Automatic control valve and flow battery system using same

Abstract

The utility model relates to an automatic control valve and a flow battery system using the same, the automatic control valve is used for balancing electrolyte of a positive and negative storage tank of a flow battery, and the automatic control valve comprises an actuator, a signal interface, a valve body, a valve body, an upper pressure sensor and a lower pressure sensor; the actuator is connected with the signal interface and the valve body; the upper pressure sensor is mounted on the inner upper wall of the pipeline, and the upper pressure sensor is arranged to detect the pressure of the electrolyte on the inner upper wall of the pipeline; the lower pressure sensor is installed on the inner lower wall of the pipeline and arranged to detect the pressure of the electrolyte on the inner lower wall of the pipeline. The pressure of the electrolyte on the pipeline is detected according to the lower pressure sensor and the upper pressure sensor, the liquid level height of the electrolyte in the storage tank can be judged by the actuator, so that the valve is automatically controlled to be closed and opened, and the use is very convenient. The liquid level height of the electrolyte can be detected, the electric leakage of the all-vanadium redox flow battery is reduced, and the operation efficiency of the redox flow battery is improved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The utility model relates to the field of liquid flow battery, specifically relates to an automatic control valve and the liquid flow battery system using it. BACKGROUND

[0002] During the use of the all-vanadium redox flow battery, the transmembrane migration of ions and the viscosity difference of electrolyte can cause the electrolyte volume imbalance of the positive and negative electrodes, thereby causing the leakage of the all-vanadium redox flow battery and reducing the operation efficiency of the liquid flow battery.

[0003] Therefore, there is an urgent need for a simple and smart structure, automatic control and convenient to use valve for balancing the volume of the positive and negative electrolyte of the all-vanadium redox flow battery. UTILITY MODEL CONTENT

[0004] The technical problem to be solved by the present application is to provide an automatic control valve with simple and smart structure and convenient to use.

[0005] To solve the above technical problems, the present application provides an automatic control valve for balancing the electrolyte of the positive and negative storage tanks of the liquid flow battery, which comprises an actuator, a signal interface, a valve body, a valve body, an upper pressure sensor and a lower pressure sensor. The actuator is connected to the signal interface and the valve body. The signal interface is in communication connection with the upper pressure sensor and the lower pressure sensor. The valve body is provided with a pipeline for the flow of electrolyte. The valve body is installed in the pipeline. The upper pressure sensor is installed on the inner upper wall of the pipeline and is arranged to detect the pressure of the electrolyte on the inner upper wall of the pipeline. The lower pressure sensor is installed on the inner lower wall of the pipeline and is arranged to detect the pressure of the electrolyte on the inner lower wall of the pipeline. The actuator is used to calculate the liquid level of the electrolyte and control the opening or closing of the valve body according to the upper pressure sensor and the lower pressure sensor.

[0006] In an embodiment of the present application, the automatic control valve further comprises a liquid level sensor arranged in the interior of the pipeline for detecting the height of the electrolyte in the pipeline.

[0007] In an embodiment of the present application, the liquid level sensor, the upper pressure sensor and the lower pressure sensor are integrally arranged, and the liquid level sensor is arranged between the upper pressure sensor and the lower pressure sensor.

[0008] In an embodiment of the present application, the signal interface is in communication connection with the liquid level sensor.

[0009] In an embodiment of the present application, the actuator comprises a driving mechanism configured to obtain the height of the electrolyte from the actuator, and configured to drive the valve body to open or close when the height of the electrolyte reaches a preset height range.

[0010] In an embodiment of the present application, the valve body is a sphere, and a first opening and a second opening are oppositely arranged on the sphere, and the diameters of the first opening and the second opening are less than or equal to the inner diameter of the pipeline.

[0011] In an embodiment of the present application, the driving mechanism is an electric motor configured to drive the valve body to rotate.

