Fuel cell thermal management system and air compressor structure

Abstract

The utility model discloses a fuel cell thermal management system and an air compressor structure. The system comprises an air compressor, a humidifier, an electric pile and a three-way valve, the air compressor is respectively connected with the electric pile, the radiator inlet and the radiator outlet through pipelines; a high-pressure air outlet of the air compressor is sequentially connected with the humidifier and the electric pile through a three-way valve, and another outlet of the three-way valve is also connected with a purging inlet of the electric pile. According to the air compressor, cooling flow channels are arranged on the motor shell and the middle pipeline from the first-stage impeller to the second-stage impeller. The utility model provides a novel cooling management system based on a cooling mode of an air compressor body, so that low-temperature starting and air compression cooling are realized.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model belongs to the field of fuel cell thermal management, and in particular relates to a fuel cell thermal management system. Background Art

[0002] A hydrogen fuel cell is a power generation device that uses air and hydrogen to exchange electrons to generate electricity. Its structure is divided into air path / hydrogen path / coolant flow channel. The hydrogen path is the hydrogen inlet channel, the air path is the air inlet channel, and the water cooling flow channel cools the heat generated by the stack reaction; the fuel cell system will work at a suitable temperature during operation; the air and coolant inlet temperatures need to be controlled at a certain temperature (60~70℃); after the air compressor compresses the air, the temperature will rise to more than 100℃, so an intercooler device needs to be set up at the front end of the air entering the stack to cool the air; at the same time, in a low temperature environment, the coolant needs to be preheated and the temperature needs to be raised to the normal temperature before the stack can be started to avoid damage to the stack. In a sub-zero temperature environment, the fuel cell system needs to set a PTC heater to preheat the coolant. After the coolant temperature is raised to the appropriate temperature, the stack can be started. At the same time, during the normal operation of the fuel cell, after the air compressor compresses the air, the air temperature will rise to more than 100℃, exceeding the normal operating temperature of the stack, and the air needs to be cooled. For details, please refer to Figure 4 .

[0003] At present, the fuel system mainly realizes cold start and compressed air cooling at low temperature by cold start or compressed air cooling. Cold start is to add PTC heater in the thermal management system. In the low temperature state, the PTC heater is started in advance to heat the cooling liquid to the suitable temperature of the system (60-70℃). Compressed air cooling is to set an intercooler at the rear end of the air compressor outlet, use coolant to cool the hot air, and reduce the air temperature to about 70℃.

[0004] The above-mentioned technologies have the following defects: 1. The integration level is not high. Since an intercooler and a PTC heater need to be additionally installed, the complexity of the system layout is increased. 2. The design space is large. This is because a certain amount of space needs to be reserved for the arrangement of the intercooler and the PTC heater, which results in unnecessary system space and reduces the compactness of the system. 3. The utilization rate of parts is not high. In a non-icing environment, the PTC heater does not need to work, resulting in equipment waste. 4. In a low-temperature environment, the surface of the battery stack cannot be preheated, reducing the low-temperature cold start effect; 5. The assembly time is long. The existing solution has many parts and complicated processes, which results in a lot of assembly time for operators, which is not conducive to mass production. Utility Model Content

[0005] The utility model proposes a novel cooling management system based on the cooling mode of the air compressor body to realize low-temperature starting and air compressor cooling.

[0006] The technical solution of this utility model is as follows:

[0007] A fuel cell thermal management system comprises an air compressor, a humidifier, a fuel cell stack and a three-way valve; the air compressor is respectively connected to the fuel cell stack and the radiator inlet and radiator outlet pipelines; the high-pressure air outlet of the air compressor is connected to the humidifier and the fuel cell stack in sequence through the three-way valve, and another outlet of the three-way valve is also connected to the purge inlet of the fuel cell stack.

[0008] Furthermore, the three interfaces of the three-way valve are port A, port B and port C, wherein port A is connected to the air compressor, port B is connected to the humidifier, and port C is connected to the purge inlet of the fuel cell stack 4.

