KR101550290B1 - Hydrogen leakage inspection System and method using Quartz crystal microbalance - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a hydrogen leakage inspection system using a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) and a leakage inspection method thereof, and more specifically, to a hydrogen leakage inspection system to detect the leakage of hydrogen flowing in a hydrogen supply pipe, comprising: a QCM (100) having a platinum layer, a quartz resonator placed under the platinum layer and having a gold electrode surface, a quartz resonator holder being in contact with the edge of the quartz resonator and having one surface to which a platinum resistance temperature sensor is attached, a peltier device to control the temperature of the platinum layer and the quartz resonator, and a frequency measurement circuit wire to connect the platinum layer and the crystal resonator to the outside; and an integrated control part (200) to detect and determine the leakage of hydrogen using the resonance frequency variation of the quartz resonator received from the frequency measurement circuit wire. The present invention determines the leakage of the hydrogen in accordance with the natural frequency variation of the quartz resonator using the QCM, has high sensitivity to the hydrogen through the quartz resonator with the platinum layer, and easily attaches and detaches the hydrogen condensed on the surface.

Description

Technical Field [0001] The present invention relates to a hydrogen leak detection system using quartz crystal microbalance,

[0001] The present invention relates to a hydrogen leakage detection system using a quartz microbalance, and a leakage detection method thereof, and more particularly, to a quasi-static balance meter (QCM) comprising a quartz crystal having a platinum layer Crystal Microbalance) can be used to judge the hydrogen leakage according to the natural frequency change of the quartz crystal. The sensitivity to hydrogen is high through the quartz crystal vibrator having a platinum layer, and the hydrogen can be easily desorbed on the surface The present invention relates to a hydrogen leak detection system using a micro balance scale and a leakage detection method thereof.

Recently, researches that can use hydrogen as alternative energy have been carried out in various fields such as automobile and rocket due to environmental pollution and depletion of fossil energy.

However, there is a risk that hydrogen may explode by oxygen and oxygen existing in the atmosphere when leaking, and therefore, there is a need for a technique capable of sufficiently securing the stability thereof.

Accordingly, the hydrogen sensor for inspecting leakage of hydrogen gas can be classified into an electrical method using the fact that hydrogen is adsorbed to a metal such as platinum or palladium and a change in electric conductivity of the metal, an electrochemical method using an oxide semiconductor type and a gas MOSFET, There is an optical method for detecting a hydrogen leak.

Generally, the electrical method has a disadvantage in that it is difficult to explosively charge hydrogen by electric discharge, and to have a high price and miniaturization, and also has a problem that it reacts not only with hydrogen but also with other gases due to its low sensitivity to hydrogen.

In addition, the electrochemical method is disadvantageous in that a stable signal can not be obtained due to contamination of the sensor and ion drift phenomenon in the insulator, and the scale of the measuring instrument is large and inconvenient and expensive in measurement.

In addition, the optical method has a complicated and difficult fabrication process. When the optical fiber is finely processed, etched and polished, the sensor portion is very vulnerable to external impact, and the resolution and reactivity are low.

In Korean Patent No. 10-1013959 ("Apparatus and Method for Detecting Hydrogen Gas Leakage in a Fuel Cell Vehicle," hereinafter referred to as Prior Art 1), a gas sensor failure, a slight leakage of gas, Discloses an apparatus and a method for detecting a hydrogen gas leak in a fuel system vehicle that can detect a gas leak even when hydrogen leak detection is not possible and can prevent a safety accident caused by a gas leak in advance.

Korean Registered Patent No. 10-1013959 (registered on February 21, 2011)

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a quartz microbalance (QCM) comprising a quartz crystal having a platinum layer Crystal Microbalance) can be used to judge the hydrogen leakage according to the natural frequency change of the quartz crystal. The sensitivity to hydrogen is high through the quartz crystal vibrator having a platinum layer, and the hydrogen can be easily desorbed on the surface The present invention relates to a hydrogen leak detection system using a micro balance scale and a leakage detection method thereof.

