KR20150135560A - Plate Type Reformer for Fuel Cell System - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided is a plate type heat exchanging reformer for a fuel cell system, which comprises: a reform unit (10) in which heating channels (100) for collecting heat from a high temperature exhaust gas which is supplied from the bottom and discharged to the top and reaction channels (110) exchanging a supplied mixed gas with the heat in the heating channels and generating a hydrogen gas from the mixed gas through a catalytic reforming reaction are arranged in an alternate and transversal manner between two exterior protection boards (120); an exhaust gas introducing unit (20) and an exhaust gas discharging unit (30) provided in the bottom and the top of the reform unit (10) so as to supply and discharge the high temperature exhaust gas to and from the heating channels (110); a mixed gas introducing unit (40) and a hydrogen gas discharging unit (50) respectively provided in one upper portion and the other lower portion of the reform unit (10) so as to supply the mixed gas to the reaction channels (110) and discharge the hydrogen gas generated from the supplied mixed gas; and a catalyst outlet (60) provided in the reform unit (10), formed in an upper portion of an opposite side of the hydrogen gas discharging unit (50), and opens and closes by a cover (62) so as to enable the catalyst (C) to be inserted in or discharged from the reaction channels (110).

Description

Technical Field [0001] The present invention relates to a plate type reformer for a fuel cell system,

The plate type heat exchanger type reformer for a fuel cell system according to the present invention supplies high temperature exhaust gas generated in a fuel cell stack to a reformer and performs heat exchange with a gas mixture for generating hydrogen gas to maximize the reforming reaction efficiency and thermal efficiency, A plurality of heat channels in which exhaust gas is supplied and a plurality of reaction channels to which mixed gas is supplied are alternately arranged to diffuse and distribute the exhaust gas and the mixed gas uniformly in the reforming unit to thereby improve the pressure loss due to the flow of the fluid, And it is also possible to constitute a catalyst outlet so as to easily replace the catalyst whose lifetime has expired.

Many kinds of energy sources have been developed and used according to the development of science and technology including electric and electronic technologies. In particular, the demand for energy is increasing year by year, and energy production means using fossil fuel, nuclear power, hydro power, wind power, etc. are being used as a means of producing such energy. However, in order to cope with the environmental pollution problem caused by exhaust gas burned by fossil fuel and the energy crisis caused by depletion of fossil fuel, efforts for the development of pollution-free alternative energy are proceeding all over the world.

The use of hydrogen fuel as an alternative energy is meaningless as utilization of unlimited resources existing on the earth as pollution-free alternative energy. Fuel cell using hydrogen fuel is the core of hydrogen energy application technology, Is an alternative power generation means that can be used for electric vehicles, household use, power generation, etc., and is a means for supplying hydrogen gas and air as fuel and generating electricity by means of an electrochemical reaction between a pair of electrodes.

As a method for obtaining the hydrogen gas as a raw material of the fuel cell, a method using a reformer from a city gas or a natural gas, which is a main component of methane, which is now readily available in the case of using a fuel cell in an electric car or a household, It is possible to efficiently produce pure hydrogen by using hydrogen.

To explain the principle of the reformer producing hydrogen from methane, the reformer is equipped with a catalyst for the chemical reaction. In the steam reforming reactor module, methane gas reacts with water vapor, and carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide , And the remaining methane that is not reacted.

In the conventional reformer, one burner is installed in the lower part of the apparatus, and each module is heated by the heat generated from the burner to promote the chemical reaction by the catalyst stored in each module. However, there is a disadvantage in that a method of heating the respective modules installed at the lowermost part using the burner has a disadvantage in that a device for supplying fuel and air to the burner must be constituted. .

[Patent Literature]

[Patent Document 1] Korean Patent No. 10-0551061 (Mar. 02, 2006)

[Patent Document 2] Korean Patent No. 10-0671671 (Jan. 12, 2007)

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a fuel cell system capable of reforming a mixed gas without any external heat source such as a combustor, a burner and an electric heater through continuous heat exchange with high- And an object of the present invention is to provide a plate heat exchanger type reformer for a fuel cell system which is advantageous for increasing fuel utilization efficiency and miniaturization.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a plate-type heat exchanger type reformer for a fuel cell system capable of increasing the heat transfer area of the exhaust gas and spreading and supplying the mixed gas evenly by arranging a plurality of heating channels and reaction channels alternately in a transverse direction.

