An airtight test device and method for a fuel cell

Abstract

The present invention relates to an airtightness test device and method for a fuel cell, including an air source, a gas supply pipeline system, a front control pipeline system, a test pipeline system, a rear control pipeline system, and an intake pipeline system; the gas supply pipeline system includes three gas supply pipelines arranged in parallel, and a pressure control valve and a gas supply opening and closing valve are provided on the gas supply pipeline, and the gas supply pipeline is connected to the air source; the intake pipeline system includes three intake pipelines, and the three intake pipelines are respectively communicated with the anode chamber, the cathode chamber, and the cooling chamber; the test pipeline system includes at least two flow detection pipelines and at least two straight-through pipelines, a flow meter is provided on the flow detection pipeline, and both the front control pipeline system and the rear control pipeline system include multiple pipelines and a communication control valve provided on the pipeline; the front control pipeline system can control the connection between the gas supply pipeline and any straight-through pipeline or flow detection pipeline, and the rear control pipeline system can control the connection between the intake pipeline and any straight-through pipeline or flow detection pipeline.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of fuel cells, and particularly to an airtight test device and method for a fuel cell. Background Art

[0002] Fuel cell vehicles have started many demonstration applications in the commercial vehicle field due to advantages such as short hydrogen refueling time, long driving range, and no pollution. At the same time, some domestic companies have begun to layout mass production lines for fuel cells, and some problems that need to be improved urgently have emerged. An airtightness meter is always indispensable in the development and production process of fuel cells. During the development process, it can obtain the change of the stack airtightness over time and test conditions, and the change of internal leakage can identify the characteristics of the membrane, etc. During the production process, airtightness is an important indicator to evaluate whether the stack assembly is qualified and is also the basis for other tests. A fuel cell airtightness meter is an essential equipment for fuel cells.

[0003] Existing airtightness meters have the following disadvantages: long test time, the range setting cannot take into account stacks with different numbers of plates, it is impossible to quickly identify the influencing factors of multiple airtightness failures occurring simultaneously, and it cannot decouple the external leakage and internal leakage under different pressures in the three chambers. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In view of the above-mentioned disadvantages of the prior art, the technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an airtight test device and method for a fuel cell, which is flexible to use, can perform multiple measurements on the three chambers of the stack, can perform external leakage and internal leakage tests on the anode chamber, cathode chamber, and cooling chamber of the stack through the pre-method and post-method, can achieve single-chamber testing or multiple-chamber synchronous testing, and improve the airtight test efficiency.

[0005] To achieve the above object, the present invention provides an airtight test device for a fuel cell, which is used to perform airtight tests on three chambers of an anode chamber, a cathode chamber, and a cooling chamber of a stack. The device includes a gas source, a gas supply pipeline system, a front control pipeline system, a test pipeline system, a rear control pipeline system, and an intake pipeline system. The gas supply pipeline system includes three parallel gas supply pipelines, and pressure control valves and gas supply opening and closing valves are provided on the gas supply pipelines. The gas supply pipelines are connected to the gas source. The intake pipeline system includes three intake pipelines, and the three intake pipelines are respectively connected to the anode chamber, the cathode chamber, and the cooling chamber. The test pipeline system includes at least two flow detection pipelines and at least two straight-through pipelines. Flow meters are provided on the flow detection pipelines. Both the front control pipeline system and the rear control pipeline system include multiple pipelines and connection control valves provided on the pipelines. The front control pipeline system is connected to the gas supply pipeline system and the test pipeline system and can control the connection between the gas supply pipeline and any straight-through pipeline or flow detection pipeline. The rear control pipeline system is connected to the intake pipeline system and the test pipeline system and can control the connection between the intake pipeline and any straight-through pipeline or flow detection pipeline. The gas provided by the gas source can sequentially pass through the gas supply pipeline system, the front control pipeline system, the test pipeline system, the rear control pipeline system, and the intake pipeline system to inflate the three chambers of the stack.

[0006] Further, the number of flow detection pipelines in the test pipeline system is four or more, and the measurement ranges of the flow meters in different flow detection pipelines are different.

[0007] Further, a control system is further included. The gas supply opening and closing valves and the connection control valves are both solenoid valves and are both connected to the control system. The control system is also connected to the pressure control valves and the flow meters.

[0008] Further, the control system includes an operation display.

[0009] Further, a pressure tester is further provided on the gas supply pipeline.

[0010] Further, a pressure relief valve is further provided on the intake pipeline.

[0011] The present invention also provides an airtight test method for a fuel cell, which is used to perform airtight tests on three chambers of an anode chamber, a cathode chamber, and a cooling chamber of a stack. The method is performed using the above airtight test device. The airtight test method includes one or more of the following test contents:

[0012] A. Pre-position single-chamber leakage test, which is used to measure the leakage of a single chamber in the stack and includes the following steps:

[0013] A1. Adjust the communication control valves in the front control pipeline system and the rear control pipeline system so that the intake pipeline connected to the chamber to be tested is independently connected to a supply pipeline through a flow detection pipeline. Here, the chamber to be tested is one or two. Independently connect the intake pipelines of the chambers other than the chamber to be tested to a supply pipeline through a direct pipeline to ensure that the gas supplies for the three chambers are independent.