A hydrogen leakage detection system using a microbalance according to an embodiment of the present invention is a system for detecting leakage of hydrogen moving through a hydrogen supply pipe, A hydrogen leak detection system comprising: a platinum layer; a quartz resonator disposed under the platinum layer and having a gold electrode surface; a quartz resonator contacting the edge of the quartz crystal and having a platinum resistance temperature element a platinum resistance temperature sensor, a peltier device for controlling the temperature of the quartz oscillator, and a quartz microbalance including a frequency measuring circuit line connecting the quartz crystal to the outside, Quartz Crystal Microbalance) 100 and a resonance frequency change of the quartz crystal oscillator transmitted from the frequency measurement circuit line And further characterized in that comprises the integrated management part (200) to detect and determine the hydrogen leakage.

At this time, the width of the platinum layer of the modified microbalance 100 is smaller than the width of the quartz crystal.

In addition, the hydrogen leak detection system is characterized in that the temperature of the quartz crystal is adjusted by using the Peltier element of the quartz microbalance 100 to desorb the hydrogen coagulated on the surface of the quartz crystal.

The integrated management unit 200 includes frequency counter means connected to the frequency measurement circuit line of the microbalance 100 to obtain the resonant frequency of the quartz crystal resonator, A control unit for detecting a hydrogen leak and determining a hydrogen leak, a monitoring unit for displaying a graph of the resonance frequency in real time, and an alarm unit for controlling the operation of the alarm means by hydrogen leakage under the control of the control unit .

A method for sensing hydrogen leakage using a quartz resonator comprising a platinum layer formed on a surface of a quartz crystal vibrator and a quartz resonator having a gold electrode surface disposed under the platinum layer, A quartz oscillator holder which is in contact with an edge of the quartz crystal and has a platinum resistance temperature sensor attached on one surface thereof, a peltier device for adjusting the temperature of the platinum layer and the quartz crystal, A method for detecting leakage of hydrogen moving through a hydrogen supply pipe using a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) including a platinum layer and a frequency measuring circuit line connecting the quartz crystal and the outside, A frequency of the quartz crystal oscillator received from the measurement circuit line is received and a resonance frequency is acquired (S200) for detecting and determining the hydrogen leakage using the change in the resonance frequency obtained in the resonance frequency acquiring step (S100) in the integrated management unit and the hydrogen leakage determination step (S100) And an alarm step (S300) for controlling an operation of an alarm means for informing of the hydrogen leak in the integrated management unit when the hydrogen flowing in the hydrogen supply pipe leaks according to a result of the determination of step S200.

At this time, after the alarm step S300 is performed, the hydrogen leak detection method using the corrected microbalance may adjust the temperature of the platinum layer and the quartz crystal by using the Peltier element of the microbalance, And a hydrogen desorbing step (S400) for desorbing the hydrogen agglomerated on the surface of the layer and the quartz crystal.

The hydrogen leakage detection system and the leakage detection method using the modified microbalance of the present invention are characterized in that hydrogen moving in the hydrogen supply pipe is separated by using a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) including a quartz crystal having a platinum layer surface It is possible to easily judge whether or not the hydrogen leak is caused by using the natural frequency change of the quartz vibrator which appears when the hydrogen is leaked.

In addition, by using a quartz oscillator having a platinum layer formed thereon, the sensitivity to hydrogen sensing can be enhanced as compared with a conventional hydrogen leak detection device.

In addition, there is an advantage that hydrogen coagulated on the surface of the platinum layer of the quartz crystal can be easily removed by using a Peltier element.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a hydrogen leakage detection system using a quasi-microbalance according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG.
FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a hydrogen leak detection method using a quasi-microbalance according to an embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, a hydrogen leakage detection system and a leakage detection method thereof according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The following drawings are provided by way of example so that those skilled in the art can fully understand the spirit of the present invention. Therefore, the present invention is not limited to the following drawings, but may be embodied in other forms. In addition, like reference numerals designate like elements throughout the specification.

In this case, unless otherwise defined, technical terms and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. In the following description and the accompanying drawings, A description of known functions and configurations that may unnecessarily obscure the description of the present invention will be omitted.

