Altitude environment simulation device and altitude environment simulation control method

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of hydrogen fuel cell testing, in particular to an altitude environment simulation device and an altitude environment simulation control method. The embodiment of the invention provides an altitude environment simulation device, and the device comprises a fuel cell which is disposed in an altitude environment chamber; an in-cabin section pipeline of the tail exhaust pipeline is communicated with the fuel cell, an out-cabin section pipeline of the tail exhaust pipeline extends out of the altitude environment cabin and is communicated with the external environment, a pressure sensor is arranged on the tail exhaust pipeline, and the pressure sensor is used for monitoring pressure parameters in the tail exhaust pipeline; the air compressor is communicated with the fuel cell and the tail exhaust pipeline, and the air compressor is used for inputting compressed air into the in-cabin section pipeline so as to blow ice crystals in the in-cabin section pipeline to the out-cabin section pipeline; the heater is arranged on the tail exhaust pipeline, the heater is located outside the altitude environment cabin, and the heater is used for melting ice crystals in the cabin outer section pipeline into liquid water.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of hydrogen fuel cell testing, and in particular to an altitude environment simulation device and an altitude environment simulation control method. Background Art

[0002] As a core clean energy technology, hydrogen fuel cells require environmental compatibility verification, a crucial step before industrial deployment. Performance testing in extreme environments, such as high altitude, extreme cold, and high heat, places stringent demands on the design of the fuel cell system's exhaust system. While existing technologies have developed relatively mature solutions for hydrogen fuel cell exhaust systems in conventional environments, they still face technical limitations when simulating the complex high-altitude environment.

[0003] When the simulated ambient temperature drops below -20°C, water vapor in the tailpipeline will quickly condense at the bends. To address the risks of low-temperature condensation and ice blockage, electric heating is often used in related technologies. However, this method has problems such as high energy consumption and difficulty in controlling temperature gradients. Furthermore, even at ultra-low temperatures of -40°C, localized ice crystal accumulation may still form, causing abnormally high backpressure. Summary of the Invention

[0004] Regarding the relevant technologies, the tail exhaust system of the environmental simulation cabin has difficult-to-solve risks of low-temperature condensation and ice blockage.

[0005] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an altitude environment simulation device, comprising: Altitude environmental chamber, which is used to simulate the test environment; a fuel cell, which is arranged in the altitude environment chamber; a tail exhaust pipeline, wherein the in-cabin section of the pipeline is connected to the fuel cell, the out-cabin section of the tail exhaust pipeline extends out of the altitude environment chamber and is connected to the external environment, and a pressure sensor is provided on the tail exhaust pipeline, and the pressure sensor is used to monitor the pressure parameters in the tail exhaust pipeline; an air compressor, which is in communication with both the fuel cell and the tail exhaust pipe, and is used to input compressed air into the inboard pipe section to purge ice crystals in the inboard pipe section to the outboard pipe section; A heater is provided on the tail exhaust pipeline, and the heater is located outside the altitude environment cabin, and is used to melt ice crystals in the pipeline outside the cabin into liquid water.

[0006] In combination with the first aspect, in one embodiment, the air compressor outlet is connected to the fuel cell and the tail exhaust pipeline through a first air supply pipeline and a second air supply pipeline respectively, and a control valve is provided at the air compressor outlet, and the control valve is used to cut off or connect the first air supply pipeline and the second air supply pipeline respectively.

[0007] In combination with the first aspect, in one embodiment, the control valve includes a three-way proportional valve, and the three-way proportional valve is used to distribute the gas supply ratio of the air compressor outlet to the first gas pipeline and the second gas pipeline.

[0008] In combination with the first aspect, in one embodiment, the first gas pipeline includes a rubber hose, and a steel wire lining is provided in the rubber hose.

[0009] In combination with the first aspect, in one embodiment, the outboard section of the tailpipe is provided with a water vapor separator, and the water vapor separator is used to separate the medium of the outboard section into liquid water and gas.