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the plate type heat exchange reformer for a fuel cell system according to the present invention comprises a heating channel (100) for recovering heat from a high temperature exhaust gas supplied from a lower portion to an upper portion, (10) having a reaction channel (110) for generating hydrogen gas from the mixed gas through heat exchange with the heat of the reforming reaction catalyst and having a plurality of alternately arranged transversely between the two outer protection plates (120) ;

An exhaust gas inflow part 20 and an exhaust gas exhaust part 30 provided at the lower part and the upper part of the reforming part 10 to supply and discharge hot exhaust gas to the heating channel 110;

A mixed gas inflow part 40 provided at one side of the upper part of the reforming part 10 and the other lower part of the other side to supply the mixed gas to the reaction channel 110, A hydrogen gas discharge unit 50;

The catalyst is provided in the reforming unit 10 and is provided on the opposite side of the hydrogen gas exhausting unit 50 and can be opened and closed by the lid 62 to allow the catalyst C to be introduced into and discharged from the reaction channel 110 And a catalyst outlet port (60).

In the present invention, the heat transfer area is increased by a plurality of heating channels and reaction channels to recover as much heat as possible from the exhaust gas, the heat of the recovered exhaust gas is continuously exchanged with the mixed gas, and the reaction channel is maintained at a high temperature The reforming reaction of the mixed gas is promoted to increase the efficiency of the overall system.

In addition, since a high-temperature exhaust gas generated in the fuel cell stack is used, a compact reformer can be manufactured by performing a reforming reaction of a mixed gas without using an external heat source such as a burner or an electric heater.

In addition, the catalyst can be easily replaced without decomposition of the reformer through the catalyst outlet, and an insufficient heat source can be supplied through the auxiliary heater provided on the reaction channel upper heat transfer fin.

1 is a schematic view of a fuel cell system in which a plate type heat exchange reformer for a fuel cell system of the present invention is used.
2 is a perspective view of a plate type heat exchange reformer for a fuel cell system according to the present invention.
3 is a front view of a plate heat exchanger type reformer for a fuel cell system according to the present invention.
4 is a perspective view of a reformer of a plate heat exchanger type reformer for a fuel cell system according to the present invention
5 is an exploded view of a reformed part of a plate heat exchanger type reformer for a fuel cell system according to the present invention.
6 is a front view of a heating channel of a plate heat exchanger type reformer for a fuel cell system according to the present invention
7 is a front view of a reaction channel of a plate heat exchanger type reformer for a fuel cell system according to the present invention.

In order to accomplish the above object, the present invention provides a plate type heat exchange reformer for a fuel cell system, comprising: a heating channel (100) for recovering heat from a high temperature exhaust gas supplied from a lower portion to an upper portion; (10) having a reaction channel (110) for generating hydrogen gas from the mixed gas through heat exchange with the heat of the reforming reaction catalyst and having a plurality of alternately arranged transversely between the two outer protection plates (120) ;

An exhaust gas inflow part 20 and an exhaust gas exhaust part 30 provided at the lower part and the upper part of the reforming part 10 to supply and discharge hot exhaust gas to the heating channel 110;

A mixed gas inflow part 40 provided at one side of the upper part of the reforming part 10 and the other lower part of the other side to supply the mixed gas to the reaction channel 110, A hydrogen gas discharge unit 50;

The catalyst is provided in the reforming unit 10 and is provided on the opposite side of the hydrogen gas exhausting unit 50 and can be opened and closed by the lid 62 to allow the catalyst C to be introduced into and discharged from the reaction channel 110 And a catalyst outlet port (60).

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, in order to facilitate a person skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains.

1, in order to generate electric energy in the fuel cell system, it is necessary to supply hydrogen gas to the anode electrode of the stack and oxygen to the cathode electrode of the fuel cell system, And the electrochemical reaction of the hydrogen gas and the oxygen supplied to the cathode electrode generates high-temperature exhaust gas at the cathode electrode from the fuel cell stack with electric energy and incidental water. The high temperature exhaust gas generated at the cathode electrode is discharged to the atmosphere through the vent. In order to further increase the efficiency of the fuel cell system, the present invention supplies high temperature exhaust gas generated at the cathode electrode to the reformer, And the hydrogen gas generated by reforming the mixed gas in the reformer supplies the hydrogen gas required for generating the electric energy to the anode electrode.

At this time, the exhaust gas, which is heat-exchanged with the mixed gas in the reformer, is supplied to the heat exchanger for generating the mixed gas, heat-exchanged with water and fuel in the heat exchanger, and then discharged to the vent.

