Systems for storing solid hydrogen

Abstract

A system for storing solid hydrogen comprises: solid hydrogen storage particles including magnetic material and storing solid hydrogen therein; an inner container surrounding the solid hydrogen storage particles; and a coil surrounding the inner container, wherein when current is supplied to the coil, the current reacts with the magnetic material included in the solid hydrogen storage particles to form an induced magnetic field, thereby heating the solid hydrogen storage particles.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a system for storing solid hydrogen, and more particularly, to a system for storing solid hydrogen that enables uniform thermal control by applying an induction magnetic field to a solid hydrogen storage material in which a magnetic material is uniformly dispersed. Background Art

[0002] The reliance on conventional fossil fuel resources and the pollution generated have led to an urgent need for cleaner fuel resources for a safer energy future. Hydrogen has received attention as one of the alternatives to conventional fossil fuels.

[0003] A hydrogen battery vehicle using hydrogen as its fuel needs to store as much hydrogen as possible in a limited space to increase the mileage of the vehicle. Therefore, hydrogen is mainly compressed and stored in the vehicle. Here, a general method of storing hydrogen is to compress gaseous hydrogen and store the compressed hydrogen in a high-pressure tank. In this way, the same hydrogen capacity can be stored under conditions of low pressure and small volume, and therefore research has been actively conducted to occlude hydrogen in solid compounds.

[0004] Solid compounds used to store hydrogen in the solid state (i.e., metal hydrides) include lithium amides, lanthanum nickel hydride (LaNi 5 H 6 ), sodium aluminum hydride (NaAlH 4 ), magnesium amide (Mg(NH 2 ) 2 ) etc. However, when hydrogen is absorbed in such a solid compound, reaction heat is generated.

[0005] The heat of reaction is exothermic and affects the structure of the surrounding solid compound, which slows down the reaction rate of hydrogen being occluded in the solid compound.

[0006] The above exothermic reaction occurs when hydrogen is occluded and stored in the solid compound; however, when the hydrogen fuel vehicle is driven and releases hydrogen, an endothermic reaction occurs to absorb heat from the surrounding solid compound.

[0007] Here, the solid compound needs to be supplied with additional heat to reach its reaction temperature. However, when utilizing the waste heat of the vehicle, it is difficult to supply heat to the reaction temperature of the solid compound. In order to solve this problem, a heat exchanger that removes or supplies heat is required.

[0008] Meanwhile, the solid compound can be filled in the high-pressure tank in various forms such as powder or granules. Here, in order to store as much hydrogen as possible, it is necessary to fill as much solid compound as possible in the internal high-pressure container. For this purpose, the following method is generally used: the powder or granules are compressed into a block-like shape instead of a block-like powder form due to its large internal pores, and then the block is arranged in the container.

[0009] In most cases, it is preferred to appropriately arrange the heat exchanger and the solid compound in the high-pressure tank so that the reaction heat occurring in the tank is removed by the heat exchanger arranged in the limited space in the tank. However, when an internal heater tube or the like is used, it is difficult to have uniform heat exchange therein. Summary of the invention

[0010] An object of the present disclosure is to provide a system for storing solid hydrogen, which enables uniform thermal control by applying an induction magnetic field to a solid hydrogen storage material in which a magnetic material is uniformly dispersed.

[0011] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a system for storing solid-state hydrogen includes: solid-state hydrogen storage particles, which include magnetic materials and store solid-state hydrogen therein; an inner container surrounding the solid-state hydrogen storage particles; and a coil surrounding the inner container, wherein when current is supplied to the coil, the current can react with the magnetic material included in the solid-state hydrogen storage particles to form an induced magnetic field, thereby heating the solid-state hydrogen storage particles.

[0012] The solid hydrogen storage particles may include a solid hydrogen storage material into which a magnetic material is uniformly mixed.

[0013] The system for storing solid hydrogen may further include: a power supply that supplies current to the coil; and a controller that controls the supply of current from the power supply to the coil according to whether hydrogen is stored in or released from the solid hydrogen storage particles.

[0014] The system for storing solid hydrogen may further include a first cooling tube formed in a tubular shape, having a coil arranged therein and cooling the solid hydrogen storage particles by a cooling fluid circulating therein.