[0010] In combination with the first aspect, in one embodiment, a water collecting tank is provided on the water vapor separator.

[0011] In combination with the first aspect, in one embodiment, it further includes: a hydrogen supply device connected to the fuel cell.

[0012] In combination with the first aspect, in one embodiment, a temperature sensor, an absolute humidity sensor, a dew point temperature sensor and a hydrogen concentration sensor are provided on the tail exhaust pipe.

[0013] In combination with the first aspect, in one embodiment, a cooling device is provided on the outboard section of the tail exhaust pipe.

[0014] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an altitude environment simulation control method using any of the altitude environment simulation devices described above, characterized in that the altitude environment simulation control method includes: Use an altitude environment chamber to simulate high altitude and low temperature environments, and monitor the pressure parameters in the exhaust pipe through a pressure sensor; According to the pressure parameters in the exhaust pipe, it is determined whether to drive the air compressor to perform a purge action on the cabin section of the exhaust pipe; wherein, If the pressure parameter in the exhaust pipe is not within the normal value range, the air compressor is driven to blow the ice crystals in the pipeline in the cabin to the part of the exhaust pipe located outside the altitude environment chamber, and the heater is driven to heat the exhaust pipe until the pressure parameter of the pressure sensor returns to the normal value range.

[0015] The beneficial effects of the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application include: This application installs a pressure sensor in the tail exhaust pipe of the environmental chamber to monitor the pressure and determine whether ice crystals have accumulated in the pipe. At the same time, an air compressor and heater work together to solve the ice crystal problem. The former blows the ice crystals out of the environmental chamber, while the latter melts the ice crystals into liquid and discharges them from the tail exhaust pipe, thus solving the problem of ice blockage in the pipe with low energy consumption. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without any creative work.

[0017] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of an altitude environment simulation device in an embodiment of the present application; Figure 2 This is a flow chart of a control method in a high-altitude and low-temperature environment according to an embodiment of the present application; Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the control method in a high temperature environment in an embodiment of the present application.

[0018] In the figure: 1. Altitude environmental chamber; 2. Fuel cell; 3. Air compressor; 31. First gas pipeline; 32. Second gas pipeline; 33. Control valve; 4. Pressure sensor; 51. In-cabin section pipeline; 52. Out-cabin section pipeline; 53. Temperature sensor; 54. Absolute humidity sensor; 55. Dew point temperature sensor; 56. Hydrogen concentration sensor; 6. Heater; 7. Water vapor separator; 71. Water collection tank; 8. Hydrogen supply equipment; 9. Cooling equipment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0019] In order to enable those skilled in the art to better understand the present invention, the following will clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0020] Regarding the relevant technologies, the tail exhaust system of the environmental simulation cabin has difficult-to-solve risks of low-temperature condensation and ice blockage.

[0021] In a first aspect, the present application provides an altitude environment simulation device, which includes: an altitude environment chamber 1, a fuel cell 2, a tail exhaust pipe, an air compressor 3 and a heater 6; wherein, An altitude environment chamber 1 is provided for simulating a test environment; a fuel cell 2 is provided in the altitude environment chamber 1; a tail exhaust pipeline, wherein the in-cabin section pipeline 51 is connected to the fuel cell 2, and the out-cabin section pipeline 52 of the tail exhaust pipeline extends out of the altitude environment chamber 1 and is connected to the external environment, and a pressure sensor 4 is provided on the tail exhaust pipeline, and the pressure sensor 4 is used to monitor the pressure parameters in the tail exhaust pipeline; an air compressor 3 is connected to both the fuel cell 2 and the tail exhaust pipeline, and the air compressor 3 is used to input compressed air to the in-cabin section pipeline 51 to blow ice crystals in the in-cabin section pipeline 51 to the out-cabin section pipeline 52; a heater 6 is provided on the out-cabin section pipeline 52, and the heater 6 is used to melt ice crystals in the out-cabin section pipeline 52 into liquid water.