[0009] An air compressor structure for a fuel cell thermal management system. The air compressor is provided with cooling channels on a motor casing and an intermediate pipeline from a first-stage impeller to a second-stage impeller.

[0010] In the above-mentioned air compressor structure, the air compressor is composed of a first-stage volute of the air compressor, a second-stage volute of the air compressor, a first-stage impeller, a second-stage impeller, an intermediate pipeline, a motor rotor, a coolant flow channel and a motor stator; a first-stage impeller is arranged inside the first-stage volute of the air compressor; a second-stage impeller is arranged inside the second-stage volute of the air compressor, and the first-stage impeller and the second-stage impeller are connected through the motor rotor, and the motor rotor is sleeved in the motor stator; a cooling flow channel is arranged on the air compressor pump head and the intermediate pipeline from the first-stage impeller to the second-stage impeller.

[0011] In the above-mentioned air compressor structure, the coolant flow channel is connected to the cooling inlet joint and the cooling outlet joint arranged on the motor housing.

[0012] Compared with the prior art, the advantages of the present invention are:

[0013] (1) The utility model has a high integration level in the fuel cell thermal management system, which reduces the number of PTC heaters and intercoolers.

[0014] (2) The improvement of the air compressor in the utility model enhances the cooling effect of the air compressor and increases the service life and reliability of the air compressor.

[0015] (3) In the present invention, in a low temperature environment, the box body can be preheated by using hot air from an air compressor. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the fuel cell thermal management system of the utility model;

[0017] Figure 2This is the cooling structure diagram of the air compressor;

[0018] Figure 3 This is the system low temperature startup flow chart;

[0019] Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram of the fuel system structure in the prior art.

[0020] The components in the figure are as follows: air compressor 1, intercooler 2, humidifier 3, battery stack 4, PTC heater 5, three-way valve 6, air compressor first-stage volute 1.1; motor casing 1.2; air compressor second-stage volute 1.3; first-stage impeller 1.4; second-stage impeller 1.5; intermediate pipeline from the first stage to the second stage 1.6; motor rotor 1.7; cooling inlet connector 1.8; cooling outlet connector 1.9; coolant flow channel 1.10; motor stator 1.11. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] The preferred embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings:

[0022] Example 1

[0023] like Figure 1 As shown, in this embodiment, a fuel cell thermal management system includes an air compressor 1, a humidifier 3, a fuel cell stack 4 and a three-way valve 6; the air compressor 1 is connected to the fuel cell stack 4 and the radiator inlet and radiator outlet pipes respectively; the high-pressure air outlet of the air compressor 1 is connected to the humidifier 3 and the fuel cell stack 4 in sequence through the three-way valve 6, and the other outlet of the three-way valve 6 is also connected to the purge inlet of the fuel cell stack 4. The specific structure here is: the three interfaces of the three-way valve 6 are port A, port B and port C respectively, wherein port A is connected to the air compressor 1, port B is connected to the humidifier 3, and port C is connected to the purge inlet of the fuel cell stack 4.

[0024] Example 2

[0025] In this embodiment, the structure of the air compressor in Embodiment 1 is described in detail. The air compressor 1 is provided with cooling channels on the air compressor pump head (motor housing 1.2) and the intermediate pipeline from the first-stage impeller to the second-stage impeller.

[0026] Specifically, the air compressor 1 is composed of a first-stage volute 1.1, a second-stage volute 1.3, a first-stage impeller 1.4, a second-stage impeller 1.5, an intermediate pipeline 1.6, a motor rotor 1.7, a coolant channel 1.10 and a motor stator 1.11; a first-stage impeller 1.4 is arranged inside the first-stage volute 1.1 of the air compressor; a second-stage impeller 1.5 is arranged inside the second-stage volute 1.3 of the air compressor, and the first-stage impeller 1.4 and the second-stage impeller 1.5 are connected through the motor rotor 1.7, and the motor rotor 1.7 is sleeved in the motor stator 1.11; a cooling channel 1.10 is arranged on the air compressor pump head and the intermediate pipeline 1.6 from the first-stage impeller 1.4 to the second-stage impeller 1.5. The coolant flow channel 1.10 is connected to a cooling inlet joint 1.8 and a cooling outlet joint 1.9 arranged on the motor housing 1.2, wherein the cooling inlet joint 1.8 is connected to the radiator outlet pipe, and the cooling outlet joint 1.9 is connected to the radiator inlet pipe.