[0015] The first cooling pipe may include: a first pipe surrounding the coil; and a second pipe surrounding the first pipe in a state of being spaced apart from the first pipe by a predetermined distance and having a cooling fluid circulated in the second pipe.

[0016] The first cooling tube may surround the outside of the inner container.

[0017] The system for storing solid hydrogen may further include a second cooling pipe which is formed in a tubular shape and cools the solid hydrogen storage particles by a cooling fluid circulating therein.

[0018] The second cooling pipe may be formed to surround the outside of the coil or the inner container but not overlap the outside of the coil or the inner container.

[0019] The system for storing solid hydrogen may also include an outer container surrounding the solid hydrogen storage particles, the inner container, and the coil.

[0020] The outer container may include: a cooling fluid inlet through which the cooling fluid is introduced; a cooling fluid outlet through which the cooling fluid is discharged; and a hydrogen inlet into which hydrogen is introduced.

[0021] The magnetic material may include a ferrite oxide (FeOx) or lanthanum manganate (LaMnO 3 ) materials.

[0022] The solid hydrogen storage particles may be formed to have a thickness between the minimum and maximum ranges of the magnetic induction region formed by the coil, and the solid hydrogen storage particles and the coil may be disposed to have a separation distance between the minimum and maximum ranges of the magnetic induction region where magnetic induction may occur. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0023] Figure 1 is a block diagram of a system for storing solid hydrogen according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0024] Figure 2 is a plan view of a system for storing solid hydrogen according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0025] Figure 3 is a block diagram of a system for storing solid hydrogen according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0026] Figure 4 is a plan view of a system for storing solid hydrogen according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0027] Figure 5 : is a diagram for explaining a heat transfer state of a system for storing solid hydrogen according to an embodiment of the present disclosure and a system for storing solid hydrogen using a conventional heat pipe. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art can easily practice the present disclosure. However, the present disclosure can be implemented in various different forms and is not limited to the embodiments described herein.

[0029] In addition, in the drawings, parts irrelevant to the description are omitted to apparently describe the present disclosure, and like parts are denoted by like reference numerals throughout the specification.

[0030] Throughout the present specification, unless explicitly described to the contrary, “comprising” any component is understood to mean the inclusion of other elements rather than the exclusion of other elements.

[0031] Figure 1 is a block diagram of a system for storing solid hydrogen according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; Figure 2 is a plan view of a system for storing solid hydrogen according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; Figure 3 is a block diagram of a system for storing solid hydrogen according to another embodiment of the present disclosure; and Figure 4 is a plan view of a system for storing solid hydrogen according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0032] refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 , the system for storing solid hydrogen according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes: solid hydrogen storage particles 100, including magnetic materials 110 and storing solid hydrogen in the solid hydrogen storage particles 100; inner container 200 surrounding the solid hydrogen storage particles; and coil 300 surrounding the inner container. The system for storing solid hydrogen according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may also include one or more of a first cooling pipe 400, a power supply 500, a controller 600, and an outer container 800.

[0033] The solid-state hydrogen storage particle 100 may be a particle including a magnetic material 110 and capable of storing or releasing solid-state hydrogen. Specifically, the solid-state hydrogen storage particle 100 may include a solid-state hydrogen storage material into which the magnetic material 110 is uniformly mixed. According to one embodiment, the solid-state hydrogen storage material may include a magnesium hydride (MgH 2 ), sodium aluminum hydride (NaA1H 4 ) or the like. In addition, the magnetic material 110 may be a composite hydrate based on ferrite oxide (FeOx) or lanthanum manganate (LaMnO 3 ) of the material. According to an embodiment, the magnetic material 110 may include magnetite (Fe 3 O 4 ) or lanthanum manganese (LaMnOX).

[0034] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the solid hydrogen storage particle 100 may be formed to have a thickness between the minimum range and the maximum range of a magnetic induction region formed by the coil 300 to be described below. In addition, the solid hydrogen storage particle 100 and the coil 300 may be provided to have a separation distance between the minimum range and the maximum range of a magnetic induction region where magnetic induction may occur.