[0022] Furthermore, the heater 6 may be a PTC heater.

[0023] It's worth noting that the air compressor 3 is placed in the altitude chamber, using an in-cabin air extraction mode to ensure the authenticity of the environmental simulation test. Heater 6 is only activated in the low-temperature simulated environment, rapidly heating ice crystals in the exhaust pipe to liquid water and simultaneously restoring the gas temperature in the exhaust pipe to approximately 40°C.

[0024] Optionally, the altitude environment chamber 1 can simulate a temperature of -55°C to 85°C, a humidity of 30% to 80% at normal temperature, and a local altitude up to 5500m above sea level.

[0025] Understandably, the applicant has discovered that the extreme temperatures often experienced within the high-altitude environmental chamber 1 during operation can lead to ice crystals forming easily in the exhaust pipe. Directly employing electric heating for antifreeze protection would result in excessive energy consumption and difficulty controlling the temperature gradient. In this application, an air compressor 3 is used to first blow the ice crystals into the pipes outside the chamber before heating and melting them, thereby avoiding the impact of the chamber's internal environment on the heating and antifreeze protection.

[0026] In some specific implementations, a temperature sensor 53 , an absolute humidity sensor 54 , a dew point temperature sensor 55 and a hydrogen concentration sensor 56 are provided on the tail exhaust pipe.

[0027] It's worth noting that when the altitude environment simulation device is operating normally, air compressor 3 supplies compressed air to fuel cell 2. When pressure sensor 4 detects that the pressure exceeds a threshold, it immediately adjusts the output power of air compressor 3 to deliver compressed air through second air pipeline 32 to inboard section 51 of the exhaust pipeline, thereby sweeping ice crystals from inboard section 51 into outboard section 52. Simultaneously, heater 6 is activated to heat the medium in outboard section 52, melting the ice crystals.

[0028] Furthermore, when the hydrogen concentration sensor 56 detects that the hydrogen concentration in the exhaust pipe does not meet the preset requirement, it is also necessary to adjust the output power of the air compressor 3 until the hydrogen concentration in the exhaust pipe returns to the preset requirement range.

[0029] In some specific embodiments, the air outlet of the air compressor 3 is connected to the fuel cell 2 and the tail exhaust pipeline through a first air supply pipeline 31 and a second air supply pipeline 32, respectively. A control valve 33 is provided at the air outlet of the air compressor 3, and the control valve 33 is used to cut off or connect the first air supply pipeline 31 and the second air supply pipeline 32, respectively.

[0030] Preferably, the control valve 33 comprises a three-way proportional valve, and the three-way proportional valve is used to distribute the gas supply ratio between the gas outlet of the air compressor 3 and the first gas supply pipeline 31 and the second gas supply pipeline 32 .

[0031] It is worth noting that the purpose of adjusting the compressed air delivery rate can be achieved by adjusting the opening of the three-way proportional valve.

[0032] In some preferred embodiments, the first gas delivery pipeline 31 and the tail exhaust pipeline are both made of rubber hoses with a steel wire lining. Furthermore, the tail exhaust pipeline is equipped with a tooling capable of simultaneously connecting to multiple sensors.

[0033] Furthermore, the portion of the tail exhaust pipe passing through the shell of the altitude environment chamber 1 is sealed using a Roxtec sealing module.

[0034] In some optional embodiments, the outboard section 52 of the tailpipe is provided with a water vapor separator 7, which is used to separate the medium in the outboard section 52 into liquid water and gas. Furthermore, the water vapor separator 7 is provided with a water collecting tank 71.

[0035] It is worth noting that the water vapor separator 7 can separate the liquid water from the gas in the tail pipe, wherein the liquid water is discharged through the water collecting tank 71, and the gas is discharged along the tail pipe.

[0036] Preferably, a cooling device 9 is provided on the outboard section pipeline 52 of the tail exhaust pipeline.