[0014] A2. Open the gas supply opening and closing valves on the three supply pipelines, inflate the three chambers respectively, and stabilize the inflation pressure through the pressure control valve so that the inflation pressures of the supply pipelines connected to the chambers to be tested are the same and greater than the ambient pressure, and the inflation pressure of the supply pipeline connected to the chamber other than the chamber to be tested is equal to the ambient pressure, or greater than the ambient pressure and less than the inflation pressure of the chamber to be tested; the three chambers are inflated independently.

[0015] A3. Determine the leakage situation of the chamber to be tested through the flowmeter on the flow detection pipeline connected to the chamber to be tested, including external leakage of the chamber to be tested and internal leakage between the chamber to be tested and the chamber other than the chamber to be tested.

[0016] B. External leakage test by the pre-position method, used to measure the external leakage of a single chamber, including the following steps:

[0017] B1. Adjust the communication control valves in the front control pipeline system and the rear control pipeline system so that the intake pipeline connected to the chamber to be tested is independently connected to a supply pipeline through a flow detection pipeline, and independently connect the intake pipelines of the chambers other than the chamber to be tested to a supply pipeline through a direct pipeline to ensure that the gas supplies for each chamber are independent.

[0018] B2. Open the gas supply opening and closing valves on the three supply pipelines, inflate the three chambers respectively, and stabilize the inflation pressure through the pressure control valve so that the inflation pressures of the three supply pipelines are the same and greater than the ambient pressure; the three chambers are inflated independently.

[0019] B3. Determine the external leakage situation of the chamber to be tested through the flowmeter on the flow detection pipeline connected to the chamber to be tested.

[0020] C. Internal leakage test by the post-position method: used to test the internal leakage of one chamber to the other two chambers, including the following steps:

[0021] C1. Adjust the communication control valves in the front control pipeline system and the rear control pipeline system so that the intake pipeline connected to the chamber to be tested is independently connected to a supply pipeline through a direct pipeline, and independently connect the intake pipelines of the chambers other than the chamber to be tested to a supply pipeline through a flow detection pipeline to ensure that the gas supplies for each chamber are independent.

[0022] C2. Open the gas supply on-off valves on the three gas supply pipelines, inflate the three chambers respectively, and stabilize the inflation pressure through the pressure control valve, so that the inflation pressures of the gas supply pipelines connected to the chamber to be tested are the same and greater than the ambient pressure, and the inflation pressures of the gas supply pipelines connected to the two non-tested chambers are equal to the ambient pressure; the three chambers are inflated independently;

[0023] C3. Determine the internal leakage situation of the chamber to be tested through the flowmeter on the flow detection pipeline connected to the non-tested chamber.

[0024] D. Total external leakage test: used to measure the total external leakage of the three chambers of the stack, including the following steps:

[0025] D1. Adjust the connection control valves in the front control pipeline system and the rear control pipeline system to connect one gas supply pipeline to one flow detection pipeline, and connect this flow detection pipeline to all three intake pipeline systems;

[0026] D2. Open the gas supply on-off valves on the intake pipeline systems connected to the three chambers, and inflate the anode chamber, the cathode chamber and the cooling chamber simultaneously; and stabilize the inflation pressure through the pressure control valve, and the inflation pressure is greater than the test ambient pressure;

[0027] D3. Determine the total external leakage situation through the flowmeter on this flow detection pipeline.

[0028] As described above, the airtight test device and method involved in the present invention have the following beneficial effects:

[0029] By setting up, including the gas source, the gas supply pipeline system, the front control pipeline system, the test pipeline system, the rear control pipeline system, and the intake pipeline system, multiple measurements of the three chambers of the stack can be realized. The external leakage and internal leakage tests of the anode chamber, the cathode chamber and the cooling chamber of the stack can be carried out through the pre-position method and the post-position method. Separate chamber tests or multiple chamber synchronous tests can be realized. The decoupling of external leakage and internal leakage under different pressures of the three chambers cannot be decoupled. It is applicable to the whole stack and the short stack, and simplifies the work that could only be achieved by two airtight meters before; it can reduce the total time of the airtight test, increase the cycle time of the airtight test, and improve the rhythm of the stack production line. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] Figure 1 It is a schematic structural diagram of the airtight test device of the present invention.

[0031] Figure 2 It is a working schematic diagram of the airtight test device of the present invention for pre-position single-chamber leakage test of two chambers.

[0032] Figure 3 It is a working schematic diagram of the airtight test device of the present invention for pre-position single-chamber leakage test of another two chambers.

[0033] Figure 4 This is a working schematic diagram for the pre - method external leakage test of the airtight test device of the present invention.

[0034] Figure 5 This is a working schematic diagram for the post - method internal leakage test of the airtight test device of the present invention.

[0035] Figure 6 This is a working schematic diagram for the total external leakage test of the airtight test device of the present invention.

