JPS61197899A - Metal hydride container - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To reduce the sensible heat loss through pressure container by arranging a heatexchanger comprised of a heat medium tube, a heat transmission fin and a hydrogen conduit in a pressure container while covering with heat insulation member the surface of which is coated with excellent heat insulation film. CONSTITUTION:In a metal hydride container, a heatexchange container 3 is contained through a heat insulation material 2 in a pressure container 1. In said container 3, a heat medium tube 6 is penetrated through a tubular container 5 for containing the metal hydride 4 while a hydrogen conduit 7 is fixed. In order to couple said tube 6 and conduit 7 with outer pipings 6' and 7', couplings 11, 12 of excellent heat insulation are employed. Since the heatexchanger 3 enclosed in the pressure container 1 will improve heat insulation in the pressure container 1, the heat insulation material 2 to be placed between the pressure container 1 and the heatexchanger 3 is applied with coating having excellent heat insulation and hard to transmit hydrogen.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (a) Industrial Application Field The present invention relates to a metal hydride container suitable for storing and extracting heat using a metal hydride.

(b) Conventional technology Certain metals or alloys react reversibly with hydrogen, but attempts to use the heat of reaction generated at this time for heat storage, etc., have currently been abandoned, and metals with heat exchange functions have been developed. Various proposals for hydride containers have been made.

However, the conventional metal hydride container of this kind.

For example, as seen in the conventional example of JP-A No. 58-47989, the structure is complicated, such as installing a pressure-resistant container filled with metal hydride and a heat exchanger separately, and connecting them with a heat pipe. Moreover, since the metal hydride and the pressure vessel come into direct contact with each other, heat loss through the pressure vessel increases. In addition, vertical fins are attached to the heat pipe in the longitudinal direction to improve heat transfer between the metal hydride and the heat pipe, but when the metal hydride is pulverized due to repeated absorption and release of hydrogen gas. However, there was a drawback that the contact between the fins and the metal hydride was reduced and the heat exchange function was deteriorated.

On the other hand, in order to eliminate such drawbacks, the above-mentioned publication discloses that a heat pipe is placed outside the container, a metal hydride is filled inside the container to absorb and release hydrogen, and the outside of the heat pipe is A proposal has been made for a container configuration in which a heat exchanger is attached to the container to store and extract heat, but if the metal hydride container is configured in this way, the disadvantage is that sensible heat loss due to the pressure container body becomes large. was there.

In addition, in both cases, heat exchange is performed between the metal hydride and the heat medium via a heat pipe, which increases heat transfer resistance, causes heat loss, and reduces heat transfer rate. There were also drawbacks.

(c) Problems to be solved by the invention The present invention reduces sensible heat loss due to pressure-resistant containers, and
The purpose of the present invention is to provide a metal hydride container with high heat exchange efficiency by improving the heat transfer state between the metal hydride and the heat medium.

(d) Means for Solving the Problems Therefore, the present invention provides heat transfer fins along the axial direction inside a cylindrical container through which a heat medium pipe passes through in an airtight manner, and also houses a metal hydride. Furthermore, a hydrogen conduit with a filter is attached to the end of the cylindrical container to allow hydrogen to pass through to form a heat exchanger, and this heat exchanger is covered with a heat insulating material whose surface is coated with a film with excellent heat insulation properties to make it resistant to pressure. Place it inside the container.

It is characterized in that the heat medium pipe and the hydrogen conduit are communicated with the outside from both ends of the pressure-resistant container via connection joints made of a material with excellent heat insulation properties.

(e) During the regeneration of the heat of action, the heat of reaction transferred from the metal hydride to the heat medium tube is efficiently transferred to the heat medium without being conducted to the pressure vessel because the heat medium tube is insulated from the pressure vessel. It is taken out. In addition, since the infiltration of hydrogen into the heat insulating material surrounding the heat exchanger is suppressed by the coating on the surface of the heat insulating material, heat transfer due to hydrogen from the surface of the heat exchanger body to the pressure vessel is prevented.
Heat loss is significantly reduced.

(F) EXAMPLE An example shown in one drawing will be described in more detail below.

Each figure shows a configuration diagram of a metal hydride container according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a side view thereof.

FIG. 2 is a front sectional view, and FIG. 3 is a side sectional view.