2 to 7, the present invention is a reforming unit 10 for generating hydrogen gas by reforming a mixed gas. The reforming unit 10 includes a reforming unit 10, , An exhaust gas inlet (20) and an exhaust gas outlet (30) for exchanging high temperature exhaust gas with the mixed gas, a mixed gas for introducing the mixed gas into the reformer (10) and discharging the reformed hydrogen gas A catalyst outlet port for introducing and discharging the catalyst into the reaction channel 110 of the reforming unit 10, 60).

The reforming unit 10 includes a heating channel 100 through which a high temperature exhaust gas is introduced and passed between the outer protective plates 120 in the shape of two rectangular plates in order to miniaturize the size of the reformer 1 while maximizing the heat transfer area, A plurality of reaction channels 110 for introducing a gas mixture and generating a hydrogen gas by the reforming reaction are arranged in a transverse direction and alternately in close contact with each other so that hot exhaust gas and mixed gas are supplied to each of the heating channel 100 and the reaction channel 110 The pressure loss of the reforming section 10 due to the supply of the exhaust gas and the mixed gas can be reduced.

The heating channel 100 extends in the longitudinal direction at both ends of the front face of the heating channel separator plate 101 and the heating channel separator plate 101 having the same rectangular plate shape as the outer side protection plate 120, A blocking plate 102 for preventing the leakage of the exhaust gas by sealing the gas is provided on the inner surface of the blocking plate 102 and on the front surface of the heating channel 100 to guide the flow of the exhaust gas, The heating channel heat transfer fin 103 can be selected from an offset fin, a plane fin, a corrugated fin, and a triangular fin.

Therefore, when the high-temperature exhaust gas generated in the fuel cell stack flows into the heating channel 100, the heat is transferred from the lower portion to the upper portion without pressure loss through the heating channel heat transfer fin 103, The heat of the high-temperature exhaust gas is uniformly transferred to the front surface of the heating channel separator plate 101.

The reaction channel 110 has a rectangular plate-like reaction channel separation plate 111 which is the same as the outer protection plate 120 and a reaction channel separation plate 111 is sealed at the front end of the reaction channel separation plate 111 A square blocking plate 112 for preventing leakage is constituted.

A mixed gas inflow chamber 113 is provided inside the square block plate 112 to allow the mixed gas to flow into the upper part of the front surface of the reaction channel partition plate 111. At this time, The quadrangular blocking plate 112 at a position to communicate with the mixed gas inlet 40 is partially opened to allow the mixed gas supplied from the mixed gas inlet 40 to flow into the reaction channel 110 The mixed gas can be introduced into the mixed gas inflow chamber 113,

A catalyst chamber (C) is disposed at a lower side of the mixed gas inflow chamber (113) to allow the mixed gas flowing into the mixed gas inflow chamber (113) to undergo reforming reaction to generate hydrogen gas. And a catalyst outlet 114 communicating with the catalyst outlet 114 so as to communicate with the catalyst outlet 114 through the catalyst outlet 114, The square blocking plate 112 is partially opened.

A hydrogen gas discharge chamber 115 is provided at a lower portion of the reaction chamber 110 in the lower part of the catalyst chamber 114 and is connected to the catalyst chamber 114, A part of the quadrangular blocking plate 112 communicating with the hydrogen gas discharging unit 50 is partially opened so that the hydrogen gas is discharged from the reaction channel 110 Lt; / RTI >

In order to generate hydrogen gas by reforming the mixed gas in the reaction channel 110 composed of the mixed gas inlet chamber 113, the catalyst chamber 114 and the hydrogen gas exhaust chamber 115, the reaction channel 110 has a high The reaction channel 110 must maintain a sufficiently high temperature continuously. For this purpose, in the heating channel 100, the heat recovered from the hot exhaust gas is supplied to the reaction channel 110 So that the reaction channel 110 can maintain a high temperature continuously.

The mixed gas introduced into the mixed gas inlet chamber 113 can be smoothly moved to the catalyst chamber 114 and the temperature of the mixed gas can be easily raised by raising the heat transfer rate on the upper side of the catalyst chamber 114 of the reaction channel 110 The upper portion of the catalyst chamber 114 is provided with a reaction channel upper heat transfer fin 116. The lower portion of the catalyst chamber 114 facilitates the movement of the hydrogen gas generated by the reforming reaction in the catalyst chamber 114 and increases the heat transfer rate, The reaction channel lower heat transfer fin 117 is formed.

At this time, the reaction channel upper heat transfer fin 116 and the reaction channel lower heat transfer fin 117 can be selected from an offset fin, a plane fin, a corrugated fin, and a triangular fin.