[0037] It is worth noting that the cooling device 9 is only turned on in a high-temperature simulation environment and adopts a water-cooling mode. The cold source is taken from the 6°C~12°C chilled water provided by the refrigeration unit, which can restore the gas temperature in the tail pipe to about 40°C.

[0038] Some optional embodiments further include a hydrogen supply device 8 in communication with the fuel cell 2. Furthermore, the hydrogen supply device 8 is located outside the altitude environment chamber 1 and can be supplied in a containerized format or a torpedo vehicle. The hydrogen pipeline entering the altitude chamber housing is sealed with a Roxtec sealing module to ensure that the altitude simulation effect of the altitude chamber is not affected.

[0039] Second, as Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the present application provides an altitude environment simulation control method using an altitude environment simulation device, the altitude environment simulation control method comprising: A. High altitude and low temperature environment simulation: Step SA1: Use the altitude environment chamber 1 to simulate a high-altitude and low-temperature environment, and monitor the pressure parameters and hydrogen concentration parameters in the exhaust pipe through the pressure sensor 4 and the hydrogen concentration sensor 56.

[0040] It is understandable that when simulating a high-altitude, low-temperature environment, water vapor in the tail exhaust pipe will quickly condense into ice crystals, which may accumulate at the bends of the tail exhaust pipe, causing the back pressure to increase and the reading of the pressure sensor 4 to increase.

[0041] Step SA2: Control the speed of the air compressor 3 and the opening of the three-way proportional valve according to the data in the control parameter table, the reading of the pressure sensor 4, and the reading of the hydrogen concentration sensor 56.

[0042] In the first optional embodiment of the present application, step SA2 includes: determining whether to drive the air compressor 3 to perform a purge action on the in-cabin section pipeline 51 of the exhaust pipeline according to the pressure parameter in the exhaust pipeline; wherein, If the pressure parameter in the exhaust pipe is not within the normal value range, the air compressor 3 is driven to blow the ice crystals in the cabin section pipe 51 to the part of the exhaust pipe located outside the altitude environment chamber 1, and the heater 6 is driven to heat the exhaust pipe until the pressure parameter of the pressure sensor 4 returns to the normal value range.

[0043] In a second optional embodiment of the present application, step SA2 includes: controlling the speed of the air compressor 3 and the opening of the three-way proportional valve based on the data in the control parameter table and the readings of the pressure sensor 4 and the hydrogen concentration sensor 56, thereby blowing the accumulated ice crystals to the outboard section 52 of the tail exhaust pipeline and diluting the tail exhaust hydrogen concentration. When the readings of the pressure sensor 4 and the hydrogen concentration sensor 56 return to the normal value range in the control parameter table, the speed of the air compressor 3 and the opening of the three-way proportional valve are restored to their initial state. The ice crystals in the outboard section 52 of the tail exhaust pipeline are rapidly melted into liquid water by the heater 6, and the gas in the tail exhaust pipeline is heated to approximately 40°C. After separation by the water vapor separator 7, it is discharged along the tail exhaust pipeline. The control parameter table is obtained through preliminary calibration.

[0044] In some specific embodiments, the control parameter table of the altitude environment simulation control method under high altitude and low temperature environment simulation includes: Control parameter table 1

[0045] Control parameter table 2

[0046] In a specific embodiment of the altitude environment simulation control method of the present application: When the reading of the pressure sensor 4 does not exceed 9kPa and the instantaneous value of the hydrogen concentration does not exceed 20000ppm, the speed of the air compressor 3 and the opening of the three-way proportional valve remain unchanged, and the exhaust gas is discharged after passing through the heater 6 and the water vapor separator.

[0047] When the reading of the pressure sensor 4 exceeds 9kPa but does not exceed 20kPa, or the instantaneous value of the hydrogen concentration exceeds 20,000ppm but does not exceed 40,000ppm, the speed of the air compressor 3 and the opening of the three-way proportional valve are adjusted according to the control parameter tables 1 and 2, and the values ​​are taken as the larger one in the control parameter tables 1 and 2. The exhaust gas is discharged after passing through the heater 6 and the water vapor separator 7.