As shown in these figures, the metal hydride container of this embodiment includes a heat exchange container 3 housed inside a pressure-resistant container 1 with a heat insulating material 2 interposed therebetween. The heat exchange container 3 is made up of a cylindrical container 5 that houses a metal hydride 4, through which a heat medium pipe 6 is disposed, and a hydrogen conduit 7 attached.The metal hydride 4 is sealed inside the cylindrical container 5. For this purpose, seal members 8 and 9 are inserted between the cylindrical container 5 and the hydrogen conduit 7 and between the cylindrical container 5 and the heat medium pipe 6.

That is, the sealing member 8 is made of a cylindrical body made of stainless steel, for example, and has a threaded groove carved on its outer peripheral surface.

A hydrogen conduit 7 is fixed in advance to its inner peripheral surface. This sealing member 8 with the hydrogen conduit 7 is screwed into a screw hole previously formed in the end face of the cylindrical container 5. Thereby, the hydrogen conduit 7 can be attached to the cylindrical container 5 in an airtight manner. Note that a filter 7a is formed at the tip of the hydrogen conduit 7, which allows hydrogen to pass through but not metal hydride powder.

On the other hand, the seal member 9, like the seal member 8, is provided with a threaded groove on its outer circumferential surface, and its inner circumferential surface is formed in a tapered shape that gradually widens toward the axial tip.

The portion of the heat transfer pipe 6 to which the seal member 9 is attached is also formed in a tapered shape that widens toward the inside of the cylindrical container 5, corresponding to the tapered shape of the inner circumferential surface of the seal door member 9. Therefore.

Pass the heat pipe 6 through a screw hole pre-formed in the center of the end surface of the cylindrical container 5, pass the seal member 9 through the heat medium pipe 6, and screw the seal member 9 into the screw hole to remove the heat. The medium pipe 6 and the sealing member 9 are airtightly fixed by their tapered joints, and the cylindrical container 5 and the sealing member 9 are kept airtight by screwing together.

In this way, the hydrogen conduit 7
A metal hydride 4 is housed inside a cylindrical container 5 to which a heat medium pipe 6 is attached.

In order to improve heat conduction between the metal hydride 4 and the heat medium tube 6, a plurality of heat transfer fins are provided radially from the heat medium tube 6 to the cylindrical volume i5 along the axial direction of the heat medium tube 6. 10 are arranged.

On the other hand, on the side of the pressure vessel 1, there is a heat medium pipe 6 disposed inside the vessel.
Couplings 11.12 are provided for connecting the hydrogen conduit 7 and the external pipes 6' and 7'. This joint 11 has thread grooves carved on both the inner and outer circumferential surfaces.

The joint 12 has a threaded groove formed only on its outer circumferential surface, and the tip portions of the external pipes 6', 7' are inserted and fixed halfway in the axial direction of the inner circumferential surface.

Using these joints, heat transfer pipe 6. To connect the hydrogen conduit 7 and the external piping 6', 7', the end face 1 of the pressure vessel 1 is
First, the joint 11 is screwed into each screw hole formed at a predetermined position in the cover plate 1b and the cover plate 1b. Next, external piping 6', ? ' Screw the fitting 12 with the screws fixed into the inside of the fitting 11. Thereby, airtightness is maintained between the pressure vessel 1 and the joint 11 and between the joints 11 and 12 due to the screw engagement. At this time, if you want to make the airtightness even more perfect, you can interpose an O-ring 13 made of an elastic material between the flange of the joint 11 and the pressure vessel 1, and between the flanges of the joints 11 and 12. Good. Furthermore, the heat medium pipes 6. and 6.0 are bonded between each joint 12 and the external pipes 6' and 7' by a fixing process performed in advance. An airtight structure is formed between the hydrogen conduit 7 and the joint 12 in the same manner as in the case of joining the heat medium pipe 6 and the seal member 9 described above.

Here, the joint has a double structure of 1142 heat medium pipes 6. This is to improve the heat insulation between the hydrogen conduit 7 and the pressure vessel 1, and it is preferable that the joint 11 be made of metal and the joint 12 made of a material with excellent heat insulation such as Teflon or fired ceramics. The materials of the joints 11 and 12 may be reversed.

