KR102664114B1 - Air shut off valve apparatus for fuel cell system - Google Patents

Abstract

The air valve device according to the present invention includes a valve body having an inlet air passage through which supply air supplied to the fuel cell stack flows and an outlet air passage through which exhaust air discharged from the fuel cell stack flows, and an inlet air passage. A valve flap is rotatably installed inside the valve body to open and close the furnace and outlet air passages, and a valve body to provide heat or moisture to the supply air from the exhaust air, which is relatively hot and humid than the supply air. Includes an exchanger installed inside. The exchanger includes an exhaust air passage through which exhaust air flows, and a supply air tube disposed across the exhaust air passage and through which supply air flows.

Description

Air valve device for fuel cell system {AIR SHUT OFF VALVE APPARATUS FOR FUEL CELL SYSTEM}

The present invention relates to an air valve device for a fuel cell system, and more specifically, to an air valve device for a fuel cell system including an exchanger for exchange of heat or moisture.

The fuel cell system is a system that continuously produces electrical energy through a chemical reaction of continuously supplied fuel, and continuous research and development is being conducted as an alternative to solve global environmental problems.

Depending on the type of electrolyte used, the fuel cell system is divided into phosphoric acid fuel cell (PAFC), molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC), and solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC). ), polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEMFC; polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell), alkaline fuel cell (AFC; alkaline fuel cell), and direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC), etc., depending on the type of fuel used. Depending on the operating temperature, output range, etc., it can be applied to various application fields such as mobile power, transportation, and distributed power generation.

Among these, polymer electrolyte fuel cells are being applied to the field of hydrogen vehicles (hydrogen fuel cell vehicles), which are being developed to replace internal combustion engines.

Hydrogen cars produce their own electricity through a chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen and drive by driving a motor. Therefore, a hydrogen car consists of a hydrogen tank (H ₂ Tank) that stores hydrogen (H ₂ ), a stack (FC STACK: Fuel Cell Stack) that produces electricity through the oxidation-reduction reaction of hydrogen and oxygen (O ₂ ), and produced water. It has a structure that includes not only various devices for draining electricity, but also a battery that stores electricity produced in the stack, a controller that converts and controls the produced electricity, and a motor that generates driving force.

Among them, a stack is a device that refers to a fuel cell body in which tens or hundreds of cells are stacked in series. It has a structure in which multiple cells are stacked between end plates, and the inside of each cell is partitioned by an electrolyte membrane and one side is A cathode is provided on the other side of the anode.

A separator plate is placed between each cell to limit the flow path of hydrogen and oxygen, and the separator plate is made of a conductor to move electrons during a redox reaction.

In this stack, when hydrogen is supplied to the anode, it is separated into hydrogen ions and electrons by a catalyst, the electrons move to the outside of the stack through the separator and generate electricity, and the hydrogen ions pass through the electrolyte membrane and move to the cathode and are then released into the outside air. It combines with supplied oxygen and electrons to form water and is discharged to the outside.

In general, the power generation efficiency of a polymer electrolyte fuel cell can be maintained only by maintaining an appropriate moisture content by supplying a certain amount of moisture to the polymer electrolyte membrane of the membrane-electrode assembly (MEA). Therefore, a conventional fuel cell system may be configured to include a humidifier to humidify the incoming gas flowing into the stack.

Meanwhile, the supply air supplied into the fuel cell stack typically has a lower temperature than the exhaust air discharged from the fuel cell stack. In order to increase the reactivity of hydrogen, which is a fuel, and oxygen in the air inside the fuel cell stack, it is desirable that the supply air supplied to the stack is above a certain temperature. When adding a humidifier to a fuel cell system, not only can the supply air be humidified by the exhaust air, but it can also have the effect of heating the supply air by the exhaust air.

However, when adding a humidifier to a fuel cell system, there was a problem that the overall volume of the system increased and the system configuration became complicated.

The main purpose of the present invention is to provide an air valve device that allows heat or moisture from exhaust air discharged from a fuel cell stack to be provided to supply air supplied to the fuel cell stack.

The purpose is to provide an air valve device that includes an exchanger for exchanging heat or moisture, and has a simple structure and configuration.

The problems of the present invention are not limited to the problems mentioned above, and other problems not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description below.

In order to achieve the above object, an air valve device according to an embodiment of the present invention includes an inlet air passage through which supply air supplied to the fuel cell stack flows, and an outlet side through which exhaust air discharged from the fuel cell stack flows. A valve body with an air passage formed; a valve flap rotatably installed inside the valve body to open and close the inlet air passage and the outlet air passage; and an exchanger installed inside the valve body to provide heat or moisture to the supply air from the exhaust air, which is relatively hot and humid than the supply air.