[0048] When the reading of pressure sensor 4 exceeds 20kPa or the instantaneous value of hydrogen concentration exceeds 40000ppm, the equipment shuts down.

[0049] B. High temperature environment simulation.

[0050] Specifically, the temperature of the gas in the tail exhaust pipe can exceed 80°C. The temperature in the tail exhaust pipe compartment cannot drop naturally, and the temperature sensor 53 reading rises. The speed of the air compressor 3 and the opening of the three-way proportional valve are controlled according to the data in the control parameter table and the readings of the temperature sensor 53 and the hydrogen concentration sensor 56, so that the high-temperature gas is quickly purged into the cooling device 9 outside the cabin, and the tail exhaust hydrogen concentration is diluted at the same time. When the readings of the temperature sensor 53 and the hydrogen concentration sensor 56 return to the normal value range in the control parameter table, the speed of the air compressor 3 and the opening of the three-way proportional valve return to their initial state. The gas in the part outside the tail exhaust pipe compartment is separated by the water vapor separator 7, cooled to about 40°C by the cooling device 9, and discharged along the tail exhaust pipe. Among them, the control parameter table is obtained through preliminary calibration.

[0051] In some specific embodiments, the control parameter table of the altitude environment simulation control method under high temperature environment simulation includes: Control parameter table 3

[0052] In a specific embodiment of the altitude environment simulation control method of the present application: When the temperature sensor 53 reading does not exceed 60°C and the instantaneous value of hydrogen concentration does not exceed 20,000 ppm, the speed of the air compressor 3 and the opening of the three-way proportional valve remain unchanged, and the exhaust gas is discharged after passing through the water vapor separator and the cooling system; When the temperature sensor 53 reading exceeds 60°C but does not exceed 80°C or the instantaneous value of hydrogen concentration exceeds 20,000 ppm but does not exceed 40,000 ppm, the speed of the air compressor 3 and the opening of the three-way proportional valve are adjusted according to the control parameter tables 2 and 3. The values ​​are adjusted to the larger of the control parameter tables 2 and 3, and the exhaust gas is discharged after passing through the water vapor separator 7 and the cooling device 9; When the temperature sensor 53 reading exceeds 80°C or the instantaneous value of hydrogen concentration exceeds 40,000 ppm, the equipment shuts down.

[0053] It is worth noting that the above three control parameter tables are obtained by calibrating a 130kw fuel cell system at rated power. When testing fuel cell systems of other powers, technicians in this field need to recalibrate according to the fuel cell system under different power operating conditions.

[0054] In summary, this application installs a pressure sensor in the tail exhaust pipe of the environmental chamber to determine whether ice crystal accumulation has occurred in the pipe by monitoring the pressure. At the same time, an air compressor and a heater are used to solve the ice crystal problem. The former blows the ice crystals out of the environmental chamber, while the latter melts the ice crystals into liquid and discharges them from the tail exhaust pipe, thereby solving the problem of ice blockage in the pipe while consuming little energy. Furthermore, the altitude environment simulation device of this application has a coordinated processing mechanism for negative pressure, low temperature, high temperature, and safety control.

[0055] In the description of this application, it should be noted that the terms "upper" and "lower" and the like indicate orientations or positional relationships based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing this application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on this application. Unless otherwise clearly specified and limited, the terms "installed", "connected", and "connected" should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; it can be a direct connection, or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium, or it can be internal communication between two elements. For those of ordinary skill in the art, the specific meanings of the above terms in this application can be understood according to the specific circumstances.

[0056] It should be noted that, in this application, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish one entity or operation from another entity or operation, and do not necessarily require or imply any actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Moreover, the terms "include", "comprise" or any other variants thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or device comprising a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, article or device. In the absence of further restrictions, an element defined by the sentence "comprising a ..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article or device comprising the element.