[0036] Description of component labels

[0037] 1 Stack

[0038] 11 Anode chamber

[0039] 12 Cathode chamber

[0040] 13 Cooling chamber

[0041] 2 Gas supply pipeline system

[0042] 21 Gas supply pipeline

[0043] 22 Pressure control valve

[0044] 23 Gas supply on - off valve

[0045] 24 Pressure tester

[0046] 3 Front control pipeline system

[0047] 4 Test pipeline system

[0048] 41 Straight - through pipeline

[0049] 42 Flow detection pipeline

[0050] 43 Flowmeter

[0051] 44 On - off control valve

[0052] 5 Rear control pipeline system

[0053] 6 Inlet gas pipeline system

[0054] 61 Inlet gas pipeline

[0055] 7 Gas source main pipeline

[0056] 8 Connecting control valve Detailed implementation manners

[0057] The following specific embodiments illustrate the implementation manners of the present invention. Those skilled in the art can easily understand other advantages and effects of the present invention from the content disclosed in this specification.

[0058] It should be noted that the structures, proportions, sizes, etc. depicted in the attached drawings of this specification are only used to cooperate with the content disclosed in the specification for those familiar with this technology to understand and read, and are not used to limit the conditions under which the present invention can be implemented. Therefore, they do not have any substantial technical significance. Any modification of the structure, change in the proportional relationship, or adjustment of the size, without affecting the effects that the present invention can produce and the purposes that can be achieved, should still fall within the scope covered by the technical content disclosed in the present invention. At the same time, the terms such as "upper", "lower", "left", "right", "middle", etc. cited in this specification are only for the convenience of clear narration and are not used to limit the scope of implementation of the present invention. The change or adjustment of their relative relationships, without substantial change in the technical content, should also be regarded as the scope within which the present invention can be implemented.

[0059] See Figures 1 to 6 , the present invention provides an airtight test device for a fuel cell, which is used to perform airtight tests on three chambers, namely the anode chamber 11, the cathode chamber 12, and the cooling chamber 13 of the fuel cell stack 1. The test contents usually include external leakage of a single chamber, internal leakage between chambers, and total external leakage of the three chambers.

[0060] The airtight test device of the present invention includes an air source, a supply gas pipeline system 2, a front control pipeline system 3, a test pipeline system 4, a rear control pipeline system 5, and an intake pipeline system 6; the supply gas pipeline system 2 includes three parallel supply gas pipelines 21, and a pressure control valve 22 and a supply gas on-off valve 23 are provided on the supply gas pipeline 21, and the supply gas pipeline 21 is connected to the air source; the intake pipeline system 6 includes three intake pipelines 61, and the three intake pipelines 61 are respectively connected to the anode chamber 11, the cathode chamber 12, and the cooling chamber 13; the test pipeline system 4 includes at least two flow detection pipelines 42 and at least two straight-through pipelines 41, a flow meter 43 is provided on the flow detection pipeline 42, and both the front control pipeline system 3 and the rear control pipeline system 5 include multiple pipelines and a communication control valve 8 provided on the pipelines; the front control pipeline system 3 connects the supply gas pipeline system 2 and the test pipeline system 4 and can control the connection between the supply gas pipeline 21 and any straight-through pipeline 41 or flow detection pipeline 42, and the rear control pipeline system 5 connects the intake pipeline system 6 and the test pipeline system 4 and can control the connection between the intake pipeline 61 and any straight-through pipeline 41 or flow detection pipeline 42; the gas provided by the air source can sequentially pass through the supply gas pipeline system 2, the front control pipeline system 3, the test pipeline system 4, the rear control pipeline system 5, and the intake pipeline system 6 to inflate the three chambers of the fuel cell stack 1. Among them, the flow meter 43 can measure both positive and reverse flow rates. Preferably, on-off control valves 44 are provided on both the straight-through pipeline 41 and the flow detection pipeline 42 to facilitate independent on-off control of the straight-through pipeline 41 and the flow detection pipeline 42 and avoid mutual influence.

[0061] The airtight test device involved in the present invention can perform multiple tests on the stack 1, and can adopt the front method or the rear method to measure items such as external leakage, internal leakage, and total external leakage of the three chambers of the stack 1. The test methods include the following: A. Single-chamber leakage test by the front method; B. External leakage test by the front method; C. Internal leakage test by the rear method; and D. Total external leakage test.

[0062] A. Single-chamber internal leakage test by the front method: Refer to Figure 2 and Figure 3 , which is used to measure the leakage of a single chamber in the stack 1, and includes the following steps:

[0063] A1. Adjust the connection control valves 8 in the front control pipeline 3 and the rear control pipeline 5 so that the intake pipeline 61 connected to the chamber to be tested is independently connected to a supply pipeline 21 through a flow detection pipeline 42. The formed channel (the part extending from the supply pipeline 21 channel to the chamber to be tested) can be called the working inflation channel. Among them, the chamber to be tested is one or two. The intake pipeline 61 of the non-chamber to be tested is independently connected to a supply pipeline 21 through a direct pipeline 41. The formed channel can be called the working inflation channel. The working inflation channel is used for the gas of the gas source to flow into the chamber. The working inflation channels of the three chambers are kept independent to ensure the independent gas supply of the three chambers. Specifically, refer to Figure 2 , taking the cathode chamber 12 and the anode chamber 11 as the chambers to be tested and the cooling chamber 13 as the non-chamber to be tested. During operation, the on-off control valves 44 on the flow detection pipelines 42 and the direct pipelines 41 connected to the three chambers should be opened, while the on-off control valves 44 on the remaining flow detection pipelines 42 and direct pipelines 41 (if any) can be kept closed to ensure that the working inflation channels of each chamber can be kept independent and will not affect each other.