The exchanger includes an exhaust air passage through which the exhaust air flows, and a supply air tube disposed across the exhaust air passage and through which the supply air flows.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, one or more of the following effects are achieved.

First, by including an exchanger installed inside the valve body, it is possible to provide an air valve device in which heat or moisture of exhaust air discharged from the fuel cell stack is provided as supply air to the fuel cell stack.

Second, the air valve device is configured by installing an exchanger inside the valve body including an exhaust air passage through which discharge air flows and a supply air tube disposed across the discharge air passage and through which the supply air flows, The structure and configuration of the air valve device can be simply prepared.

The effects of the present invention are not limited to the effects mentioned above, and other effects not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description of the claims.

1 is a perspective view of an air valve device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the air valve device of Figure 1.
Figure 3 is a perspective view of the exchanger of the air valve device of Figure 1.
Figure 4 is a perspective view of the air valve device of Figure 1 viewed from another side.
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of part of the configuration of the air valve device of FIG. 1.

Hereinafter, some embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail through illustrative drawings. When adding reference numerals to components in each drawing, it should be noted that identical components are given the same reference numerals as much as possible even if they are shown in different drawings. Additionally, when describing embodiments of the present invention, if detailed descriptions of related known configurations or functions are judged to impede understanding of the embodiments of the present invention, the detailed descriptions will be omitted.

Additionally, in describing the components of the embodiment of the present invention, terms such as first, second, A, B, (a), and (b) may be used. These terms are only used to distinguish the component from other components, and the nature, order, or order of the component is not limited by the term. When a component is described as being “connected,” “coupled,” or “connected” to another component, that component can be connected or connected directly to that other component, but there is no need for another component between each component. It should be understood that may be “connected,” “combined,” or “connected.”

Figure 1 is a perspective view of an air valve device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 2 is a vertical cross-sectional view of the air valve device of Figure 1.

The air valve device according to this embodiment includes a valve body 10, a valve flap 30, and an exchanger 60.

The valve body 10 forms the exterior of the air valve device and may be composed of one or more bodies.

The valve body 10 may include a main body 10a and a subbody 10b. The main body 10a can provide an internal space where the valve flap 30 is installed. The subbody 10b may provide a rectangular parallelepiped-shaped internal space in which the exchanger 60 is installed.

The valve body 10 includes an inlet air passage 11a, 11b through which supply air supplied to the fuel cell stack (not shown) flows, and an outlet air passage 12a through which exhaust air discharged from the fuel cell stack flows. 12b) can be formed.

The inlet air passages 11a and 11b include a first inlet air passage 11a provided in the main body 10a and a second inlet air passage 11b provided in the sub body 10b. can do.

The outlet-side air passages 12a and 12b may include a first outlet-side air passage 12a provided in the main body 10a and a second outlet-side air passage 12b provided in the sub-body.

The valve flap 30 may be rotatably installed inside the valve body 10 to open and close the inlet air passages 11a and 11b and the outlet air passages 12a and 12b.

The exchanger 60 may be installed inside the valve body 10 to provide heat or moisture to the supply air from exhaust air that is relatively hot and humid than the supply air.

The exchanger 60 may include an exhaust air passage (not shown) through which exhaust air flows, and a supply air tube 62 through which supply air flows. The supply air tube 62 may be disposed across the exhaust air flow path.

In general, the power generation efficiency of a polymer electrolyte fuel cell can be maintained only by maintaining an appropriate moisture content by supplying a certain amount of moisture to the polymer electrolyte membrane of the membrane-electrode assembly (MEA). Therefore, a conventional fuel cell system may be configured to include a humidifier to humidify the incoming gas flowing into the stack.

Meanwhile, the supply air supplied into the fuel cell stack typically has a lower temperature than the exhaust air discharged from the fuel cell stack. In order to increase the reactivity of hydrogen, which is a fuel, and oxygen in the air inside the fuel cell stack, it is desirable that the supply air supplied to the stack is above a certain temperature. When adding a humidifier to a fuel cell system, not only can the supply air be humidified by the exhaust air, but it can also have the effect of heating the supply air by the exhaust air.

However, when adding a humidifier to a fuel cell system, there was a problem that the overall volume of the system increased and the system configuration became complicated.

The present invention relates to an air valve device that is provided with a configuration that allows exchange of heat or moisture between supply air and discharge air. The air valve device is a device commonly provided to control the inflow and outflow of air into the fuel cell stack, with the additional function of exchanging heat or moisture between supply air and exhaust air. More specifically, in order to provide heat or moisture from the discharge air to the supply air, the air valve device according to the present embodiment has an exhaust air passage through which the exhaust air flows, and is disposed across the discharge air passage and the supply air flows. The basic feature is that it includes an exchanger (60) containing a flowing supply air tube (62).