[0012] In an embodiment of the present application, the signal interface comprises a first signal interface and a second signal interface, the upper pressure sensor comprises a first upper pressure sensor and a second upper pressure sensor, and the lower pressure sensor comprises a first lower pressure sensor and a second lower pressure sensor, wherein the first upper pressure sensor and the first lower pressure sensor are arranged on a first side of the valve body, the second upper pressure sensor and the second lower pressure sensor are arranged on a second side of the valve body, the first signal interface is configured to be communicatively connected with the first upper pressure sensor and the first lower pressure sensor, and the second signal interface is configured to be communicatively connected with the second upper pressure sensor and the second lower pressure sensor.

[0013] In an embodiment of the present application, the automatic control valve further comprises a first pipeline interface and a second pipeline interface, the first pipeline interface is in communication with the first end of the pipeline, and the first upper pressure sensor and the first lower pressure sensor are arranged between the first pipeline interface and the valve body; the second pipeline interface is in communication with the second end of the pipeline, and the second upper pressure sensor and the second lower pressure sensor are arranged between the second pipeline interface and the valve body; the first pipeline interface is configured to be in communication with one of the positive electrode storage tank and the negative electrode storage tank of the flow battery, and the second pipeline interface is configured to be in communication with the other of the positive electrode storage tank and the negative electrode storage tank of the flow battery.

[0014] The present application also provides a flow battery system to solve the above technical problems. The flow battery system comprises a positive electrode storage tank, a negative electrode storage tank, and an automatic control valve as described above, wherein the automatic control valve is arranged between the positive electrode storage tank and the negative electrode storage tank.

[0015] The automatic control valve provided by the present application can automatically control the opening and closing of the valve according to the pressure of the electrolyte on the pipeline detected by the lower pressure sensor and the upper pressure sensor, and the actuator can determine the liquid level of the electrolyte in the storage tank, thereby reducing the leakage of the all-vanadium flow battery and improving the operating efficiency of the flow battery. The automatic control valve of the present application has a simple structure and is convenient to use. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0016] In order to make the above-mentioned objects, features and advantages of the present application more clearly understood, the specific embodiments of the present application are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

[0017] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an automatic control valve provided in one embodiment of the present application;

[0018] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a valve body provided in one embodiment of the present application;

[0019] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of a usage scenario of an automatic control valve provided in one embodiment of the present application.

[0020] Reference numerals

[0021] automatic control valves, 100;

[0022] actuator, 110;

[0023] drive mechanism, 111;

[0024] signal interface, 120;

[0025] First signal interface, 121;

[0026] Second signal interface, 122;

[0027] valve body, 130;

[0028] valve body, 131;

[0029] first opening, 132;

[0030] second opening, 133;

[0031] upper pressure sensor, 140;

[0032] first upper pressure sensor, 141;

[0033] second upper pressure sensor, 142;

[0034] downforce sensor, 150;

[0035] first downforce sensor, 151;

[0036] second downforce sensor, 152;

[0037] level sensor, 160;

[0038] first level sensor, 161;

[0039] second level sensor, 162;

[0040] pipelines, 170;

[0041] a first end of the conduit, 171;

[0042] a second end of the conduit, 172;

[0043] a first conduit interface, 173;

[0044] a second conduit interface, 174;

[0045] a negative electrode reservoir, 201;

[0046] a positive electrode reservoir, 202;

[0047] an electrolyte level, 203. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0048] In order to make the above objectives, features and advantages of the present application more clear and easily understood, the specific embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0049] In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present application. However, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that the present application can be practiced without the specific details and other implementations can be employed. In other instances, well-known methods have not been described in detail in order to avoid obscuring the present application.

[0050] As used in this application and the appended claims, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to "a" or "the" element or steps of the method includes an embodiment having one or more of them, and reference to "the" element or steps of the method includes an embodiment having one or more of them.

[0051] In the description of the present application, it is to be understood that the orientation or positional relationships indicated by the orientation words such as "front, back, up, down, left, right", "horizontal, vertical, perpendicular, horizontal" and "top, bottom" and the like are generally based on the orientation or positional relationships shown in the drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present application and simplifying the description. Without being contrary to the description, these orientation words do not indicate or imply that the devices or elements referred to must have a particular orientation or be constructed and operated in a particular orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on the scope of protection of the present application. The orientation words "inner, outer" refer to the inner and outer relative to the contour of each component.