[0064] A2. Open the gas supply on-off valves 23 on the three supply pipelines 21 to inflate the three chambers respectively, and stabilize the inflation pressure through the pressure control valve 22 so that the inflation pressures of the supply pipelines 21 connected to the chambers to be tested are the same and greater than the ambient pressure, and the inflation pressures of the supply pipelines 21 connected to the non-chambers to be tested are greater than or equal to the ambient pressure, or greater than the ambient pressure and less than the inflation pressure of the chamber to be tested; the three chambers are inflated independently. Specifically, refer to Figure 2 , the inflation pressures of the anode chamber 11 and the cathode chamber 12 are set at 100 kpag (gauge pressure, relative to the ambient pressure), while the inflation pressure of the cooling chamber 13 is set at 0 kpag, that is, the same as the ambient pressure of the stack 1. Figure 2 The high-pressure inflation in is shown by thickening the pipeline. During the test, it is necessary to keep the inflation in a stable state. Specifically, after a specified time, the flow rate change of the flowmeter 43 is stable within a certain specified range. For example, after 3 minutes, the flow rate change per 1 minute is less than 0.5% RD to determine whether the inflation is stable.

[0065] A3. Determine the leakage situation of the chamber to be measured through the flowmeter 43 on the flow detection pipeline 42 connected to the chamber to be measured, including external leakage of the chamber to be measured and internal leakage between the chamber to be measured and non-chambers to be measured. Specifically, refer to Figure 2 , since the pressures in the anode chamber 11 and the cathode chamber 12 are the same and there will be no internal leakage between them, while the pressure in the cooling chamber 13 is low. If there is internal leakage between the anode chamber 11 and the cooling chamber 13 and the anode chamber 11 has external leakage, then a gas flow path will be generated in the flow detection pipeline 42 corresponding to the anode chamber 11. Through the reading of the flowmeter 43 on it, the amount of gas leaked from the anode chamber 11 at this time can be determined, so as to determine the leakage situation of the anode chamber 11. The leakage at this time is the sum of the external leakage of the anode chamber 11 itself and the internal leakage from the anode chamber 11 to the cooling chamber 13. Similarly, through the reading of the flowmeter 43 on the flow detection pipeline 42 corresponding to the cathode chamber 12, the leakage situation of the cathode chamber 12 can be determined. At this time, if the external leakage of the anode chamber 11 itself and the external leakage of the cathode chamber 12 itself are obtained through other testing methods, then by subtraction, the internal leakage from the anode chamber 11 to the cooling chamber 13 and the internal leakage from the cathode chamber 12 to the cooling chamber 13 can be obtained. In other embodiments, when the non-chamber to be measured is greater than the ambient pressure and less than the inflation pressure of the chamber to be measured, the non-chamber to be measured will also have a certain amount of external leakage during the measurement process. At this time, the leakage of the chamber to be measured is affected by the external leakage of the non-chamber to be measured. After obtaining the external leakage of the non-chamber to be measured subsequently, this part can be removed to eliminate the influence of the external leakage of the non-chamber to be measured, and the leakage of the chamber to be measured plus the internal leakage between it and the non-chamber to be measured can also be obtained.

[0066] For the case where there is only one chamber to be measured, for example, if the chamber to be measured is only the anode chamber 11, its testing principle is the same as Figure 2 and is basically the same. The leakage situation of the chamber to be measured obtained includes three parts, namely the external leakage of the anode chamber 11 itself, the internal leakage from the anode chamber 11 to the cooling chamber 13, and the internal leakage from the anode chamber 11 to the cathode chamber 12.

[0067] Figure 2 completed the testing of the anode chamber 11 and the cathode chamber 12, and then the chamber to be measured can be switched, taking the anode chamber 11 and the cooling chamber 13 as the chambers to be measured. Refer to Figure 3 , at this time, only the corresponding connection control valves 8 in the front control pipeline system 3 and the rear control pipeline system 5 need to be adjusted, change the air inlet pipeline 61 on the cathode chamber 12 to be connected to a gas supply pipeline 21 through a straight pipeline 41, and change the air inlet pipeline 61 on the cooling chamber 13 to be connected to a gas supply pipeline 21 through a flow detection pipeline 42. At this time, what is obtained is the sum of the external leakage of the anode chamber 11 itself and the internal leakage from the anode chamber 11 to the cooling chamber, as well as the sum of the external leakage of the cooling chamber 13 itself and the internal leakage from the cooling chamber 13 to the cathode chamber 12.

[0068] Thus, through the above-mentioned A pre-position method single-chamber leakage test, the leakage measurement of the three chambers of the stack 1 can be completely carried out. Each time, only a single chamber can be tested, or two chambers can be tested simultaneously. In this part, since the flowmeter 43 is located on the high-pressure side of the chamber during measurement and the pipeline pressure where it is located is greater than the ambient pressure, it is called the pre-position method measurement.

