Cylindrical can

Abstract

Provided is a cylindrical can provided with a heat-insulating material layer that can be disposed on the outer periphery of the can without using an adhesive and that can cope with variations in the size of the can. A heat-insulating material layer is provided on the outer surface of a can body, the heat-insulating material layer has a sheet formed of a heat-insulating material, the sheet is formed into a cylindrical shape, and the sheet is provided with a plurality of small pieces arranged in the circumferential direction by forming a plurality of cutouts extending in the axial direction of the cylindrical shape and arranged in the circumferential direction at the end of the can body in the axial direction. The cylindrical opening is narrowed by overlapping the end portions of the adjacent pieces with each other.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to cylindrical cans. Background Art

[0002] Patent document 1 discloses a gas storage tank, in which a heat storage material layer is provided on the outer surface of the tank body, and an impact recording layer is provided on the outer surface of the heat storage material layer. The impact recording layer is provided on the outermost layer of the tank and is composed of a heat insulating material layer having a heat insulating function that can maintain and record deformation caused by impact.

[0003] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2008-291906

[0004] However, especially in relatively small tanks, it is necessary to arrange the insulation material all over the periphery of the tank. However, when the insulation material is pasted all over the periphery of the tank, if it is pasted with an adhesive, the workability is poor because it is difficult to smoothly paste the insulation material due to the deviation of the total length and outer diameter of the tank. Summary of the invention

[0005] In view of the above problems, the present disclosure provides a cylindrical tank including a heat insulating material layer that can be arranged on the outer circumference of the tank without using an adhesive and can cope with variations in the size of the tank.

[0006] The present application discloses a cylindrical tank which can be loaded and unloaded relative to equipment, wherein a heat insulating material layer is provided on the outer surface of the tank body, the heat insulating material layer has a sheet made of heat insulating material, the sheet is formed into a cylindrical shape, and the sheet forms a plurality of cuts extending along the axial direction of the cylinder and arranged in the circumferential direction at the end of the sheet in the axial direction of the tank body, thereby having a plurality of small pieces arranged in the circumferential direction, and the cylindrical opening is narrowed by overlapping the ends of adjacent small pieces.

[0007] It can be constructed as follows: when three small pieces adjacent to and arranged in sequence in one circumferential direction are set as the first small piece, the second small piece and the third small piece, the second small piece is configured to overlap with the first small piece in a manner of entering the lower side of the first small piece, and to overlap with the third small piece in a manner of entering the upper side of the third small piece.

[0008] The small pieces may be provided with holes, and a string-like fastening member may be passed through the holes of the small pieces to fasten the small pieces.

[0009] According to the present disclosure, by overlapping the ends of a plurality of small pieces formed by the cutouts, it is possible to cope with the outer diameter variation of the tank body, and the heat insulating material can be fixed to the tank without using an adhesive, thereby improving workability. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] Figure 1 It is a diagram showing the structure of the cylindrical tank 10.

[0011] Figure 2 It is an external perspective view showing the periphery of a portion corresponding to the side end portion 12 b of the tank body 11 .

[0012] Figure 3 This is a diagram for explaining the form of the sheet 15 .

[0013] Description of Reference Numerals

[0014] 10…cylindrical tank; 11…tank body; 12…lining; 13…reinforcement layer; 14…heat-insulating material layer; 15…sheet material; 15b…small piece; 17…connector; 18…on / off valve; 19…fusible plug; 20…outer shell. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0015] 1. Cylindrical tank

[0016] The cylindrical tank 10 is a member having a container for storing a fluid serving as a fuel (hydrogen in this embodiment) in a liquid state or a gaseous state. Figure 1 A diagram for explanation is shown in FIG. Figure 1 (a) is an external view of the cylindrical tank 10 (the built-in tank body 11 is indicated by a dotted line). Figure 1 (b) is a cross-sectional view of the cylindrical can 10 along the axis O of the can body 11. As can be seen from these figures, in this embodiment, the cylindrical can 10 includes the can body 11 and the outer shell 20.

[0017] The tank body 11 includes a liner 12 , a reinforcement layer 13 , and a heat insulating material layer 14 constituting a container portion, and further includes a joint 17 , an on-off valve 18 , and a fusible plug 19 .