[0052] Furthermore, it should be noted that the use of terms such as "first" and "second" to define components is solely for the purpose of distinguishing the corresponding components. Unless otherwise stated, these terms have no special meaning and therefore should not be construed as limiting the scope of protection of this application. Furthermore, while the terms used in this application are selected from commonly known and commonly used terms, some terms mentioned in this specification may have been selected by the applicant at his or her discretion, and their detailed meanings are explained in the relevant sections of this description. Furthermore, this application should be understood not only by the actual terms used, but also by the meaning implied by each term.

[0053] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present application will be described based on the accompanying drawings. However, the embodiments shown below are examples of automatic control valves and liquid flow battery systems using the same for embodying the technical ideas of the present application, and the automatic control valves and liquid flow battery systems using the same of the present application are not specifically the following contents. Furthermore, in order to facilitate the understanding of the scope of the claims, this specification assigns numbers corresponding to the components shown in the embodiments to the components shown in the "Claims" and "Utility Model Contents" columns. However, the components shown in the claims are by no means specific to the components of the embodiments. In particular, the dimensions, materials, shapes, and relative configurations of the constituent components described in the embodiments, unless specifically described, are not intended to limit the scope of the present application to these, but are merely illustrative examples.

[0054] However, the dimensions or positional relationships of the components shown in the drawings are sometimes exaggerated for the purpose of clarifying the description. Furthermore, in the following description, for components that are identical or homogeneous, the same name or symbol indicates that its detailed description will be omitted as appropriate. Furthermore, the various elements constituting the present application may be in the form of multiple elements being constituted by the same component so that one component serves as multiple elements, or conversely, multiple components sharing the function of one component. In addition, the contents described in some embodiments and implementation methods may also be utilized in other embodiments, implementation methods, etc. In addition, in this specification, "on" is not limited to the case where it is formed in contact with the upper surface, but also includes the case where it is formed separately above, and is also used to include the meaning of the presence of an intervening layer between layers.

[0055] The present application provides an automatic control valve 100 for balancing the electrolyte in the positive and negative electrode storage tanks of a flow battery. Figure 1As shown, the automatic control valve 100 comprises an actuator 110, a signal interface 120, a valve body 130, a valve body 131, an upper pressure sensor 140 and a lower pressure sensor 150; the actuator 110 connects the signal interface 120 and the valve body 130; the signal interface 120 is in communication connection with the upper pressure sensor 140 and the lower pressure sensor 150; the valve body 130 is provided with a pipeline 170 for electrolyte circulation; the valve body 131 is arranged in the pipeline 170; the upper pressure sensor 140 is installed on the inner upper wall of the pipeline 170 and is arranged to detect the pressure of the electrolyte on the inner upper wall of the pipeline 170; the lower pressure sensor 150 is installed on the inner lower wall of the pipeline 170 and is arranged to detect the pressure of the electrolyte on the inner lower wall of the pipeline 170. The actuator is used to calculate the liquid level of the electrolyte and control the opening or closing of the valve body according to the upper pressure sensor and the lower pressure sensor. The specific calculation method will be described later.

[0056] In some embodiments, the actuator 110 can be a microcontroller (MCU), a field programmable logic device (FPGA) and a digital signal processor (DSP). The actuator 110 connects the valve body 130 and the signal interface 120, and is used to control the opening or closing of the valve body 131 of the valve body 130 and receive and process the signals transmitted by the signal interface 120. The signal interface 120 is in communication connection with the upper pressure sensor 140 and the lower pressure sensor 150, and the connection mode can be wired connection or wireless connection. When wired connection is used, the upper pressure sensor 140 and the lower pressure sensor 150 are connected to the signal interface 120 through a wire respectively. The signal interface 120 is used to receive the signals of the upper pressure sensor 140 and the lower pressure sensor 150 and convert the signals, and the converted signals are signals that can be recognized and received by the actuator 110. In some embodiments, the signal converter can be an encoder, a digital-to-analog converter or an analog-to-digital converter. The valve body 130 is provided with a pipeline 170, and the valve body 131 is arranged in the pipeline 170, and by closing and opening the valve body 131, the circulation of the electrolyte can be controlled. The application does not limit the type of the upper pressure sensor 140 and the lower pressure sensor 150, which can be a piezoelectric pressure sensor, a resistance pressure sensor and a strain pressure sensor.