[0069] B. Pre-position method external leakage test: Refer to Figure 4 , which is used to measure the external leakage of a single chamber and includes the following steps:

[0070] B1. Adjust the connection control valves 8 in the front control pipeline 3 and the rear control pipeline 5 so that the intake pipeline 61 connected to the chamber to be tested is independently connected to a supply pipeline 21 through a flow detection pipeline 42. The formed channel can be called the working inflation channel. The intake pipeline 61 not connected to the chamber to be tested is independently connected to a supply pipeline 21 through a direct pipeline 41. The formed channel can be called the working inflation channel to ensure the independence of the gas supply for each chamber. Among them, the chamber to be tested can be one or two. When the test pipeline 4 includes three or more flow detection pipelines 42, the chamber to be tested can also be three, and there is no chamber not to be tested at this time. Specifically, refer to Figure 4 , taking the anode chamber 11 and the cooling chamber 13 as the chambers to be tested as an example, the cathode chamber 12 is the chamber not to be tested. During operation, the on-off control valves 44 on the flow detection pipelines 42 and the direct pipelines 41 connected to the three chambers should be opened, while the on-off control valves 44 on the remaining flow detection pipelines 42 and direct pipelines 41 (if any) can be kept closed to ensure that the working inflation channels of each chamber can be independent and will not affect each other.

[0071] B2. Open the gas supply on-off valves 23 on the three supply pipelines 21 to inflate the three chambers respectively, and stabilize the inflation pressure through the pressure control valve 22 so that the inflation pressures of the three supply pipelines 21 are the same and greater than the ambient pressure; the three chambers are inflated independently. Specifically, refer to Figure 4 , and the inflation pressure is set at 200 kpag. Figure 4 The high-pressure inflation in is shown by thickening the pipeline.

[0072] B3. Determine the external leakage situation of the chamber to be tested through the flowmeter 43 on the flow detection pipeline 42 connected to the chamber to be tested. Specifically, refer to Figure 4 , since the pressures inside the anode chamber 11, the cathode chamber 12, and the cooling chamber 13 are the same and there will be no internal leakage between them. When there is external leakage, gas flow will occur. The gas volume of the external leakage is reflected by the flowmeters 43 on the flow detection pipelines 42 corresponding to the three chambers. Therefore, the external leakage situation of the three chambers is determined through the readings of the corresponding flowmeters 43.

[0073] Thus, through the above-mentioned external leakage test part of the B pre-position method, the external leakage situation of each chamber can be obtained. Combining the data of the single-chamber leakage test part of the above-mentioned A pre-position method, the internal leakage situation of any chamber to the other two chambers can be determined. In this test part, since the flowmeter 43 is located on the high-pressure side of the chamber during measurement and the pipeline pressure where it is located is greater than the ambient pressure, it is also a pre-position method measurement.

[0074] C. Post-position method internal leakage test: Refer to Figure 5 , which is used to test the internal leakage of one chamber to the other two chambers respectively, and includes the following steps:

[0075] C1. Adjust the connection control valves 8 in the front control pipeline 3 and the rear control pipeline 5 so that the intake pipeline 61 connected to the chamber to be tested is independently connected to a supply pipeline 21 through a straight pipeline 41. The passage formed can be called the working inflation channel. The intake pipeline 61 not connected to the chamber to be tested is independently connected to a supply pipeline 21 through a flow detection pipeline 42. The passage formed can be called the working inflation channel. The working inflation channels of the three chambers are independent of each other to ensure that the gas supply of each chamber is independent. Specifically, refer to Figure 5 , taking the cathode chamber 12 as an example of the chamber to be tested, the anode chamber 11 and the cooling chamber 13 are non-chambers to be tested. During operation, the on-off control valves 44 on the flow detection pipelines 42 and the straight pipelines 41 connected to the three chambers should be opened, while the on-off control valves 44 on the remaining flow detection pipelines 42 and straight pipelines 41 (if any) can be kept closed to ensure that the working inflation channels of each chamber can be independent of each other and will not affect each other.

[0076] C2. Open the gas supply on-off valves 23 on the three supply pipelines 21 to inflate the three chambers respectively, and stabilize the inflation pressure through the pressure control valve 22 so that the inflation pressure of the supply pipeline 21 connected to the chamber to be tested is the same and greater than the ambient pressure, and the inflation pressure of the supply pipelines 21 connected to the two non-chambers to be tested is equal to the ambient pressure; the three chambers are inflated independently. Specifically, refer to Figure 5 , the inflation pressures of the anode chamber 11 and the cooling chamber 13 are set at 0 kpag, the same as the ambient pressure, while the inflation pressure of the cathode chamber 12 is set at 100 kpag, Figure 5 The high-pressure inflation in

[0077] C3. Determine the internal leakage situation of the chamber to be tested through the flowmeter 43 on the flow detection pipeline 42 connected to the non-chamber to be tested. Specifically, refer to Figure 5, since the pressures in the anode chamber 11 and the cooling chamber 13 are the same as the ambient pressure, there will be no external leakage problem. However, the pressure in the cathode chamber 12 is greater than that in the anode chamber 11. If there is a leakage between the cathode chamber 12 and the anode chamber 11, gas will enter the anode chamber 11 from the cathode chamber 12, resulting in gas flow in the direction of the flowmeter 43 corresponding to the anode chamber 11. The reading of the flowmeter 43 only reflects the amount of gas leaking from the cathode chamber 12 to the anode chamber 11. Therefore, the internal leakage of the cathode chamber 12 to the anode chamber 11 is determined by the reading of the flowmeter 43 on the flow detection pipeline 42 corresponding to the anode chamber 11. Similarly, the internal leakage of the cathode chamber 12 to the cooling chamber 13 is determined by the reading of the flowmeter 43 on the flow detection pipeline 42 corresponding to the cooling chamber 13.