[0035] Meanwhile, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, when current is supplied to the coil 300, the current may react with the magnetic material 110 included in the solid hydrogen storage particles to form an induced magnetic field, thereby heating the solid hydrogen storage particles. This technology of generating heat by reacting the current with the magnetic material 110 to form an induced magnetic field when current is supplied to the coil 300 is a known technology disclosed in Korean Patent No. 10-0818944. Therefore, a detailed description thereof is omitted.

[0036] As described above, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the nanomagnetic material 110 in powder form is uniformly dispersed in the solid hydrogen storage particle 100. Therefore, when current is supplied to the coil, an induced magnetic field can be formed throughout the solid hydrogen storage particle by the nanomagnetic material 110 uniformly dispersed in the solid hydrogen storage particle, thereby uniformly heating the solid hydrogen storage particle.

[0037] The first cooling pipe 400 may be formed in a tubular shape, has the coil 300 arranged therein, and cools the solid hydrogen storage particles 100 by a cooling fluid circulating therein. Specifically, the first cooling pipe 400 may include: a first pipe 410 surrounding the coil 300; and a second pipe 420 surrounding the first pipe 410 in a state of being spaced a predetermined distance from the first pipe 410 and having a cooling fluid circulating in the second pipe 420. In addition, the first cooling pipe 400 may be formed to surround the outside of the inner container 200.

[0038] That is, according to an embodiment, the first cooling pipe 400 may have a double pipe type including a first pipe 410 having the coil 300 disposed therein and a second pipe 420 surrounding the first pipe 410 .

[0039] In addition, the cooling fluid may be introduced and discharged through a cooling fluid inlet 810 and a cooling fluid outlet 820 formed in an outer container 800 to be described below, respectively. The solid hydrogen storage particles may be cooled by the introduced cooling fluid.

[0040] The power supply 500 is used to supply current to the coil 300 .

[0041] In addition, the controller 600 may control the supply of current from the power source 500 to the coil 300 according to whether hydrogen is stored in or released from the solid hydrogen storage particles 100 .

[0042] Specifically, in the case where hydrogen is stored in the solid hydrogen storage particle 100 according to the embodiment, the controller 600 may cool the solid hydrogen storage particle 100 by preventing current from being supplied from the power source 500 to the coil 300 and allowing the coolant fluid to circulate in the first cooling pipe 400 .

[0043] In addition, in the case where the solid-state hydrogen storage particles 100 according to another embodiment release hydrogen, the controller 600 can heat the solid-state hydrogen storage particles by allowing current to be supplied from the power supply 500 to the coil 300, and thus react with the magnetic material 110 included in the solid-state hydrogen storage particles to form an induced magnetic field. The size and frequency of the induced magnetic field formed here can be determined according to the type of solid-state hydrogen storage material and the temperature of the solid-state hydrogen storage particles.

[0044] Meanwhile, the system for storing solid hydrogen according to an embodiment of the present disclosure may further include an outer container 800 surrounding the solid hydrogen storage particles 100, an inner container 200, a coil 300, and a first cooling pipe 400. Here, the outer container 800 may be implemented in the form of an outer tank or shell forming a hydrogen storage system.

[0045] In addition, the outer container 800 may be formed to include: a cooling fluid inlet 810 through which the cooling fluid is introduced; a cooling fluid outlet 820 through which the cooling fluid is discharged; and a hydrogen inlet 830 into which the hydrogen stored in the solid hydrogen storage particles 100 is introduced.

[0046] At the same time, reference Figure 3 and Figure 4 , a system for storing solid hydrogen according to another embodiment of the present disclosure may include: solid hydrogen storage particles 100 storing solid hydrogen therein; an inner container 200 surrounding the solid hydrogen storage particles; and a coil 300 surrounding the inner container. The system for storing solid hydrogen according to another embodiment of the present disclosure may also include one or more of a power supply 500, a controller 600, a second cooling pipe 700, and an outer container 800.

