel cell cogeneration system is in operation;
a minimum output operation control unit that performs control to operate the fuel cell cogeneration system at a predetermined minimum output when an operation switching command to the minimum output operation or power failure prediction information is acquired while the fuel cell cogeneration system is in operation;
a first charging control unit that performs control to charge a storage battery with power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system when the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating at the minimum output;
A control device for a fuel cell cogeneration system. A discharged hot water supply control unit for discharging hot water accumulated in the hot water storage tank and supplying water to the hot water storage tank when the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank reaches the upper limit while the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating at the minimum output.
A control device for a fuel cell cogeneration system according to claim 1. A second charging control unit that performs control to charge the storage battery using grid power when the power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system is insufficient to charge the storage battery,
3. A control device for a fuel cell cogeneration system according to claim 1. a self-sustaining operation control step for controlling self-sustaining operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system when a power failure occurs while the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating;
a shutdown control step of performing control to stop the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system when the amount of heat stored in a hot water storage tank provided in the fuel cell cogeneration system exceeds a predetermined upper limit while the fuel cell cogeneration system is in operation;
a minimum output operation control step of performing control to operate the fuel cell cogeneration system at a predetermined minimum output when an operation switching command to the minimum output operation or power failure prediction information is acquired while the fuel cell cogeneration system is in operation;
a first charge control step of performing control to charge a storage battery with power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system when the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating at the minimum output;
A control method for a fuel cell cogeneration system . a discharged hot water supply control step of performing control to discharge hot water accumulated in the hot water storage tank and to supply water to the hot water storage tank when the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank reaches the upper limit while the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating at the minimum output;
A control method for a fuel cell cogeneration system according to claim 4 . a second charging control step of performing control to charge the storage battery using grid power when the power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system is insufficient to charge the storage battery;
6. A control method for a fuel cell cogeneration system according to claim 4 or 5 . a self-sustaining operation control step for controlling self-sustaining operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system when a power failure occurs while the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating;
a shutdown control step of performing control to stop the operation of the fuel cell cogeneration system when the amount of heat stored in a hot water storage tank provided in the fuel cell cogeneration system exceeds a predetermined upper limit while the fuel cell cogeneration system is in operation;
a minimum output operation control step of performing control to operate the fuel cell cogeneration system at a predetermined minimum output when an operation switching command to the minimum output operation or power failure prediction information is acquired while the fuel cell cogeneration system is in operation;
a first charge control step of performing control to charge a storage battery with power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system when the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating at the minimum output;
A program that causes a computer to run a discharged hot water supply control step of performing control to discharge hot water accumulated in the hot water storage tank and to supply water to the hot water storage tank when the amount of heat stored in the hot water storage tank reaches the upper limit while the fuel cell cogeneration system is operating at the minimum output;
8. A program according to claim 7 . a second charging control step of performing control to charge the storage battery using grid power when the power generated by the fuel cell cogeneration system is insufficient to charge the storage battery;
9. The program according to claim 7 or 8 .