[0078] Figure 5 In the example of , the internal leakage test of the cathode chamber 12 is given. When it is necessary to test the anode chamber 11 or the cooling chamber 13, it can be achieved by adjusting the communication control valve 8 in the front control pipeline system 3 and the rear control pipeline system 5, making the anode chamber 11 or the cooling chamber 13 the chamber to be tested, which is flexible and convenient to operate.

[0079] In this test part, since the flowmeter 43 is located on the low-pressure side of the chamber during measurement and the pressure in the pipeline where it is located is the ambient pressure, it is called the post-position method measurement.

[0080] D. Total external leakage test: Used to measure the total external leakage of the three chambers of the fuel cell stack 1. See Figure 5 , including the following steps:

[0081] D1. Adjust the communication control valve 8 in the front control pipeline system 3 and the rear control pipeline system 5 to connect a gas supply pipeline 21 with a flow detection pipeline 42, and connect this flow detection pipeline 42 to all three gas inlet pipeline systems 6.

[0082] D2. Open the gas supply on-off valve 23 on the gas inlet pipeline system 6 connected to the three chambers, and simultaneously inflate the anode chamber 11, the cathode chamber 12, and the cooling chamber 13, and stabilize the inflation pressure through the pressure control valve 22, and the inflation pressure is greater than the test ambient pressure.

[0083] D3. Determine the total external leakage situation through the flowmeter 43 on this flow detection pipeline 42. See Figure 5 , since the pressures in the anode chamber 11, the cathode chamber 12, and the cooling chamber 13 are the same, there will be no internal leakage problem. Therefore, when there is external leakage in the anode chamber 11, the cathode chamber 12, and the cooling chamber 13, gas flow will be generated in the connected flow detection pipeline 42. Therefore, the total external leakage of the three chambers can be determined through the flowmeter 43 on the flow detection pipeline 42.

[0084] In this part of the test, since the flow meter 43 is located on the high-pressure side of the chamber during measurement, the pipeline pressure in which it is located is greater than the ambient pressure, and therefore it is also measured using the pre-position method.

[0085] During the above tests, when measuring through the flow meter 43 reading, the inflation needs to maintain a stable state. Specifically, the stability of the inflation can be determined by the flow change of the flow meter 43 being stable within a specified range after a specified period of time, for example, after 3 minutes, the flow change per minute is less than 0.5% RD.

[0086] As a preferred design, in this embodiment, see Figure 1 There are four or more flow detection pipelines 42 in the test pipeline system 4, and the flowmeters 43 in different flow detection pipelines 42 have different measurement ranges. Therefore, when testing, the flow detection pipeline 42 with a flowmeter 43 having a suitable measurement range can be selected according to the actual situation, and the highest accuracy is taken as the principle. For example, if the flow value measured by the large flow is lower than its effective flow, the small flowmeter 43 is switched. Among them, there can also be multiple straight-through pipelines 41, which can be easily switched.

[0087] As a preferred design, in this embodiment, see Figure 1 , and also includes a control system. The air supply on-off valve 23, the on-off control valve 44 and the connection control valve 8 are all solenoid valves, and are all connected to the control system. The control system is also connected to the pressure control valve 22 and the flow meter 43. In this way, the control system can control the automatic switching of the air supply on-off valve 23, the on-off control valve 44 and the connection control valve 8, and can control the automatic adjustment of the pressure control valve 22, thereby realizing remote automatic control of the test work. Furthermore, a pressure tester 24 is also provided on the air supply pipeline 21. The pressure tester 24 is preferably a pressure sensor, and is connected to the control system to input the detection signal into the control system.

[0088] Preferably, the control system includes an intelligent operation display with a UI interface. The UI interface has clear interface operation and display functions, can display the pressure curve in the gas supply pipeline 21, and the flow curve of the flow meter 43 (displaying the corresponding flow name according to the different flow detection pipelines 42 used during the test), and has the function of recording curve data, which is convenient for the operator's operation and calculation. Pressure control can be achieved through the UI interface, and the pressure can be input through the interface, or defined by the corresponding test configuration file to control the connection control valve 8 to set the pressure. The test process configuration file can be written through the UI, the test content can be defined, and the test can be automatically performed according to the test configuration file, or some single test applications can be defined. The defined test configuration file, including the pipeline connectivity during the test and the pressure setting, can automatically determine whether the inflation is stable (after 3 minutes, the flow change per 1 minute is less than 0.5% RD).

[0089] In this embodiment, referring to Figure 1 As a preferred design, a pressure relief valve (not shown in the drawings) is further provided on the intake pipeline 61, and there is also protection against the highest pressure and pressure difference, so as to protect the three chambers in the fuel cell stack 1 and avoid damage to the chambers due to excessive inflation pressure. Preferably, the airtightness testing device further includes instruments for testing the temperature and humidity of the ambient pressure, which are used as reference data when calculating and evaluating the airtightness of the chambers in the fuel cell stack 1.