[0047] The solid-state hydrogen storage particle 100 may be a particle including a magnetic material 110 and capable of storing or releasing solid-state hydrogen. Specifically, the solid-state hydrogen storage particle 100 may include a solid-state hydrogen storage material into which the magnetic material 110 is uniformly mixed. According to another embodiment, the solid-state hydrogen storage material may include magnesium hydride (MgH 2 ), sodium aluminum hydride (NaA1H 4 ) or the like. In addition, the magnetic material 110 may be a composite hydrate based on ferrite oxide (FeOx) or lanthanum manganate (LaMnO 3 According to another embodiment, the magnetic material 110 may include magnetite (Fe 3 O 4 ) or lanthanum manganese (LaMnOX).

[0048] According to another embodiment of the present disclosure, the solid hydrogen storage particle 100 may be formed to have a thickness between the minimum range and the maximum range of the magnetic induction region formed by the coil 300 to be described below. In addition, the solid hydrogen storage particle 100 and the coil 300 may be provided to have a separation distance between the minimum range and the maximum range of the magnetic induction region where magnetic induction may occur.

[0049] Meanwhile, according to another embodiment of the present disclosure, when current is supplied to the coil 300 , the current may react with the magnetic material 110 included in the solid hydrogen storage particles to form an induced magnetic field, thereby heating the solid hydrogen storage particles.

[0050] As described above, according to another embodiment of the present disclosure, the magnetic material 110 includes a nanomagnetic material in a powder form uniformly dispersed in the solid hydrogen storage particles 100. Therefore, when current is supplied to the coil, an induced magnetic field can be formed throughout the solid hydrogen storage particles by the nanomagnetic material 110 uniformly dispersed in the solid hydrogen storage particles, thereby uniformly heating the solid hydrogen storage particles.

[0051] The second cooling pipe 700 may be formed in a tubular shape and cool the solid hydrogen storage particles 100 by circulating a cooling fluid therein. Figure 3 and Figure 4 As shown, the second cooling pipe 700 may be formed to surround the outside of the coil 300 or the inner container but not overlap the outside of the coil 300 or the inner container.

[0052] That is, the system for storing solid hydrogen according to another embodiment of the present disclosure is configured to include a separate second cooling pipe 700 for cooling the solid hydrogen storage particles 100. Figure 3 and Figure 4 As shown, the coil 300 and the second cooling pipe 700 may each be formed to surround the outside of the inner container 200 but not overlap the outside of the inner container 200 .

[0053] In addition, the cooling fluid may be introduced and discharged respectively through a cooling fluid inlet 810 and a cooling fluid outlet 820 formed in the outer container 800. The solid hydrogen storage particles may be cooled by the introduced cooling fluid.

[0054] The power supply 500 is used to supply current to the coil 300 .

[0055] In addition, the controller 600 may control the supply of current from the power source 500 to the coil 300 according to whether hydrogen is stored in or released from the solid hydrogen storage particles 100 .

[0056] Specifically, in the case where hydrogen is stored in the solid hydrogen storage particle 100 according to another embodiment, the controller 600 may cool the solid hydrogen storage particle 100 by preventing current from being supplied from the power source 500 to the coil 300 and allowing the coolant fluid to circulate in the second cooling pipe 700 .

[0057] In addition, in the case where the solid-state hydrogen storage particles 100 according to another embodiment release hydrogen, the controller 600 can heat the solid-state hydrogen storage particles by allowing current to be supplied from the power supply 500 to the coil 300, and thus react with the magnetic material 110 included in the solid-state hydrogen storage particles to form an induced magnetic field. The size and frequency of the induced magnetic field formed here can be determined according to the type of solid-state hydrogen storage material and the temperature of the solid-state hydrogen storage particles.

[0058] Meanwhile, the system for storing solid hydrogen according to another embodiment of the present disclosure may further include an outer container 800 surrounding the solid hydrogen storage particles 100, an inner container 200, a coil 300, and a second cooling pipe 700. Here, the outer container 800 may be implemented in the form of an outer tank or shell forming a hydrogen storage system.

[0059] In addition, the outer container 800 may be formed to have: a cooling fluid inlet 810 through which the cooling fluid is introduced; a cooling fluid outlet 820 through which the cooling fluid is discharged; and a hydrogen inlet 830 into which the hydrogen stored in the solid hydrogen storage particles 100 is introduced.

[0060] Figure 5 : is a diagram for explaining a heat transfer state of a system for storing solid hydrogen according to an embodiment of the present disclosure and a system for storing solid hydrogen using a conventional heat pipe.