In addition, a system refers to a collection of components, including devices, mechanisms, and means that are organized and regularly interact to perform the required function.

Hereinafter, the hydrogen leakage detection system and the leakage detection method using the modified microbalance according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following, the hydrogen leakage detection system using the quasi microbalance of the present invention comprises: A hydrogen leak detection system capable of detecting a leak, and a method of detecting the same.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a hydrogen leakage detection system using a quasi-microbalance according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG.

Looking closely,

The hydrogen leakage detection system using the modified microbalance of the present invention includes a modified microbalance 100 provided at a distance from the hydrogen supply pipe and an integrated management unit 200 connected to the modified microbalance 100 in a wired or wireless manner. ).

Hereinafter, the operation of each configuration will be described in detail.

1, the modified microbalance 100 includes a platinum layer 10, a quartz resonator 20, a peltier device 30, a quartz crystal vibrator holder (not shown) a crystal housing 40, and a frequency measurement circuit 80.

The platinum layer 10 has a large surface area, through which only hydrogen can be effectively aggregated to precisely perform leak detection.

The quartz oscillator 20 is placed under the platinum layer 10 and may have a gold electrode surface. At this time, the width of the platinum layer 10 may be smaller than the width of the quartz crystal vibrator 20.

The quartz oscillator holder 40 may be formed in contact with the edge of the crystal oscillator 20 and may be formed by attaching a platinum resistance temperature sensor (PRT sensor)

The Peltier element 30 is placed in contact with the lower part of the quartz crystal oscillator 20 and can adjust the temperature of the platinum layer 10 and the quartz crystal 20. At this time, It is preferable to form a contact surface with a thermal paste having a very high thermal conductivity in order to maximize thermal contact with the crystal vibrator holder 40.

In order to continuously detect hydrogen leakage after desorbing hydrogen after sensing the hydrogen coagulated on the surface of the platinum layer 10, the quartz microbalance 100 has a temperature rising due to the Peltier element 30, Hydrogen agglomerated on the surface of the platinum layer 10 can be easily desorbed by being transmitted to the platinum layer 10 and the quartz crystal vibrator 20 through the quartz vibrator holder 40.

The quartz oscillator holder 40 can measure the temperature of the quartz crystal holder 40 using the platinum resistance temperature element 50 and the measured temperature of the quartz crystal holder 40 can be measured using the Peltier element 30 and the temperature controller 70 connected to the temperature controller 70. [

By feeding back the value input to the temperature controller 70, the temperature of the Peltier element 30 can be accurately controlled by controlling the current output of the temperature controller 70.

Further, in order to control the temperature of the quartz crystal holder 40 to be finer, the heat generated from the lower portion of the Peltier element 30 must be effectively removed. To this end, a heat sink 60 of copper material through which the cooling liquid circulates may be disposed below the Peltier element 30. [

Specifically, the platinum layer 10 has a large surface area for sensitively reacting to the hydrogen adsorption amount, and by measuring the resonance frequency of the quartz crystal vibrator 20, the amount of adsorbed hydrogen molecules can be precisely measured have.

That is, due to the platinum layer 10, when the air flowing through the hydrogen supply pipe passes through the surface of the quartz microbalance 100, adsorption phenomenon occurs on the platinum layer 10 of the water molecules, In accordance with the adsorption phenomenon, a change in the resonance frequency of the crystal oscillator 20 to which an alternating current is connected is measured.

As described above, in order to continuously detect the hydrogen leakage using the corrected microbalance, the Peltier element 30 is used to detect the hydrogen leakage in the hydrogen leak detection system using the modified microbalance of the present invention, The temperature of the platinum layer 10 is gradually increased by the crystal vibrator holder 40 and the thermal kinetic energy of hydrogen cohered on the surface of the platinum layer 10 is increased and can be easily desorbed.

In addition, the quartz microbalance 100 uses a frequency measurement circuit 80 for connecting the platinum layer 10 and the quartz crystal vibrator 20 to the external frequency counter means 210, The resonance frequency of the crystal oscillator 20 can be measured.