[0027] Example 3

[0028] During the operation of the fuel cell system air compressor 1, heat will be generated at the pump head due to the need to compress air; in the utility model, cooling channels are arranged on the air compressor casing and the primary / secondary intermediate pipes, and the heat generated by the air compressor itself is used to heat the cooling liquid in a low-temperature environment, thereby realizing the thermal engine function of the fuel cell system and eliminating the PTC heater; and through the three-way valve at the rear end of the air compressor, in the cold machine state, the three-way valve is set to the A→C state, and the hot air generated by the air compressor is introduced into the box body to preheat the surface of the battery stack, evaporate the droplets inside the battery stack, and speed up the startup speed; when the temperature of the fuel coolant rises to 0°C, the three-way valve is set to AB, air enters the battery stack, and the system operates normally, which can be referred to Figure 3 .

[0029] In addition, cooling channels are provided on the air compressor pump head and the first / secondary intermediate pipes to cool the compressed air and eliminate the intercooler parts at the rear end. At the same time, the first / secondary intermediate pipes of the air compressor are cooled to prevent the air compressor from running at high temperature, thereby increasing the service life and reliability of the air compressor. At the same time, the three-way valve at the rear end of the air compressor can be used to actively adjust the box purge flow rate to better control the box temperature.

[0030] Finally, it should be noted that the above description is only a preferred embodiment of the utility model and is not intended to limit the utility model. Although the utility model is described in detail with reference to the above embodiments, those skilled in the art can still modify the technical solutions recorded in the above embodiments or replace some of the technical features therein with equivalents. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. made within the spirit and principle of the utility model shall be included in the protection scope of the utility model.

Claims

1. A fuel cell thermal management system, characterized in that: The invention comprises an air compressor (1), a humidifier (3), a fuel cell stack (4) and a three-way valve (6); the air compressor (1) is respectively connected to the fuel cell stack (4) and a radiator inlet and a radiator outlet pipe; the high-pressure air outlet of the air compressor (1) is connected to the humidifier (3) and the fuel cell stack (4) in sequence through the three-way valve (6), and another outlet of the three-way valve (6) is also connected to the purge inlet of the fuel cell stack (4).

2. The fuel cell thermal management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The three interfaces of the three-way valve (6) are port A, port B and port C, respectively, wherein port A is connected to the air compressor (1), port B is connected to the humidifier (3), and port C is connected to the purge inlet of the fuel cell stack (4).

3. An air compressor structure for the fuel cell thermal management system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The air compressor (1) is provided with cooling channels on the motor housing (1.2) and the intermediate pipeline from the first-stage impeller to the second-stage impeller.

4. The air compressor structure according to claim 3, characterized in that: The air compressor (1) is composed of a first-stage volute (1.1) of the air compressor, a second-stage volute (1.3) of the air compressor, a first-stage impeller (1.4), a second-stage impeller (1.5), an intermediate pipeline (1.6), a motor rotor (1.7), a coolant flow channel (1.10) and a motor stator (1.11); a first-stage impeller (1.4) is arranged inside the first-stage volute (1.1) of the air compressor; a second-stage impeller (1.5) is arranged inside the second-stage volute (1.3) of the air compressor, the first-stage impeller (1.4) and the second-stage impeller (1.5) are connected via a motor rotor (1.7), and the motor rotor (1.7) is sleeved in the motor stator (1.11); a cooling flow channel (1.10) is arranged on the air compressor pump head and the intermediate pipeline (1.6) from the first-stage impeller (1.4) to the second-stage impeller (1.5).

5. The air compressor structure according to claim 4, characterized in that: The coolant flow channel (1.10) is connected to a cooling inlet joint (1.8) and a cooling outlet joint (1.9) arranged on the motor housing (1.2).

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