[0090] In the present invention, the types of gases of the gas source can be various. Specifically, air, nitrogen, hydrogen, or helium can be used, etc. Preferably, multiple gas sources with different gases can be set, and the gas supply system 2 is connected to different gas sources through the gas source main pipe 7. During operation, the type of test gas used can also be selected through the UI interface, and the test gas of all flow meters 43 can be set, simplifying the test process.

[0091] In the present invention, the specific arrangement forms of the pipelines in the front control system 3 and the rear control system 5 and the communication control valve 8 are not limited to Figure 1 the example shown in, and can also be arranged in other forms, as long as their corresponding functions can be achieved. By adjusting the corresponding communication control valve 8, it is possible to control the connection between the gas supply pipeline 21 and any direct pipeline 41 or the flow detection pipeline 42, and to control the connection between the intake pipeline 61 and any direct pipeline 41 or the flow detection pipeline 42.

[0092] As can be seen from the above, the airtightness testing device and method of the fuel cell of the present invention have the following beneficial effects:

[0093] 1. Multiple measurements can be achieved. By using the pre-method and the post-method, external leakage and internal leakage tests can be performed on the anode chamber 11, the cathode chamber 12, and the cooling chamber 13 of the fuel cell stack 1. Separate chamber testing or multiple chamber synchronous testing can be realized, and the decoupling of external leakage and internal leakage under different pressures in the three chambers can be achieved, with flexible use.

[0094] 2. Different flow meters 43 can be selected according to different actual test situations, expanding the application range, being applicable to complete stacks and short stacks with different numbers of plates, and simplifying the work that could only be achieved by two airtightness meters before.

[0095] 3. Through the UI interface, the type of test gas can be quickly defined through the interface, the test object can be switched, the pressure can be set, the pre and post measurements can be switched, and the test specifications can be achieved, so as to be stable and adaptable to a variety of fuel cell airtightness test scenarios.

[0096] 4. Under the condition of matching suitable gases and the range of flow meters 43, the total time of airtightness testing can be reduced, the cycle time of airtightness testing can be increased, and the production line beat of the fuel cell stack 1 can be improved.

[0097] In summary, the present invention effectively overcomes various drawbacks in the prior art and has high industrial utilization value.

[0098] The above embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles and effects of the present invention and are not intended to limit the present invention. Any person familiar with this technology can modify or change the above embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Therefore, all equivalent modifications or changes made by those with ordinary knowledge in the technical field without departing from the spirit and technical idea disclosed by the present invention should still be covered by the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. An airtight test device for a fuel cell, which is used to perform airtight tests on three chambers, namely, an anode chamber (11), a cathode chamber (12), and a cooling chamber (13) of a fuel cell stack (1), and is characterized in that: It includes a gas source, a gas supply pipeline system (2), a front control pipeline system (3), a test pipeline system (4), a rear control pipeline system (5), and an intake pipeline system (6); the gas supply pipeline system (2) includes three gas supply pipelines (21) arranged in parallel, and a pressure control valve (22) and a gas supply on-off valve (23) are provided on the gas supply pipeline (21), and the gas supply pipeline (21) is connected to the gas source; the intake pipeline system (6) includes three intake pipelines (61), and the three intake pipelines (61) are respectively communicated with the anode chamber (11), the cathode chamber (12), and the cooling chamber (13); the test pipeline system (4) includes at least two flow detection pipelines (42) and at least two straight-through pipelines (41), a flow meter (43) is provided on the flow detection pipeline (42), and both the front control pipeline system (3) and the rear control pipeline system (5) include multiple pipelines and a connection control valve (8) provided on the pipeline; the front control pipeline system (3) connects the gas supply pipeline system (2) and the test pipeline system (4) and can control the connection between the gas supply pipeline (21) and any straight-through pipeline (41) or flow detection pipeline (42), and the rear control pipeline system (5) connects the intake pipeline system (6) and the test pipeline system (4) and can control the connection between the intake pipeline (61) and any straight-through pipeline (41) or flow detection pipeline (42); the gas provided by the gas source can sequentially pass through the gas supply pipeline system (2), the front control pipeline system (3), the test pipeline system (4), the rear control pipeline system (5), and the intake pipeline system (6) to inflate the three chambers of the fuel cell stack (1).

2. The airtight test device according to claim 1, characterized in that: There are four or more flow detection pipelines (42) in the test pipeline system (4), and the measurement ranges of the flow meters (43) in different flow detection pipelines (42) are different.

3. The airtight test device according to claim 1, characterized in that: It further includes a control system. The gas supply on-off valve (23) and the connection control valve (8) are both solenoid valves and are both connected to the control system. The control system is also connected to the pressure control valve (22) and the flow meter (43).

4. The airtight test device according to claim 3, wherein: The control system includes an operation display.

5. The airtightness testing device according to claim 1, characterized in that: A pressure tester (24) is further provided on the gas supply pipeline (21).

6. The airtight test device according to claim 1, wherein: A pressure relief valve is further provided on the intake pipeline (61).