[0061] Specifically, refer to Figure 5 In a system for storing solid hydrogen in which a conventional heat pipe is disposed at the center, when the system reaches a thermal equilibrium state, there is a temperature difference between the heat pipe at the center and the hydrogen storage material. Therefore, the conventional system for storing solid hydrogen has low thermal efficiency.

[0062] In contrast, in the system for storing solid hydrogen according to the present disclosure, the magnetic material 110 used as a heat source is uniformly dispersed in the solid hydrogen storage material. Therefore, when the system reaches a thermal equilibrium state, there is no temperature difference between the magnetic material 110 and the hydrogen storage material, and thus the temperature of the magnetic material 110 can be effectively controlled. In addition, because the magnetic material 110 is uniformly dispersed in the solid hydrogen storage material, the solid hydrogen storage material can be uniformly heated.

[0063] According to the present disclosure, a system for storing solid hydrogen capable of uniform thermal control may be realized by applying an induction magnetic field to a solid hydrogen storage material in which the magnetic material 110 is uniformly dispersed.

[0064] Additionally, the filling amount of the solid-state hydrogen storage material may be increased by not using heater tubes conventionally inserted into systems for storing solid-state hydrogen.

[0065] The embodiments of the present disclosure are not only implemented by the above-mentioned devices and / or methods. Although the embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail above, the scope of the present disclosure is not limited thereto, but may include various modifications and changes made by those skilled in the art using the basic concepts of the present disclosure as defined in the claims.

Claims

1. A system for storing solid hydrogen, the system comprising: Solid-state hydrogen storage particles, including magnetic material and storing solid hydrogen in the solid-state hydrogen storage particles; An inner container surrounding the solid hydrogen storage particles; as well as a coil surrounding the inner container, When current is supplied to the coil, the current reacts with the magnetic material included in the solid hydrogen storage particles to form an induced magnetic field, thereby heating the solid hydrogen storage particles. The system further comprises: a first cooling tube formed into a tubular shape, the first cooling tube having the coil arranged therein, and cooling the solid hydrogen storage particles by a cooling fluid circulating in the first cooling tube, The first cooling pipe includes: a first pipe surrounding the coil; and a second pipe surrounding the first pipe in a state of being spaced apart from the first pipe by a predetermined distance and having the cooling fluid circulated in the second pipe.

2. The system for storing solid hydrogen according to claim 1, wherein: The solid-state hydrogen storage particles include a solid-state hydrogen storage material, and the magnetic material is uniformly mixed into the solid-state hydrogen storage material.

3. The system for storing solid hydrogen according to claim 1, further comprising: a power source for supplying the current to the coil; as well as A controller is used to control the supply of the current from the power source to the coil according to whether hydrogen is stored in or released from the solid hydrogen storage particles.

4. The system for storing solid hydrogen according to claim 1, wherein: The first cooling pipe surrounds the outer side of the inner container. 5 . The system for storing solid hydrogen according to claim 1 , further comprising a second cooling pipe, the second cooling pipe being formed in a tubular shape and cooling the solid hydrogen storage particles by a cooling fluid circulating in the second cooling pipe.

6. The system for storing solid hydrogen according to claim 5, wherein: The second cooling pipe is formed to surround the coil or the outer side of the inner container but not overlap the coil or the outer side of the inner container. 7 . The system for storing solid hydrogen according to claim 1 , further comprising an outer container surrounding the solid hydrogen storage particles, the inner container and the coil.

8. The system for storing solid hydrogen according to claim 7, wherein: The outer container includes a cooling fluid inlet through which a cooling fluid is introduced, a cooling fluid outlet through which the cooling fluid is discharged, and a hydrogen inlet into which hydrogen is introduced.

9. The system for storing solid hydrogen according to claim 1, wherein: The magnetic material includes a ferrite oxide or lanthanum manganate based material.

10. The system for storing solid hydrogen according to claim 1, in, The solid hydrogen storage particles are formed to have a thickness between a minimum range and a maximum range of a magnetic induction region formed by the coil, and The solid hydrogen storage particles and the coil are arranged to have a separation distance between a minimum range and a maximum range of the magnetic induction region where magnetic induction can occur.

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