Humidifying tank for fuel cell test bench

Abstract

The utility model belongs to the field of fuel cell testing devices, and particularly relates to a humidifying tank for a fuel cell testing table. The humidifying tank comprises an inner container and an outer container wrapping the inner container, the inner container is provided with an inner container water storage area, the outer container is provided with an outer container liquid storage area, gas to be humidified makes full contact with pure water in the inner container, flowing liquid with the temperature controlled is introduced into the outer container, and the outer container is connected into an external temperature adjusting water tank. By controlling the temperature of the liquid in the outer container, the temperature of the water in the inner container can be kept stable and uniform, and the temperature of the water in the inner container can be increased or decreased. Compared with the prior art, the device has the beneficial effects that the temperature of the humidified reaction gas can be quickly and accurately increased and reduced to a set dew point temperature, so that the phenomenon of condensation or condensation of the humidifying tank and the reactor inlet reaction gas can be fully avoided, and the optimal operation condition of a membrane electrode can be quickly found out; the membrane electrode testing time can be greatly saved, and the device is safe and reliable.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model belongs to the field of fuel cell testing devices, and in particular relates to a humidifying tank for a fuel cell testing bench. Background Art

[0002] A proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) is a device that directly converts chemical energy into electricity. In recent years, PEMFC has been considered one of the most promising alternative clean power generation devices due to its low-to-zero emissions, low-temperature operation, high power density, and high efficiency. It offers significant advantages in efficiency, cleanliness, safety, reliability, and flexibility. Furthermore, PEMFCs boast low operating temperatures, high energy density, long service life, and zero pollution, promising broad applications in the energy and transportation sectors. A fuel cell primarily consists of a proton exchange membrane, a microporous layer, a gas diffusion layer, a catalyst layer, and bipolar plates. Humidity control of the anode and cathode reactant gases is crucial during PEMFC operation. To ensure efficient operation under optimal conditions, the reactant gases must be heated and humidified. Rapidly and precisely raising and lowering the dew point temperature of the reactant gases is crucial.

[0003] In the prior art, hydrogen fuel cell test bench humidification tanks are wrapped with specialized heating cables and thick insulation to better protect the tank's temperature from environmental influences. This prevents condensation from forming on the tank and the reactant gases entering the stack, thus preventing the tank's temperature from being affected by the surrounding environment. Due to the tank's superior thermal insulation, as well as cost and process considerations, the tank's unique design makes it difficult to achieve precise, rapid, and stable cooling when the reactant gas dew point needs to be rapidly lowered. During fuel cell test bench testing, to quickly identify optimal operating conditions for the membrane electrode (PEMFC), precise control of reactant gas temperature and humidity is often required to determine the optimal operating environment. This prevents excessive moisture in the reactant gas from causing water immersion in the catalyst during testing, potentially impacting the life of the membrane electrode. This significantly reduces testing time, gas costs, and improves testing efficiency.

[0004] Ordinary humidifiers consist of a single tank, which usually uses pre-buried heating tubes or heating belts wrapped around the outside of the tank to heat the distilled water inside the tank. The PID control method is used for heating control, which causes the dew point of the water temperature inside the humidification tank to be too high and the relative humidity of the humidified gas to be too high, making it difficult to quickly and accurately control the dew point temperature required for testing. When performing a relative humidity gradient test on the membrane electrode, it is also difficult to quickly and accurately increase or decrease the temperature inside the humidification tank to a certain dew point temperature. Utility Model Content

[0005] The purpose of the utility model is to provide a humidifying tank for a fuel cell test bench. After humidification, the temperature of the reaction gas can be accurately and quickly increased and decreased to a set dew point temperature, greatly saving the time of membrane electrode testing.

[0006] In order to achieve the above objectives, the technical solution adopted by the present invention is as follows: a humidification tank for a fuel cell test bench, the humidification tank comprising an inner liner and an outer liner wrapping the inner liner, the inner liner being provided with an inner liner water storage area, the outer liner being provided with an outer liner liquid storage area, the humidified gas being in full contact with the pure water in the inner liner, and a flowing temperature-controlled liquid being introduced into the outer liner.