The upper part of the reaction channel upper heat transfer fin 116 is inclined upward to one side so that the mixed gas inflow chamber 113 becomes narrower toward the inside of the mixed gas inflow chamber 113 from the outside of the mixed gas inflow part 40 And the reaction channel lower heat transfer fins 117 are formed to facilitate the introduction and discharge of the catalyst C and to facilitate the discharge of the hydrogen gas generated in the reforming reaction, And is formed to be inclined upward from the lower portion of the catalyst outlet 60 side to the upper portion of the hydrogen gas outlet portion 50 side.

The reaction channel upper heat transfer pin 116 is provided with an auxiliary heater pipe 118-1 passing through the reaction channel upper heat transfer pin 116 and passing through the square blocking plate 112, The auxiliary heater 118 having an auxiliary heater injection part 118-2 located at the outer end of the reaction channel upper heat transfer pin 116 and positioned outside the square blocking plate 112, So that the reforming reaction of the mixed gas moved to the catalyst chamber 114 can be further promoted.

The exhaust gas inlet 20 is hollow and has a hollow shape and is installed at a lower portion of the reformer 10 to introduce hot exhaust gas into the reformer 10, 30 is also formed on the upper part of the reforming section 10 so that the exhaust gas exhausted from the reforming section 10 is exhausted to the outside.

Since the reaction channel 110 of the reforming unit 10 is closed and closed by the rectangular blocking plate 112, the exhaust gas flowing into the reforming unit 10 through the exhaust gas inflow unit 20, Flows only into the heating channel 100 whose upper and lower portions are open, and is then discharged to the exhaust gas discharging portion 30. [

The mixed gas inlet portion 40 is formed on the upper side of the reforming portion 10 and outside the mixed gas inlet chamber 113 in which the one side is opened, So that it can be supplied to the inflow chamber 113,

The hydrogen gas discharging part 50 is located outside the other side surface of the reforming part 10 and outside the hydrogen gas discharging chamber 115 with one side opened, So that the generated hydrogen gas can be discharged to the outside.

The catalyst outlet port 60 is provided in the reforming section 10 and the catalyst outlet port 60 is disposed on the opposite side of the hydrogen gas exhausting section 50. The catalyst outlet And a cover 62 connected to the outside through a bolt and nut 64. The catalyst C is introduced into the catalyst chamber 114 provided in the reaction channel 110 through the catalyst outlet 60, The catalyst C to be replaced can be removed from the outside through the catalyst outlet 60 and the new catalyst C can be introduced when the catalyst C having a reduced reforming ability is replaced with a catalyst having a reduced life span, So that the catalyst (C) can be easily replaced without removing the catalyst (10).

At this time, when replacing the catalyst (C), the lid (62) connected by the bolt and nut (64) is separated to open the catalyst outlet (60), and then the catalyst outlet (60) The reformer 1 is tilted so that the catalyst C accommodated in the catalyst chamber 114 is allowed to escape through the catalyst outlet 60 and after the catalyst C is completely exhausted, C is introduced into the catalyst chamber 114 through the catalyst outlet 60 so that the catalyst C can be accommodated in the catalyst chamber 114.

The planar heat exchanger for a fuel cell system according to the present invention constructed as above operates as follows.

A high temperature exhaust gas having a temperature of 750 ° C or higher discharged from the cathode of the fuel cell stack is alternately supplied to the plurality of heating channels 100 and the reaction channel 110 through the exhaust gas inlet 20 of the reformer 1 of the present invention The high temperature exhaust gas supplied as described above flows into each of the heating channels 100 whose upper and lower portions are opened and flows along the heating channel heating fins 103 from the lower portion to the upper portion of the reforming portion 10, The heating channel separator plate 101 and the heating channel heat transfer fins 103 of the heating channel 100 are discharged to the exhaust gas discharging portion 30 located at the upper portion of the reforming portion 10 while moving in the direction The heat is recovered from the exhaust gas.

The mixed gas introduced from the heat exchanger of the fuel cell system is introduced into the reforming unit 10 through the mixed gas inlet unit 40 in the mixed gas inlet unit 40 provided on one side of the reforming unit 10 The introduced mixed gas flows into the mixed gas inflow chamber 113 from the reaction channel 110 provided inside the mixed gas inflow section 40 so as to communicate with the inside of the mixed gas inflow chamber 113, Flows into the channel upper heat transfer fin (116) and moves to the lower portion. At this time, the mixed gas is elevated to a high temperature through heat exchange with exhaust gas heat of the heating channel 100 located at the front and rear sides of the reaction channel 110 and the auxiliary heater 118 provided at the reaction channel upper heat transfer fin 116 Move.