[0057] The foregoing is merely a list of specific embodiments of the present application, intended to enable those skilled in the art to understand or implement the present application. Various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be implemented in other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the present application. Therefore, the present application is not limited to the embodiments shown herein, but is intended to conform to the broadest scope consistent with the principles and novel features of the present application.

Claims

1. An altitude environment simulation device, characterized in that: include: An altitude environment chamber (1), which is used to simulate a test environment; A fuel cell (2) is provided in the altitude environment chamber (1); A tail exhaust pipeline, wherein the in-cabin section pipeline (51) is in communication with the fuel cell (2), and the out-cabin section pipeline (52) of the tail exhaust pipeline extends out of the altitude environment cabin (1) and is in communication with the external environment. A pressure sensor (4) is provided on the tail exhaust pipeline, and the pressure sensor (4) is used to monitor the pressure parameters in the tail exhaust pipeline; an air compressor (3) connected to both the fuel cell (2) and the tail exhaust pipeline, the air compressor (3) being used to input compressed air into the in-cabin section pipeline (51) to blow ice crystals in the in-cabin section pipeline (51) to the out-cabin section pipeline (52); A heater (6) is provided on the outboard pipeline (52), and the heater (6) is used to melt ice crystals in the outboard pipeline (52) into liquid water.

2. The altitude environment simulation device according to claim 1, wherein: The air outlet of the air compressor (3) is connected to the fuel cell (2) and the tail exhaust pipeline respectively through a first air supply pipeline (31) and a second air supply pipeline (32). A control valve (33) is provided at the air outlet of the air compressor (3). The control valve (33) is used to cut off or conduct the first air supply pipeline (31) and the second air supply pipeline (32).

3. The altitude environment simulation device according to claim 2, wherein: The control valve (33) comprises a three-way proportional valve, and the three-way proportional valve is used to distribute the gas supply ratio of the air compressor (3) outlet to the first gas supply pipeline (31) and the second gas supply pipeline (32).

4. The altitude environment simulation device according to claim 2, wherein: The first gas transmission pipeline (31) comprises a rubber hose, and a steel wire lining is provided in the rubber hose.

5. The altitude environment simulation device according to claim 1, wherein: The outboard section pipeline (52) of the tail exhaust pipeline is provided with a water vapor separator (7), and the water vapor separator (7) is used to separate the medium of the outboard section pipeline (52) into liquid water and gas.

6. The altitude environment simulation device according to claim 5, wherein: The water vapor separator (7) is provided with a water collecting tank (71).

7. The altitude environment simulation device according to claim 1, wherein: Also includes: A hydrogen supply device (8) is connected to the fuel cell (2).

8. The altitude environment simulation device according to claim 1, wherein: The tail exhaust pipe is provided with a temperature sensor (53), an absolute humidity sensor (54), a dew point temperature sensor (55) and a hydrogen concentration sensor (56).

9. The altitude environment simulation device according to claim 1, wherein: A cooling device (9) is provided on the outboard section pipeline (52) of the tail exhaust pipeline.

10. A method for controlling altitude environment simulation using the altitude environment simulation device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The altitude environment simulation control method comprises: A high altitude low temperature environment is simulated using an altitude environment chamber (1), and a pressure parameter in an exhaust pipe (5) is monitored by a pressure sensor (4); Determining whether to drive the air compressor (3) to perform a purge operation on the in-cabin section (51) of the exhaust pipeline (5) based on the pressure parameter in the exhaust pipeline (5); wherein, If the pressure parameter in the exhaust pipe (5) is not within the normal value range, the air compressor (3) is driven to blow the ice crystals in the cabin section pipe (51) into the cabin section pipe (52) of the exhaust pipe (5), and the heater (6) is driven to heat the exhaust pipe (5) until the pressure parameter of the pressure sensor (4) returns to the normal value range.

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