[0007] By controlling the temperature of the liquid in the outer tank, the water in the inner tank can be kept at a stable and uniform temperature, or the water in the inner tank can be heated or cooled.

[0008] The liquid includes water; the flowing water in the outer container is connected to the external temperature-regulating water tank.

[0009] By controlling the liquid temperature of the outer tank, the water in the inner tank can be quickly and accurately heated or cooled to the dew point temperature, so that the gas to be humidified can also reach the dew point temperature after being humidified by the water in the inner tank.

[0010] An inlet for gas to be humidified is provided at the bottom of the humidifying tank, and the inlet for gas to be humidified is aligned with a bubble generator provided at the bottom of the inner tank. The gas to be humidified enters the bubble generator from the inlet for gas to be humidified, and the gas to be humidified is dispersed into small bubbles, which are in full contact with the water in the inner tank. The gas is humidified by bubbling, and the humidified gas leaves the humidifying tank from the humidified gas outlet at the top of the humidifying tank, and the humidified gas outlet is located at the top of the inner tank.

[0011] The humidifying tank is provided with a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the inner tank.

[0012] The top or bottom of the humidifying tank is provided with an outer tank water inlet and an outer tank water outlet.

[0013] The bottom of the inner tank is provided with a drain outlet, and the top of the inner tank is provided with an inner tank water inlet.

[0014] The top and bottom ends of the inner tank are connected by a pipeline, an upper limit liquid level sensor is installed on the upper end of the pipeline, and a lower limit liquid level sensor is set at the lower end of the pipeline. The positions of the upper and lower limit liquid level sensors are adjustable. By adding water through the water inlet of the inner tank or draining water through the drain outlet, the water level in the pipeline is located between the upper limit liquid level sensor and the lower limit liquid level sensor.

[0015] The outer liner surrounds the inner liner from the outside of the inner liner, and the top and bottom of the inner liner are not covered by the outer liner.

[0016] Compared with the existing technology, the benefits of the present invention are: the temperature of the humidified reaction gas can be quickly and accurately increased and decreased to the set dew point temperature, which can fully ensure that the humidification tank and the reaction gas entering the stack will not condense or condense, and the optimal operating conditions of the membrane electrode can be quickly found, which can greatly save the time of membrane electrode testing, and the device is safe and reliable; the water circulation system of the outer tank is used to heat and cool the inner tank, and the inner tank water and the humidified gas with a certain pressure inside it do not participate in the external water circulation. Compared with the technical solution in which the inner tank water and the humidified gas with a certain pressure inside it directly participate in the external water circulation, it is obviously safer and has better operating stability. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the utility model;

[0018] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the cross-sectional structure of the utility model;

[0019] The meaning of the reference numerals in the figures:

[0020] 1- Outer tank water inlet, 2- Drain outlet, 3- Gas inlet to be humidified, 4- Bubble generator, 5- Inner tank water storage area, 6- Outer tank water storage area, 7- Outer tank water outlet, 8- Humidified gas outlet, 9- Inner tank water inlet, 10- Upper limit liquid level sensor, 11- Lower limit liquid level sensor, 12- Temperature sensor, 13- Inner tank, 14- Outer tank, 15- Pipeline. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0022] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, a humidification tank for a fuel cell test bench includes an inner liner 13 and an outer liner 14 that wraps the inner liner. The inner liner includes an inner liner water storage area 5, and the outer liner includes an outer liner liquid storage area 6. The humidified gas is in full contact with the water in the inner liner, and a flowing temperature-controlled liquid is introduced into the outer liner.

[0023] By controlling the temperature of the liquid in the outer tank, the water in the inner tank can be kept at a stable and uniform temperature, or the water in the inner tank can be heated or cooled.

[0024] In a preferred embodiment, the liquid includes water or other liquids whose temperature can be precisely controlled; the flowing water in the outer container is connected to an external temperature-regulating water tank.