[0018] 1.1. Lining

[0019] The liner 12 is a hollow component that divides the internal space of the container part in the tank body 11, and is cylindrical in this embodiment. The liner 12 has a cylindrical body 12a with a substantially constant diameter, and the openings at both ends are narrowed by dome-shaped side ends 12b, and a joint 17 is arranged at the narrowed opening 12c.

[0020] The liner 12 may be made of any material as long as it can hold the article (e.g., hydrogen) contained in its internal space without leakage, and any known material may be used. Specifically, it may be made of, for example, nylon resin, polyethylene-based synthetic resin, stainless steel, aluminum or other metal. Among them, from the perspective of reducing the weight of the tank, it is preferred that the material constituting the liner is a synthetic resin.

[0021] The thickness of the liner 12 is not particularly limited, but is preferably 0.5 mm to 3.0 mm.

[0022] 1.2. Strengthening layer

[0023] The reinforcement layer 13 is one of the components constituting the container part, and is composed of a plurality of laminated fibers spread over the outer periphery of the liner 12, and the fibers are impregnated with a cured resin. The reinforcement layer 13 ensures the strength of the liner 12 against the internal pressure and improves the fire resistance.

[0024] The layer formed by the fiber is formed by winding the fiber bundle in multiple layers around the periphery of the lining 12 until the prescribed thickness. The thickness of the reinforcing layer 13 and the number of windings of the fiber bundle are determined according to the required strength and are therefore not particularly limited, but are about 10 mm to 30 mm. In particular, in portable cylindrical tanks (cylindrical tanks that are intended to be portable), the outer diameter is smaller than that of fixed hydrogen tanks mounted on automobiles. Therefore, from the perspective of ensuring strength, the number of stacked reinforcing layers tends to be smaller (i.e., the reinforcing layers become thinner), but on the other hand, this also leads to a tendency for the fire resistance to decrease. Therefore, in particular in portable cylindrical tanks, by configuring a heat insulating material layer over the entire periphery of the container portion as described later, the fire resistance can be effectively improved.

[0025] <Fiber bundle>

[0026] The fiber bundle of the reinforcing layer 13 uses carbon fiber, for example, and the fiber bundle is a band-shaped bundle of carbon fibers having a predetermined cross-sectional shape (for example, a rectangular cross-section). Specifically, although not particularly limited, a cross-sectional shape of about 6 mm to 20 mm in width and about 0.1 mm to 0.3 mm in thickness can be cited. The amount of carbon fiber contained in the fiber bundle is also not particularly limited, but, for example, it can be cited that it is composed of about 36,000 carbon fibers.

[0027] <Impregnation resin>

[0028] The resin impregnated and cured in the fiber (fiber bundle) in the reinforcing layer 13 is not particularly limited as long as it can improve the strength of the fiber. For example, a thermosetting resin cured by heat can be cited, specifically, epoxy resin, unsaturated polyester resin, etc., including an amine-based or anhydride-based curing accelerator and a rubber-based reinforcing agent. In addition, a resin composition that is cured by mixing an epoxy resin as a main agent and a curing agent with the epoxy resin can also be cited. Thus, during the period from mixing the main agent with the curing agent to curing, the resin composition as the mixture reaches and penetrates into the fiber layer, thereby automatically curing.

[0029] 1.3. Thermal insulation material layer

[0030] The heat insulating material layer 14 is a layer arranged so as to cover the outer periphery of the reinforcement layer 13 and to form the outermost layer of the container portion of the tank body 11. The heat insulating material layer 14 is a member having a sheet-shaped heat insulating material, and is provided to be wound around the reinforcement layer 13. Thus, the fire resistance of the tank body 11 is improved. The material constituting the heat insulating material is not particularly limited as long as it has heat insulating properties, but for example, expanded graphite can be cited. When the expanded graphite reaches a certain temperature or above, it expands and exerts sufficient fire resistance.

[0031] As described above, the heat insulating material layer 14 is arranged so as to cover the outer periphery of the reinforcing layer 13, but the heat insulating material layer 14 is not only arranged on the outer side of the cylindrical portion 12a, but is also continuously wound and arranged on the outer side of the side end portion 12b whose diameter gradually decreases (using a sheet-like heat insulating material). Therefore, in this embodiment, the portion of the heat insulating material layer 14 arranged on the outer side of the side end portion 12b is the embodiment described below. Figure 2 , Figure 3 A diagram for explanation is shown in FIG. Figure 2 is from Figure 1 The figure in which the tank body 11 is viewed from the direction of arrow II in (a) is a figure viewed from the outside of one side end 12b. The outside of the other side end 12b is considered similarly. Figure 3 This is a diagram for further explaining the heat insulating material layer 14. Figure 3 (a) schematically shows a state where the sheet 15 constituting the heat insulating material layer 14 is unfolded. Figure 3 (b) schematically shows a state where the sheet 15 is in a tubular shape.