[0057] In some embodiments, as Figure 1As shown, the automatic control valve 100 further comprises a liquid level sensor 160 arranged inside the pipe 170 for detecting the height of the electrolyte in the pipe 170. In some embodiments, the upper pressure sensor 140, the lower pressure sensor 150 and the liquid level sensor 160 are integrally arranged, and the liquid level sensor 160 is arranged between the upper pressure sensor 140 and the lower pressure sensor 150. The liquid level sensor 160 is further arranged to reduce the detection error of the upper pressure sensor 140 and the lower pressure sensor 150, and the specific way of reducing the detection error will be explained later. The signal interface 120 is in communication connection with the liquid level sensor 160, which can be wired connection or wireless connection. In the wired connection, the liquid level sensor 160 is connected with the signal interface 120 through a wire. The signal interface 120 also converts the signal of the liquid level sensor 160 so that the actuator 110 can identify and receive the signal. The present application does not limit the type of the liquid level sensor 160, which can be an ultrasonic sensor or an optical liquid level sensor 160.

[0058] In some embodiments, the actuator 110 comprises a driving mechanism arranged to obtain the height of the electrolyte from the actuator 110, and when the height of the electrolyte reaches a preset height range, the driving valve body 131 is opened or closed. The preset height is the height of the electrolyte designed according to the installation height of the valve body 131 in the tank, which can be stored in the actuator 110 in the form of data code. During use, if the height of the electrolyte in the tank is higher than the preset height, it indicates that the imbalance of the electrolyte of the flow battery is serious, and the valve needs to be opened to balance the electrolyte of the flow battery.

[0059] In some embodiments, as shown in Figure 2 The valve body 131 is a sphere, and the sphere oppositely has a first opening 132 and a second opening 133 penetrating through, and the diameter of the first opening 132 and the second opening 133 is less than or equal to the inner diameter of the pipe 170. When the first opening 132 and the second opening 133 are rotated to be in contact with the electrolyte in the pipe 170, the automatic control valve 100 is opened, and the electrolyte can flow; when the first opening 132 and the second opening 133 are not in contact with the electrolyte in the pipe 170, the automatic control valve 100 is closed, and the electrolyte does not flow.

[0060] In some embodiments, the driving mechanism is a motor for driving the rotation of the valve body 131. As shown in Figure 2 The valve body 131 further has a connecting rod 134, and the connecting rod 134 further has a hollow cuboid. The driving mechanism can be placed in the hollow cuboid and connected with the valve body 131. When the motor rotates, the connecting rod 134 is driven to rotate, thereby driving the rotation of the valve body 131.