1, the integrated management unit 200 may include a frequency counter 210, a controller 220, a monitoring unit 230, and an alarm unit 240, The hydrogen leakage can be detected and determined by using the resonance frequency change of the quartz vibrator 20 transmitted from the line 80. [

The frequency counter means 210 may be connected to the frequency measuring circuit line 80 of the microbalance 100 to obtain the resonant frequency of the quartz crystal oscillator 20.

The control unit 220 can detect a hydrogen leak and determine a hydrogen leak using the resonance frequency change obtained by the frequency counter unit 210. [

The monitoring unit 230 displays the graph of the resonance frequency in real time so that the manager can easily determine the graph.

The alarm unit 240 may control the operation of the alarm means due to the hydrogen leakage and inform the administrator thereof in real time when the hydrogen leakage is out of a predetermined range, under the control of the controller 220.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a hydrogen leak detection method using a quasi-microbalance according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Looking closely,

The method for detecting hydrogen leakage using the microbalance of the present invention may comprise a resonance frequency acquisition step (S100), a hydrogen leak determination step (S200), and an alarm step (S300). At this time, A quartz oscillator holder 40 in contact with an edge of the quartz vibrator 20 and having the platinum resistance temperature element 50 attached on one side thereof; The Peltier element 30 having a contact surface formed of a material having a high thermal conductivity by regulating the temperature of the vibrator 20 and the Peltier element 30 having a contact surface formed between the platinum layer 10 and the crystal oscillator 20 and the external frequency counter means 210, The modified microbalance 100 including the frequency measurement circuit line 80 connecting the hydrogen supply pipe to the hydrogen supply pipe can be used to sense leakage of hydrogen moving through the hydrogen supply pipe.

Hereinafter, the operation of each step will be described in detail.

The resonance frequency acquiring step S100 receives the frequency of the quartz vibrator 20 transmitted from the frequency measuring circuit line 80 by the frequency counter means 210 of the integrated management unit 200, can do.

In other words, due to the platinum layer 10, adsorption of hydrogen molecules to the platinum layer 10 occurs when the air flowing through the hydrogen supply pipe passes over the surface of the quartz crystal balance 100 A change in the resonance frequency of the quartz crystal resonator 20 connected to the AC is induced according to the hydrogen molecule adsorption phenomenon and the frequency measurement circuit line 80 connecting the quartz crystal oscillator 20 and the external frequency counter means 210 The resonance frequency of the quartz crystal oscillator 20 can be measured.

The hydrogen leakage determination step S200 may detect and determine the hydrogen leakage using the change in the resonance frequency acquired in the resonance frequency acquisition step S100 in the integrated management unit 200. [

According to the determination result of the hydrogen leakage determination step (S200), when the hydrogen moving in the hydrogen supply pipe leaks, the alarm step (S300) can be performed.

The alarm step S300 may control the operation of the alarm means for informing the outside of the hydrogen leakage in the alarm part 240 of the integrated management part 200. [

In addition, the hydrogen leakage detection method using the microbalance of the present invention may further include a hydrogen desorption step (S400) after performing the alarm step (S300).

The hydrogen desorption step S400 may be performed by increasing the temperature of the platinum layer 10 and the quartz crystal vibrator 20 by using the Peltier element 30 of the modified microbalance 100, It is possible to easily desorb hydrogen molecules which have been aggregated on the surface of the catalyst layer.

That is, in other words, the hydrogen leakage detection system and the leakage detection method using the modified microbalance according to an embodiment of the present invention use the modified microbalance 100 including the quartz crystal vibrator 20 having a platinum layer surface Thus, it is possible to easily judge whether or not the hydrogen leak is caused by using the change of the natural frequency of the quartz vibrator which appears when the hydrogen moving in the hydrogen supply pipe leaks.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, And various modifications and changes may be made thereto by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains.

Therefore, it is to be understood that the subject matter of the present invention is not limited to the described embodiments, and all of the equivalents or equivalents of the claims are included in the scope of the present invention will be.