The mixed gas raised to a high temperature while flowing through the reaction channel upper heat transfer fins 116 flows into the catalyst chamber 114 provided below the reaction channel upper heat transfer fins 116 and flows into the catalyst chamber 114 The mixed gas is brought into contact with the catalyst (C) that maintains an adequately high temperature through heat exchange with the heat transferred from the heating channel (100), and hydrogen gas is generated by the reforming reaction, and the hydrogen gas generated in the catalyst chamber The hydrogen gas flowing into the reaction channel lower heat transfer fins 117 provided at the lower portion of the catalyst chamber 114 undergoes the heat exchange process with the heat of the exhaust gas continuously while moving to the lower portion, Is distributed uniformly to the hydrogen gas discharge chamber 115 provided at the lower portion of the channel lower heat transfer fin 117, and then is discharged to the outside through the hydrogen gas discharge portion 50.

Although the present invention having been described above has been described with reference to a limited number of embodiments, it is to be understood that the present invention is not limited thereto and that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention by those skilled in the art. Various modifications and variations are possible within the scope of the appended claims.

1-reformer 10-
20 - Exhaust gas inlet 30 - Exhaust gas outlet
40-mixture gas inlet 50-hydrogen gas outlet
60 - Catalytic outlet 62 - Cover
64-bolt and nut 100-heating channel
101-heating channel separation plate 102-straight blocking plate
103-heating channel heating pin 110-reaction channel
111-reaction channel separation plate 112-square blocking plate
113-mixed gas inlet chamber 114-catalyst chamber
115-Hydrogen gas discharge chamber 116-Reaction channel upper heat transfer pin
117-Reaction channel lower heating pin 118-Auxiliary heater
120-Lateral shroud

Claims (5)

A heating channel 100 for recovering heat from a high temperature exhaust gas supplied from the lower portion to the upper portion and a gas mixture to be supplied are heat-exchanged with heat of a heating channel and hydrogen gas is generated from the mixed gas through a reforming catalyst reaction A reforming part (10) having reaction channels (110) arranged between two outer protection plates (120) in a transverse direction and alternately arranged;
An exhaust gas inflow part 20 and an exhaust gas exhaust part 30 provided at the lower part and the upper part of the reforming part 10 to supply and discharge hot exhaust gas to the heating channel 110;
A mixed gas inflow part 40 provided at one side of the upper part of the reforming part 10 and the other lower part of the other side to supply the mixed gas to the reaction channel 110, A hydrogen gas discharge unit 50;
The catalyst is provided in the reforming unit 10 and is provided on the opposite side of the hydrogen gas exhausting unit 50 and can be opened and closed by the lid 62 to allow the catalyst C to be introduced into and discharged from the reaction channel 110 And a catalyst outlet (60) provided in the heat exchanger. The method according to claim 1,
The heating channel 100 is provided with a straight blocking plate 102 at both ends of a rectangular plate-shaped heating channel separator plate 101, and a straight blocking plate 102 of the heating channel separating plate 101 for promoting heat transfer of the exhaust gas. And a heating channel heat transfer fin (103) corrugated to the inside of the heat exchanger (102). The method according to claim 1,
The reaction channel 110 includes a square plate 112 at the front end of the reaction channel plate 111 having a rectangular plate shape and a mixed gas inlet chamber 113 at the upper side of the square plate 112, And a catalyst chamber 114 for generating hydrogen gas from the mixed gas at a lower portion of the mixed gas inlet chamber 113. The catalytic chamber 114 is connected to the gas inlet 114, A quadrangular blocking plate 112 is opened at a position communicating with the catalyst outlet 60 and a hydrogen gas discharge chamber 115 is provided at a lower portion of the catalyst chamber 114, And a rectangular blocking plate (112) is opened at a position communicating with the discharge part (50). The method of claim 3,
The upper and lower portions of the catalyst chamber 114 are provided with corrugated reaction channel upper transfer fins 116 and reaction channel lower transfer fins 117 for promoting heat transfer to the mixed gas and hydrogen gas, (116) is formed such that the upper surface thereof is inclined so that the mixed gas inflow chamber (113) becomes narrower toward the inner side from the mixed gas inflow portion (40) side,
Wherein the reaction channel lower heat transfer fin (117) is inclined upward from the lower portion of the catalyst outlet (60) side to the upper portion of the hydrogen gas exhaust portion (50) side. The method of claim 4,
Wherein the reaction channel upper heat transfer fin (116) is provided with an auxiliary heater (118) for increasing the temperature of the mixture gas passing through the reaction channel upper heat transfer fin (116).

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