[0032] according to Figure 2 , Figure 3 It can be seen that the heat insulating material layer 14 is constructed with the sheet material 15 and the fastening member 16 .

[0033] <Form of sheet material and fastening member>

[0034] As described above, the sheet 15 is a sheet-shaped member made of a heat insulating material such as expanded graphite. Figure 3 As can be seen from (a), the sheet 15 is a rectangular sheet in the unfolded state, and two of the four sides that are opposite to each other are provided with a plurality of cutouts 15a extending in directions approaching each other along the sides (in Figure 2 , Figure 3 In order to facilitate observation, only a portion of the cutouts is marked with the reference numeral of the cutout 15a. The same is true for the other portions below. ).

[0035] Thus, a plurality of small pieces 15b cut out via the cutouts 15a are arranged in a direction along the side.

[0036] exist Figure 3 The depth of the cutout 15a indicated by D in (a) is not limited, but is preferably the same as that in Figure 1 The length (distance) along the bend in the cross section of the reinforcing layer 13 arranged at the side end 12b indicated by L in (b) is of the same degree. This makes it easy to appropriately arrange the sheet 15 outside the side end 12b.

[0037] Each small piece 15b of the sheet 15 has a hole 15c. As described later, a string-like fastening member 16 is passed through the hole 15c and fastened to stably hold the sheet 15 on the outer periphery of the reinforcing layer 13. As the fastening member 16, for example, a metal string such as a tying band (INSULOK) can be used.

[0038] <Arrangement and shape of sheets>

[0039] More specifically, the sheet 15 is arranged on the outer periphery of the reinforcing layer 13 in, for example, the following manner and is held as the heat insulating material layer 14 .

[0040] like Figure 3 As shown in (a), the unfolded sheet 15 is as follows Figure 3 The ends of the sides without the cutouts 15a shown in (b) are partially overlapped to form a cylindrical shape. The overlapping ends are fixed with staples, adhesives, etc. to maintain the cylindrical shape. Therefore, the cutouts 15a and small pieces 15b (including holes 15c) are alternately arranged in the circumferential direction at both ends of the axial direction of the cylinder. In addition, the diameter of the cylinder is substantially the same as (or slightly larger than) the diameter on the outer periphery of the reinforcing layer 13 disposed on the barrel portion 12a.

[0041] The liner 12 (joint 17 is already arranged in the liner 12) with the reinforcement layer 13 is inserted into the inner side (inside the tube) of the tube formed by the sheet 15. At this time, the position where the cutout 15a and the small piece 15b are formed is arranged to be substantially the same as the outer side of the side end 12b.

[0042] The portion of the sheet 15 disposed outside the side end portion 12b is formed with a cutout 15a and a small piece 15b. Figure 2 As can be seen, the ends of adjacent small pieces 15b overlap one another in sequence to reduce the opening of the tube formed by the sheet 15, thereby arranging the sheet 15 along the shape of the side end 12b on the periphery of the reinforcing layer 13. Furthermore, the shape is maintained by passing the string-like fastening member 16 through the hole 15c and fastening it.

[0043] The overlapping manner of the ends of adjacent small pieces 15b is not particularly limited, but can be arranged to overlap in sequence in a manner that the small pieces 15b adjacent to each other in one direction of the circumferential direction of the tube formed by the sheet material 15 are located above. That is, when the first small piece, the second small piece, and the third small piece are considered as three small pieces 15a arranged in one direction along the circumferential direction, the second small piece overlaps with the first small piece in a manner of entering the lower side (reinforcement layer side) of the first small piece, and the second small piece overlaps in a manner of becoming the upper side (the side opposite to the reinforcement layer side) of the third small piece to form a purse-shaped bag.

[0044] <Effects, etc.>

[0045] By configuring the heat insulating layer 14 in this way, the degree of overlap of the small pieces 15b outside the side end 12b can be adjusted to absorb variations in the outer diameter and overall length of the tank body 11, and the heat insulating layer 14 can be appropriately arranged.