The characteristics of the air valve device according to this embodiment will be described in more detail below.

Referring to FIG. 2, a humidifying space 13, which is an internal space in the shape of a rectangular parallelepiped, may be provided inside the subbody 10b. The humidifying space 13 may be opened at the top and bottom so that the overall flow of supply air and exhaust air is in the vertical direction.

The exchanger 60 may be formed overall into a rectangular parallelepiped shape. The exchanger 60 is inclined to the humidification space 13 so that the exhaust air flow path extends in the direction between the up-down direction and the left direction, and the supply air tube 62 extends in the direction between the up-down direction and the right direction. can be installed. That is, the exchanger 60 may be installed inside the subbody 10b so that the corner portion of the rectangular parallelepiped shape contacts the inner surface of the subbody 10b.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the exchanger of the air valve device of FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the air valve device of FIG. 1 viewed from another side.

Referring to FIG. 3, the exchanger 60 includes a rectangular parallelepiped frame 61 with openings on both sides (upper and lower sides) facing each other, so that discharged air flows in an upward and downward direction through the openings of the frame 61. It can be provided.

An exhaust air flow path through which exhaust air flows may be provided inside the frame 61. That is, the discharge air flow path is a flow path formed by the frame 61.

Each of one end and the other end of the supply air tube 62 may be fixed to one side (left side) and the other side (right side) of the frame 61 facing each other. Accordingly, the supply air can be arranged to flow from the left side to the right side of the frame 61.

In one embodiment, the supply air tube 62 may be formed as one body with the frame 61. In this case, the supply air tube 62 and the frame 61 may be formed of the same material.

In one embodiment, the supply air tube 62 may be formed separately from the frame 61 and installed on the frame 61. In this case, the supply air tube 62 and the frame 61 may be formed of different materials.

In one embodiment, the supply air tube 62 may be made of a material with excellent thermal conductivity. For example, the supply air tube 62 may be made of a metal material to effectively transfer heat from discharge air to supply air.

In one embodiment, the supply air tube 62 is composed of a hollow fiber membrane or a bundle of hollow fiber membranes, and can be provided so that not only heat but also moisture can be provided from the exhaust air to the supply air. Hollow fiber membranes are also widely used in conventional humidifiers. Gas does not pass through the hollow fiber membrane, but moisture can pass through the hollow fiber membrane. When gases with different humidity are distributed inside and outside the hollow fiber membrane, moisture is provided from one side to the other, and the gas provided with moisture can be humidified.

In the air valve device provided in this way, based on Figure 2, the flow (F1) of the supply air in the humidifying space 13 appears diagonally from the lower left to the upper right, and the flow of discharged air is diagonal from the upper left to the lower right. direction, and the exhaust air and supply air come into contact indirectly in a space-efficient manner.

In addition, with a simple configuration of installing the exchanger 60 in the space formed inside the sub-body 10b, the flow paths through which the discharged air and the supply air flow can be provided separately from each other inside the sub-body 10b, It also has the advantage of being simple to manufacture and assemble.

In addition, when the air valve device is installed in the fuel cell system so that the vertical direction shown in Figures 1, 2 or 4 is parallel to the direction of gravity, the water generated in the exchanger 60 is supplied to the frame 61 or the like by gravity. Since it flows downward along the air tube 62, water can be prevented from accumulating inside the exchanger 60 and deteriorating the heat or moisture exchange performance of the exchanger 60.

If the exchanger 60 is not installed at an angle in the humidification space 13 as shown in FIG. 2, the exchanger 60 is installed upright so that the supply air tube 62 extends in the vertical direction, or the supply air tube 62 ) When the exchanger 60 is installed lying down so that it extends in the left and right directions, the flow direction of either the exhaust air or the supply air changes drastically when it passes through the exchanger, resulting in a large flow resistance. If the discharge air or supply air experiences a large flow resistance, the flow rate decreases, making it impossible to effectively exchange heat or moisture between the discharge air and supply air.

According to this embodiment, when the supply air and discharge air flow through the exchanger 60, the flow direction forms a gentle curve, so the flow path resistance experienced by the discharge air and supply air while passing through the exchanger 60 This is minimized, allowing exhaust air and supply air to flow smoothly inside the air valve device.

In order to prevent air from flowing into the space between the exchanger 60 and the subbody 10b without passing through the discharge air flow path and the supply air tube 62, the exchanger 60 and the subbody 10b A sealing portion 64 may be provided at a portion where (10b) is connected to each other.