100: Quartz Crystal Microbalance (QCM)
10: Platinum layer
20: Gold quartz resonator
30: Peltier device
40: crystal housing
50: Platinum Resistance Temperature Sensor
60: heat sink
70: Temperature controller
80: Frequency measurement circuit (frequency out)
200: Integrated Management Department
210: Frequency counter means 220:
230: monitoring unit 240: alarm unit

Claims (6)

1. A hydrogen leak detection system for detecting leakage of hydrogen moving through a hydrogen supply pipe,
A platinum layer,
A quartz resonator placed under the platinum layer and having a gold electrode surface,
A crystal oscillator holder which is in contact with an edge of the crystal oscillator and has a platinum resistance temperature sensor attached on one surface thereof,
A peltier device disposed in contact with the lower portion of the quartz vibrator holder for desorbing hydrogen coagulated on the surface of the quartz crystal by adjusting the temperature of the platinum layer and the quartz crystal after the detection of hydrogen leakage;
A quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) 100 including a platinum layer and a frequency measuring circuit line connecting the quartz crystal and the outside; And
An integrated management unit (200) for detecting and determining a hydrogen leak using a resonance frequency change of the quartz vibrator transmitted from the frequency measuring circuit line;
And,
The modified micro-scale
Measuring a temperature of the quartz crystal holder using a platinum resistance temperature element of the quartz crystal vibrator holder,
A temperature regulator for receiving the measured temperature of the quartz crystal holder as an input value and controlling the current output to control the temperature of the Peltier element; And
A heat absorber made of copper that is disposed below the Peltier element and removes heat generated from the Peltier element and controls heat transmitted through the Peltier element;
Further comprising a sensor for detecting the hydrogen leak.
The method according to claim 1,
The width of the platinum layer of the modified microbalance 100
Wherein the sensor is smaller than the width of the quartz oscillator.
delete The method according to claim 1,
The integrated management unit 200
A frequency counter means connected to the frequency measuring circuit line of the corrected microbalance (100) to obtain a resonant frequency of the quartz crystal;
A controller for detecting a hydrogen leak and determining a hydrogen leak using the resonance frequency change obtained by the frequency counter;
A monitoring unit for displaying a graph of the resonance frequency in real time; And
An alarm unit for controlling the operation of the alarm means by hydrogen leakage under the control of the control unit;
And a hydrogen sensor for detecting hydrogen leaks.
A platinum layer formed on a surface of the quartz crystal; a quartz resonator placed under the platinum layer and having a gold electrode surface; a quartz resonator contacting the edge of the quartz crystal and having a platinum resistance a crystal oscillator holder having a temperature sensor, a peltier device for controlling the temperature of the platinum layer and the quartz oscillator, and a frequency measurement circuit line for connecting the platinum layer and the crystal oscillator to the outside, CLAIMS 1. A method for detecting leakage of hydrogen moving through a hydrogen supply pipe using a balance (QCM, Quartz Crystal Microbalance)
A resonance frequency acquiring step (S100) of acquiring a resonance frequency by receiving the frequency of the quartz vibrator transmitted from the frequency measuring circuit line in an integrated management unit;
A hydrogen leakage determination step (S200) of detecting and determining a hydrogen leakage using the change in the resonance frequency acquired in the resonance frequency acquisition step (S100) in the integrated management unit;
According to the determination result of the hydrogen leakage determination step (S200), when the hydrogen moving in the hydrogen supply pipe leaks,
An alarm step (S300) of controlling the operation of the alarm means for informing the hydrogen leakage in the integrated management unit; And
A hydrogen desorption step (S400) of desorbing hydrogen coagulated on the surface of the platinum layer by controlling the temperature of the platinum layer and the quartz crystal by using a Peltier element of the modified microbalance;
Lt; / RTI >
The modified micro-scale
Measuring a temperature of the crystal oscillator holder using a platinum resistance temperature element of the crystal oscillator holder,
A temperature controller for receiving the measured temperature of the crystal oscillator holder as an input value and controlling a temperature of the Peltier element by adjusting a current output; And
A heat absorbing device made of copper that is disposed under the Peltier device and removes heat generated in the Peltier device and controls heat transmitted through the Peltier device;
Further comprising the steps of: (a) detecting a hydrogen concentration in the hydrogen storage tank; delete

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