[0025] By controlling the liquid temperature of the outer tank, the water in the inner tank can be quickly and accurately heated or cooled to the set dew point temperature, so that the gas to be humidified can also reach the dew point temperature after being humidified by the water in the inner tank.

[0026] In a preferred embodiment, a gas inlet 3 to be humidified is provided at the bottom end of the humidification tank, and the gas inlet to be humidified is aligned with a bubble generator 4 provided at the bottom of the inner tank. The gas to be humidified enters the bubble generator from the gas inlet to be humidified, and the gas to be humidified is dispersed into small bubbles, which are in full contact with the water in the inner tank. The gas is humidified by bubbling, and the humidified gas leaves the humidification tank from the humidified gas outlet 8 at the top of the humidification tank, and the humidified gas outlet is located at the top of the inner tank.

[0027] The humidification tank is provided with a temperature sensor 12 for detecting the temperature of the inner tank. The temperature sensor can be set at the bottom or top of the humidification tank and contact the water in the inner tank to accurately detect the water temperature in the inner tank and determine the temperature of the humidified gas.

[0028] In a preferred embodiment, the humidifier tank is provided with an external water inlet and an external water outlet at the top or bottom. For example, the external water inlet is provided at the bottom of the humidifier tank and communicates with the external water tank, while the external water outlet is provided at the top of the humidifier tank and communicates with the external water tank. The external water inlet 1 and the external water outlet 7 are also connected to an external temperature-controlled water tank.

[0029] Furthermore, a drain outlet 2 is provided at the bottom of the humidification tank (more specifically, the bottom of the inner tank), and an inner tank water inlet 9 is provided at the top of the humidification tank (more specifically, the top of the inner tank).

[0030] In a preferred embodiment, a pipeline 15 connects the top and bottom ends of the inner tank (which also constitute the top and bottom ends of the humidifier tank). An upper limit liquid level sensor 10 is installed at the upper end of the pipeline, and a lower limit liquid level sensor 11 is installed at the lower end. Water is added through the inner tank's water inlet or drained through the outlet to maintain the water level in the pipeline between the upper and lower limit liquid level sensors. The specific positions of the upper and lower limit liquid level sensors can be flexibly adjusted according to actual operational needs. This structure maintains the water level in the inner tank at a safe level, preventing the inner tank from depleting water and failing to humidify the reactant gases, causing dehydration and drying of the proton exchange membrane in the membrane electrode. It also prevents safety hazards caused by the reactant gases in the inner tank.

[0031] The outer liner surrounds the inner liner from the outside, and the top and bottom of the inner liner are not covered by the outer liner. Therefore, the outer liner does not interfere with the gas humidification and can quickly heat up or cool down the water in the inner liner.

[0032] The utility model adopts the form of inner and outer tanks. The reaction gas in the inner tank is dispersed into small bubbles through a bubbling head, which fully contacts the distilled water in the humidification tank. The reaction gas is humidified by bubbling. Flowing water is introduced into the outer tank. The flowing water is connected to an external temperature-regulating water tank to accurately control the water temperature. The temperature sensor detects the water temperature of the inner tank. The water of the required temperature flows through the outer tank to quickly heat or cool the pure water in the inner tank, so as to achieve the purpose of rapid heating and cooling and heat preservation. It can fully ensure that the humidification tank and the reaction gas entering the reactor will not have condensation, which is safe and reliable.

[0033] By setting up a humidification tank in the form of an inner and outer tank, it is equivalent to using the water circulation system of the outer tank to insulate, heat and cool the inner tank. During the operation of the fuel cell test bench, the inner tank needs to be fed with a certain pressure of reaction gas to be humidified (air, especially hydrogen). The water circulation system of the outer tank can not only keep the water in the inner tank at a stable and uniform temperature, but also heat or cool the water in the inner tank quickly and accurately. The water in the inner tank and the gas with a certain pressure inside it do not participate in the external water circulation. Compared with the technical solution in which the water in the inner tank and the gas with a certain pressure inside it directly participate in the external water circulation, it is obviously safer and has better operational stability.