7. A method for airtight testing of a fuel cell, which is used to perform airtight testing on three chambers of an anode chamber (11), a cathode chamber (12), and a cooling chamber (13) of a stack (1), is characterized in that: It is carried out by using the airtight test device as described in claim 1. The airtight test method includes: A. Pre-position method single-chamber leakage test, which is used to measure the leakage of a single chamber in the fuel cell stack (1), and includes the following steps: A1. Adjust the connection control valves (8) in the front control pipeline system (3) and the rear control pipeline system (5) to make the intake pipeline (61) connected to the chamber to be tested independently connected to a gas supply pipeline (21) through a flow detection pipeline (42), where the chamber to be tested is one or two. The intake pipeline (61) of the non-chamber to be tested is independently connected to a gas supply pipeline (21) through a straight-through pipeline (41) to ensure that the gas supplies of the three chambers are independent; A2. Open the gas supply on-off valves (23) on the three gas supply pipelines (21), inflate the three chambers respectively, and stabilize the inflation pressure through the pressure control valves (22), so that the inflation pressures of the gas supply pipelines (21) connected to the chamber to be tested are the same and greater than the ambient pressure, and the inflation pressures of the gas supply pipelines (21) connected to the non-chambers to be tested are equal to the ambient pressure, or greater than the ambient pressure and less than the inflation pressure of the chamber to be tested; the three chambers are inflated independently; A3. Determine the leakage situation of the chamber to be tested through the flowmeter (43) on the flow detection pipeline (42) connected to the chamber to be tested, including external leakage of the chamber to be tested and internal leakage between the chamber to be tested and the non-chambers to be tested.

8. An airtight test method for a fuel cell, used for performing airtight tests on three chambers, namely an anode chamber (11), a cathode chamber (12), and a cooling chamber (13) of a stack (1), characterized in that: Using the airtight test device as described in claim 1, the airtight test method includes: B. Pre-position method external leakage test for measuring the external leakage of a single chamber, including the following steps: B1. Adjust the connection control valves (8) in the front control pipeline system (3) and the rear control pipeline system (5), so that the intake pipeline (61) connected to the chamber to be tested is independently connected to a gas supply pipeline (21) through a flow detection pipeline (42), and the intake pipeline (61) of the non-chamber to be tested is independently connected to a gas supply pipeline (21) through a direct pipeline (41), ensuring that the gas supply of each chamber is independent; B2. Open the gas supply on-off valves (23) on the three gas supply pipelines (21), inflate the three chambers respectively, and stabilize the inflation pressure through the pressure control valves (22), so that the inflation pressures of the three gas supply pipelines (21) are the same and greater than the ambient pressure; the three chambers are inflated independently; B3. Determine the external leakage situation of the chamber to be tested through the flowmeter (43) on the flow detection pipeline (42) connected to the chamber to be tested.

9. A method for airtight testing of a fuel cell, which is used to perform airtight testing on three chambers, namely the anode chamber (11), the cathode chamber (12), and the cooling chamber (13) of the stack (1), is characterized in that: Using the airtight test device as described in claim 1, including the following content: C. Post-position method internal leakage test: used to test the internal leakage of one chamber to the other two chambers, including the following steps: C1. Adjust the connection control valves (8) in the front control pipeline system (3) and the rear control pipeline system (5), so that the intake pipeline (61) connected to the chamber to be tested is independently connected to a gas supply pipeline (21) through a direct pipeline (41), and the intake pipeline (61) of the non-chambers to be tested is independently connected to a gas supply pipeline (21) through a flow detection pipeline (42), ensuring that the gas supply of each chamber is independent; C2. Open the gas supply on-off valves (23) on the three gas supply pipelines (21), inflate the three chambers respectively, and stabilize the inflation pressure through the pressure control valves (22), so that the inflation pressures of the gas supply pipelines (21) connected to the chamber to be tested are the same and greater than the ambient pressure, and the inflation pressures of the gas supply pipelines (21) connected to the two non-chambers to be tested are equal to the ambient pressure; the three chambers are inflated independently; C3. Determine the internal leakage situation of the chamber to be tested through the flowmeter (43) on the flow detection pipeline (42) connected to the non-chambers to be tested.

10. A method for airtight testing of a fuel cell, which is used to perform airtight testing on three chambers of an anode chamber (11), a cathode chamber (12) and a cooling chamber (13) of a stack (1), characterized in that: Using the airtight test device as described in claim 1, including the following content: D. Total external leakage test: used to measure the total external leakage of the three chambers of the stack (1), including the following steps: D1. Adjust the communication control valves (8) in the front control pipeline system (3) and the rear control pipeline system (5) to connect a gas supply pipeline (21) with a flow detection pipeline (42), and connect the flow detection pipeline (42) with all three intake pipeline systems (6); D2. Open the gas supply on-off valve (23) on the intake pipeline system (6) connected to the three chambers, and simultaneously inflate the anode chamber (11), the cathode chamber (12), and the cooling chamber (13); and stabilize the inflation pressure through the pressure control valve (22), and the inflation pressure is greater than the test ambient pressure; D3. Determine the total external leakage situation through the flowmeter (43) on the flow detection pipeline (42).

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