The sealing portion 64 may be interposed between the corners of the exchanger 60 and the inner surface of the subbody 10b. The sealing portion 64 may be formed at a portion where the exchanger 60 and the subbody 10b are coupled to each other to seal the portion.

Since the sealing part 64 should not be deformed or change its physical properties even if it comes in contact with discharged air or supplied air, an appropriate one among various materials used for conventional sealing can be used in consideration of this. For example, the sealing portion 64 may be formed of bond, silicone, rubber, etc.

The sealing unit 64 performs a function of sealing the space between the exchanger 60 and the subbody 10b, and may also perform a function of coupling the exchanger 60 and the subbody 10b to each other.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of part of the configuration of the air valve device of FIG. 1.

Figure 5 shows a cross-sectional view of the air valve device with the exchanger 60 omitted for convenience of explanation.

The air valve device may further include a valve motor (not shown) and a valve shaft 40 to drive the valve flap 30.

The valve flap 30 may include a plurality of valve flaps 30.

In one embodiment, the air valve device includes a valve motor installed on the main body 10a, a valve shaft 40 installed on the main body 10a to enable shaft rotation, and a plurality of valve flaps 30 fixedly coupled to each other. ), and valve gears (not shown) that connect the valve motor and the valve shaft 40 to transmit the power of the valve motor to the valve shaft 40.

In one embodiment, the valve shaft 40 is installed in the main body 10a, but is located outside the first inlet air passage 11a and the first outlet air passage 12a to eliminate air flow resistance. Can be installed.

The valve flap 30 is in a form that completely covers the ends of the first inlet air passage 11a and the first outlet air passage 12a formed in the main body 10a when the valve shaft 40 rotates. It can be provided.

Although the present invention has been described above with limited examples and drawings, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the technical idea of the present invention and the following description will be provided by those skilled in the art in the technical field to which the present invention pertains. Various implementations are possible within the scope of equivalency of the patent claims.

10: valve body
10a: main body
10b: subbody
11a, 11b: 1st and 2nd inlet air passages
12a, 12b: 1st and 2nd outlet air passages
13: Humidifying space
30: valve flap
40: valve shaft
60: exchanger
61: frame
62: Supply air tube
64: Sealing part
F1: Flow of supplied air
F2: Flow of discharged air

Claims (7)

A valve body having an inlet air passage through which supply air supplied to the fuel cell stack flows and an outlet air passage through which exhaust air discharged from the fuel cell stack flows;
a valve flap rotatably installed inside the valve body to open and close the inlet air passage and the outlet air passage; and
An exchanger installed inside the valve body to provide heat or moisture from the discharge air, which is relatively hot and humid than the supply air, to the supply air,
The exchanger includes an exhaust air passage through which the discharge air flows, and a supply air tube disposed across the exhaust air passage and through which the supply air flows,
The valve body includes a main body in which the valve flap is installed, and a subbody in which a humidifying space, which is a rectangular parallelepiped-shaped internal space in which the exchanger is installed, is provided,
The inlet-side air passage includes a first inlet-side air passage provided in the main body and a second inlet-side air passage provided in the sub-body,
The outlet-side air passage includes a first outlet-side air passage provided in the main body and a second outlet-side air passage provided in the sub-body,
The humidifying space is opened at the top and bottom so that the overall flow of the supply air through the inlet air passage and the exhaust air through the outlet air passage is in an upward and downward direction,
The exchanger has an overall rectangular parallelepiped shape,
When the direction perpendicular to the up and down direction is referred to as the left and right direction, the discharge air flow path extends in a direction between the up and down directions and the left direction, and the supply air tube extends in a direction between the up and down directions and the right direction. Preferably, the exchanger is installed obliquely in the humidifying space. delete In claim 1,
The exchanger includes a rectangular parallelepiped frame with openings on both sides facing each other, and is provided so that exhaust air flows through the openings on both sides of the frame,
Each of the one end and the other end of the supply air tube is fixed to one side and the other side of the frame facing each other, and is provided to allow the supply air to flow from one side to the other side of the frame. Air valve device. In claim 1,
In order to prevent air from flowing into the space between the exchanger and the valve body without passing through the discharge air flow path and the supply air tube, it further includes a sealing portion provided at a portion where the exchanger and the valve body are connected to each other. An air valve device for fuel cell systems. In claim 1,
The supply air tube is configured to include a hollow fiber membrane and is provided to allow moisture to flow from the discharge air into the supply air. delete In claim 1,
A valve motor installed on the valve body; and
An air valve device for a fuel cell system further comprising a valve shaft that is installed on the valve body to enable shaft rotation, is linked to the operation of the valve motor, and is coupled to fix the valve flap.