[0061] In some embodiments, as shown inFigure 3 As shown, the signal interface 120 includes a first signal interface 121 and a second signal interface 122, the upper pressure sensor 140 includes a first upper pressure sensor 141 and a second upper pressure sensor 142, and the lower pressure sensor 150 includes a first lower pressure sensor 151 and a second lower pressure sensor 152, wherein the first upper pressure sensor 141 and the first lower pressure sensor 151 are arranged on the first side of the valve body 131, the second upper pressure sensor 142 and the second lower pressure sensor 152 are arranged on the second side of the valve body 131, the first signal interface 121 is configured to be in communication connection with the first upper pressure sensor 141 and the first lower pressure sensor 151, and the second signal interface 122 is configured to be in communication connection with the second upper pressure sensor 142 and the second lower pressure sensor 152. In actual application, the liquid levels of the negative electrolyte tank 201 and the positive electrolyte tank 202 of the flow battery do not rise or fall at the same time, but the liquid level of the electrolyte in one of the tanks rises while the liquid level of the electrolyte in the other tank falls. Therefore, the first upper pressure sensor 141 and the first lower pressure sensor 151 are configured to detect the height of the electrolyte in the negative electrolyte tank 201, and the second upper pressure sensor 142 and the second lower pressure sensor 152 are configured to detect the height of the electrolyte in the positive electrolyte tank 202. If the height of the electrolyte in one of the tanks reaches a preset height, the valve is opened. In some embodiments, the liquid level sensor 160 further includes a first liquid level sensor 161 and a second liquid level sensor 162, the first liquid level sensor 161 is arranged on the first side of the valve body 131, and the second liquid level sensor 162 is arranged on the second side of the valve body 131. The first signal interface 121 is in communication connection with the first liquid level sensor 161, and the second signal interface 122 is in communication connection with the second liquid level sensor 162. The first liquid level sensor 161 is arranged between the first upper pressure sensor 141 and the second pressure sensor 151, and the three are integrally arranged. The second liquid level sensor 162 is arranged between the second upper pressure sensor 152 and the second lower pressure sensor 152, and the three are integrally arranged.

[0062] In some embodiments, as Figure 3As shown, the automatic control valve 100 further includes a first pipe interface 173 and a second pipe interface 174. The first pipe interface is in communication with the first end 171 of the pipe, with the first upper pressure sensor 141 and the first lower pressure sensor 151 disposed between the first pipe interface 173 and the valve body 131. The second pipe interface 174 is in communication with the second end 172 of the pipe, with the second upper pressure sensor 142 and the second lower pressure sensor 152 disposed between the second pipe interface 174 and the valve body 131. The first pipe interface 173 is used to communicate with one of the positive electrode storage tank 201 and the negative electrode storage tank 202 of the flow battery, while the second pipe interface 174 is used to communicate with the other of the positive electrode storage tank 201 and the negative electrode storage tank 202 of the flow battery. The provision of the pipe interface 170 facilitates connection with the positive and negative electrode storage tanks 201 of the flow battery, reducing installation difficulty.

[0063] The working principle of the automatic control valve 100 is described below with reference to a specific example. In this example, the liquid level sensor 160 is an ultrasonic liquid level sensor, and the flow battery is an all-vanadium flow battery. Figure 3 As shown, the automatic control valve 100 is connected to the negative electrode storage tank 201 and the positive electrode storage tank 202 via a first pipe interface 173 and a second pipe interface 174, respectively. The initial electrolyte level in the two tanks (not shown) is slightly lower than the installation height of the automatic control valve 100. The first side of the valve body 131 is provided with a first upper pressure sensor 141, a first lower pressure sensor 151, and a first liquid level sensor 161, all integrated into a slender overall shape. The second side of the valve body 131 is provided with a second upper pressure sensor 142, a second lower pressure sensor 152, and a second liquid level sensor 162, all integrated into a slender overall shape.

[0064] During operation, assume that the electrolyte level 203 in the positive electrode tank 202 gradually rises. When the electrolyte level 203 in the positive electrode tank 202 falls below the level of the second lower pressure sensor 152, there is no pressure at the second lower pressure sensor 152, and the value detected by the second lower pressure sensor 152 is therefore zero. Accordingly, the values ​​detected by the liquid level sensor 162 and the second upper pressure sensor 142 are also zero, and the automatic control valve 100 remains in its initial setting.

[0065] When the electrolyte liquid level 203 in the positive electrode storage tank 202 rises to between the second lower pressure sensor 152 and the second upper pressure sensor 142, the second lower pressure sensor 152 can detect the pressure value, and the pressure value detected by the second upper pressure sensor 142 is zero. At this time, the second liquid level sensor 162 can also detect the height of the electrolyte liquid level 203 in the pipeline 170. The actuator 110 can calculate the height H1 of the electrolyte in the positive electrode storage tank 202 relative to the second lower pressure sensor 152 through the pressure value of the second lower pressure sensor 152. According to Pascal's principle, the calculation formula for liquid pressure is: P = ρgh. Among them, ρ is the density of the liquid, h is the height of the liquid, and g is the acceleration of gravity. When the pressure is known, the height h can be obtained, and the calculation formula for h is: h =

[0066] P / (ρg). Therefore, when the pressure value of the second downforce sensor 152 is obtained, the height H1 can be calculated. The actuator 110 compares H1 with a preset height. If H1 reaches the preset height, the control valve body 131 rotates, thereby opening the automatic control valve 100.