In this way, the heat exchange vessel 3 is almost completely thermally isolated from the outside air and sealed inside the pressure vessel 1.

In order to improve the heat insulation inside the pressure vessel 1, the surface of the heat insulating material 2 interposed between the pressure vessel 1 and the heat exchange vessel 3 is coated with a film that is hardly permeable to hydrogen and has excellent heat insulation properties. Furthermore, the interior of the whole is sealed by flange joining of the main body of the pressure vessel 1 and the lid plate 1b to form a metal hydride.

With the above configuration, during heat storage, heat from the heat medium flowing through the heat medium pipe 6 from the external pipe 6' is uniformly transferred to the metal hydride 4 via the surface of the heat medium pipe 6 and the heat transfer fins 10. . At this time, heat conduction from the heat medium to the pressure vessel 1 is blocked by the heat insulating joint 12 and is conducted to the heat exchange vessel 3 without heat loss, thereby efficiently supplying heat to the metal hydride 4. The metal hydride 4 is dehydrogenated by the heat supplied from this heating medium and returns to the original metal.

Further, the generated hydrogen gas is taken out from the hydrogen conduit 7 to the external pipe 7' via the filter 78 and stored in a hydrogen cylinder (not shown). On the other hand, during heat dissipation, hydrogen gas supplied from the external pipe 7' through the hydrogen conduit 7 and the filter 7a interacts with the metal hydride 4 to generate heat. This generated heat is prevented from being transferred to the pressure vessel 1 by the heat insulating material 2, and all of it is transferred from the surface of the heat transfer fins 10 and the heat medium pipe 6 to the heat medium flowing inside the heat transfer fin 10 and the heat medium pipe 6, and is efficiently transferred to the external pipe 6'. It is taken out and used.

As described above, in this embodiment, the seal members 8 and 9 are interposed in the cylindrical container 5, and the hydrogen conduit 7. Since the heat medium pipe 6 is provided, the inside of the cylindrical container 5 is kept airtight, and the cylindrical container 5
This prevents hydrogen gas from leaking from the Further, hydrogen is difficult to permeate through the surface of the heat insulating material 2.

Since it is coated with a film with excellent heat insulation properties, even if hydrogen gas leaks from the cylindrical container 5, it will be confined to a very small area around it, and heat loss through the hydrogen gas will be prevented. Efficient heat exchange can be expected. In addition, since the joints 11 and 12 are interposed between the heat medium flow path and the pressure vessel 1 and between the hydrogen flow path and the pressure vessel 1, the airtightness inside the pressure vessel 1 is maintained, and the heat medium pipe 6 or the heat loss from the hydrogen conduit 7 to the pressure vessel 1 is also significantly reduced, resulting in a metal hydride vessel with extremely high thermal efficiency.

(G) Effects of the Invention As described above, according to the present invention, heat transfer from the heat medium flow path and the hydrogen flow path to the pressure vessel is suppressed, and at the same time, heat transfer from the heat exchange vessel body to the pressure vessel due to hydrogen gas is suppressed. Since this also suppresses sensible heat loss due to the pressure container, a metal hydride container with excellent heat exchange efficiency can be obtained.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a side view of a metal hydride container according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a front sectional view taken along line A-^, and FIG. 3 is a side sectional view thereof. 6 1... Pressure-resistant container; la... end surface, 1b... lid plate. 2... Heat insulating material, 3... Heat exchange container, 4... Metal hydride, 5... Cylindrical container, 6... Heat medium tube. 6', 7'...External piping, 7...Hydrogen conduit,
7a... Filter, 8, 9... Seal member,
10...Heat transfer fin. 11.12...Joint, 13...O-ring. S2 figure

Claims (1)

[Claims] Heat transfer fins are arranged along the axial direction inside a cylindrical container through which a heat medium pipe passes airtight, and a metal hydride is housed inside the cylindrical container, and a hydrogen filter is installed at the end of the cylindrical container to allow hydrogen to pass through. A heat exchanger is constructed by attaching a conduit, and this heat exchanger is covered with a heat insulating material whose surface is coated with a film with excellent heat insulation properties, and is installed inside a pressure vessel. A metal hydride container characterized in that a heat medium pipe and a hydrogen pipe are led out to the outside through a connecting joint made of a material.