[0046] In addition, according to the heat insulating material layer 14 of this form, even without using an adhesive, the heat insulating material (sheet 15) can be fixed along the reinforcing layer 13, which can improve workability. However, fixation using an adhesive is not necessarily excluded, and it can also be used together with the use of an adhesive. In this case, there is also an advantage of being able to reduce the amount of adhesive used and the location of use.

[0047] Furthermore, in the portion of the heat insulating material layer 14 disposed outside the side end portion 12b, the ends of the small pieces 15b overlap each other, so that gaps are less likely to be formed, and flames can directly penetrate, thereby improving fire resistance. Figure 2 There is a possibility that a slight gap is formed between the small pieces 15b of the sheet 15 in the direction indicated by A, but the heat insulating material forming the sheet generally has the characteristic of swelling (expanding) when heated, so the slight gap is also filled by this expansion, thereby more reliably preventing the direct intrusion of flames. In particular, by using expanded graphite for the sheet 15, the effect is significant.

[0048] 1.4. Connectors, on-off valves, fusible plugs

[0049] The joints 17 are components respectively mounted on the two openings 12c of the liner 12, and are respectively arranged at both ends of the liner 12 in the direction of the axis O, functioning as openings that communicate the inside and outside of the container portion, and are provided with valves. An on-off valve 18 is provided on one joint 17, and a fusible plug 19 is provided on the other joint 17.

[0050] The material constituting the joint 17 is not particularly limited as long as it has required strength, and examples thereof include stainless steel, aluminum, copper, and iron.

[0051] The on-off valve 18 is a so-called check valve or an on-off valve, and is closed when not mounted on a device using the cylindrical tank 10 , and is opened by being pressed by, for example, a push rod when mounted on the device.

[0052] The fusible plug 19 is also called a fusible alloy safety valve, and is a safety valve that opens when a predetermined temperature is reached to release the gas (hydrogen) in the tank. The specific form of the fusible plug 19 is not particularly limited, and a known structure can be used.

[0053] In addition, in this embodiment, the on-off valve 18 and the fusible plug 19 are respectively arranged at different joints 17, and are set to be opposite sides at one end side and the other end side of the tank body 11, but it is not necessarily limited to such an embodiment, and it is also possible to arrange two valves at the same joint.

[0054] 1.5. Shell

[0055] The outer casing 20 is a member that houses the tank body 11 and forms the outer shell of the cylindrical tank 10 , and includes a housing 21 and a handle 22 .

[0056] The housing 21 is a cylindrical member, and is configured to accommodate the tank body 11 therein. In addition, holes 21a and 21b are provided at positions opposing the on-off valve 18 and the fusible plug 19 of the tank body 11 accommodated in the housing 21, respectively, so that the on-off valve 18 can be accessed from the outside, and hydrogen ejected from the fusible plug 19 can be discharged to the outside.

[0057] The handle 22 is an arched member disposed at the end of the housing 21 on the opposite side from the on-off valve 18 , and the user can hold the handle 22 to carry the cylindrical can 10 or attach or detach the cylindrical can 10 to or from a device using the cylindrical can 10 .

[0058] 1.6. Others

[0059] The allowable pressure of the tank 51 is not particularly limited, but from the viewpoint of being able to supply more hydrogen, a tank that can store hydrogen at an allowable pressure exceeding 20 MPa and not more than 70 MPa can be used.

Claims

1. A cylindrical tank that can be loaded and unloaded relative to a device, wherein: A heat-insulating material layer is provided on the outer surface of the tank body. The heat insulating material layer comprises a sheet made of a heat insulating material, and the sheet is formed into a cylindrical shape. The sheet has a plurality of cutouts formed at the end of the tank body in the axial direction, extending along the axial direction of the cylinder and arranged in the circumferential direction, thereby comprising a plurality of small pieces arranged in the circumferential direction. The cylindrical opening is narrowed by overlapping the ends of the adjacent small pieces.

2. The cylindrical tank according to claim 1, wherein: When the three small pieces adjacent to and arranged in sequence in one direction of the circumferential direction are set as the first small piece, the second small piece and the third small piece, the second small piece is configured to overlap with the first small piece in a manner of entering the lower side of the first small piece, and to overlap with the third small piece in a manner of entering the upper side of the third small piece.

3. The cylindrical tank according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: The small pieces are provided with holes, and the plurality of small pieces are fastened by passing a string-like fastening member through the holes of the plurality of small pieces.

Images