[0034] In the description of the present invention, it should be understood that the terms "center", "longitudinal", "lateral", "up", "down", "front", "back", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inside", "outside", etc., indicating directions or positional relationships, are based on the directions or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific direction, be constructed and operated in a specific direction, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on the present invention; in addition, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0035] In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that: unless otherwise clearly stipulated and limited, the terms "installation", "connection", "setting" and "formation" should be understood in a broad sense; for example, it can be a fixed connection, setting, or a detachable connection, setting, or an integrated structure; 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 skilled in the art, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood according to the specific circumstances.

[0036] In the description of the present invention, reference to terms such as "embodiment", "specific example" or "practical application" means that the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described in combination with the embodiment are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present invention; the schematic expressions of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example, and the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described may be combined in an appropriate manner in any one or more embodiments or examples.

[0037] The above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention. Those skilled in the art should understand that the above embodiments do not limit the present invention in any form. Any technical solutions obtained by equivalent replacement or equivalent transformation fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A humidification tank for a fuel cell test bench, characterized in that: The humidification tank includes an inner liner and an outer liner wrapping the inner liner. The inner liner is provided with an inner liner water storage area, and the outer liner is provided with an outer liner liquid storage area. When the humidified gas is fully in contact with the pure water in the inner liner, a flowing temperature-controlled liquid is introduced into the outer liner.

2. A humidifying tank for a fuel cell test bench according to claim 1, characterized in that: By controlling the temperature of the liquid in the outer tank, the water in the inner tank can be kept at a stable and uniform temperature, or the water in the inner tank can be heated or cooled.

3. A humidifying tank for a fuel cell test bench according to claim 1, characterized in that: The liquid includes water; the flowing water in the outer container is connected to the external temperature-regulating water tank.

4. A humidifying tank for a fuel cell test bench according to claim 1, characterized in that: By controlling the liquid temperature of the outer tank, the water in the inner tank can be quickly and accurately heated or cooled to the dew point temperature, so that the gas to be humidified can also reach the dew point temperature after being humidified by the water in the inner tank.

5. The humidification tank for a fuel cell test bench according to claim 1, characterized in that: An inlet for gas to be humidified is provided at the bottom of the humidifying tank, and the inlet for gas to be humidified is aligned with a bubble generator provided at the bottom of the inner tank. The gas to be humidified enters the bubble generator from the inlet for gas to be humidified, and the gas to be humidified is dispersed into small bubbles, which are in full contact with the water in the inner tank. The gas is humidified by bubbling, and the humidified gas leaves the humidifying tank from the humidified gas outlet at the top of the humidifying tank, and the humidified gas outlet is located at the top of the inner tank.

6. The humidification tank for a fuel cell test bench according to claim 1, characterized in that: The humidifying tank is provided with a temperature sensor for detecting the temperature of the inner tank.

7. The humidification tank for a fuel cell test bench according to claim 1, characterized in that: The top or bottom of the humidifying tank is provided with an outer tank water inlet and an outer tank water outlet.

8. The humidification tank for a fuel cell test bench according to claim 1, characterized in that: The bottom of the inner tank is provided with a drain outlet, and the top of the inner tank is provided with an inner tank water inlet.

9. A humidifying tank for a fuel cell test bench according to claim 8, characterized in that: The top and bottom ends of the inner tank are connected by a pipeline, an upper limit liquid level sensor is installed on the upper end of the pipeline, and a lower limit liquid level sensor is set at the lower end of the pipeline. The positions of the upper and lower limit liquid level sensors are adjustable. By adding water through the water inlet of the inner tank or draining water through the drain outlet, the water level in the pipeline is located between the upper limit liquid level sensor and the lower limit liquid level sensor.

10. The humidification tank for a fuel cell test bench according to claim 1, characterized in that: The outer liner surrounds the inner liner from the outside of the inner liner, and the top and bottom of the inner liner are not covered by the outer liner.

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