[0067] The second liquid level sensor 162 can measure the height H1 ′, and the actuator 110 can also compare H1 ′ with a preset height. If H1 ′ reaches the preset height, the control valve body 131 rotates to open the automatic control valve 100 .

[0068] The preset height is the liquid level height relative to the second lower pressure sensor 152. The specific setting method can be: first determine the maximum liquid level height A allowed for the electrolyte relative to the bottom of the positive electrode storage tank 202, and then determine the height B (relative to the bottom of the positive electrode storage tank 202) at which the automatic control valve 100 is installed in the positive electrode storage tank 202. The preset height can then be expressed as: AB.

[0069] If the electrolyte fluctuates, the pressure value of the second downforce sensor may fluctuate, and the resulting H1 may also fluctuate. The preset height can be set to a range of values, such as 10-12 mm. When the value of H1 is between 10-12 mm, the control valve body 131 rotates, thereby opening the automatic control valve 100.

[0070] If the preset height is set higher, the electrolyte in the positive tank 202 will continue to rise. When the electrolyte level 203 height exceeds the second upper pressure sensor 142, the second upper pressure sensor 142 will also detect the pressure. The height H2 of the electrolyte level 203 relative to the second upper pressure sensor 142 is obtained by the same calculation method. Since the electrolyte fills the pipe 170, the height detected by the second liquid level sensor 162 is constant, which is approximately the inner diameter of the pipe 170, and the value of the second liquid level sensor 162 will not be disturbed by the fluctuation of the electrolyte level 203. When the electrolyte level 203 fluctuates, the pressure values of the second lower pressure sensor 152 and the second upper pressure sensor 142 may deviate greatly, but the actual electrolyte level 203 height has exceeded the preset height. Therefore, the value C of the second liquid level sensor 162 is used for calibration to reduce the deviation.

[0071] The actuator 110 calculates the liquid level difference H3 of the second upper pressure sensor 142 and the second lower pressure sensor 152, H3 = H1 - H2. H3 is compared with the value C of the second liquid level sensor 162. If H3 reaches the value C for multiple times, it can be considered that the values detected by the second upper pressure sensor 142 and the second lower pressure sensor 152 at this time are accurate. The value C can be a range value, for example, ±2mm; the number of multiple detections can be five times. In practical application, the second lower pressure sensor 152 and the second upper pressure sensor 142 can be continuously detected for five times in a period of time, and then compared with the value C. When the reading is accurate, the actuator 110 can compare H1 with the preset height. If H1 reaches the preset height, the valve body 131 is controlled to rotate, so as to open the automatic control valve 100.

[0072] The actuator 110, the pressure sensor and the signal interface 120 in the automatic control valve 100 provided in the application are all small and easy-to-install components, and the valve does not have complex mechanical structure, and the structure between the components is very simple. According to the pressure of the electrolyte on the pipe 170 detected by the lower pressure sensor 150 and the upper pressure sensor 140, the actuator 110 can judge the height of the electrolyte level in the tank, so as to automatically control the closing and opening of the automatic control valve 100, which is very convenient to use. The height of the electrolyte level 203 can be detected, the leakage of the all-vanadium redox flow battery is reduced, and the operation efficiency of the flow battery is improved.

[0073] The application also provides a flow battery system, comprising a positive electrode storage tank 202, a negative electrode storage tank 201 and the automatic control valve 100 as described above, wherein the automatic control valve 100 is arranged between the positive electrode storage tank 202 and the negative electrode storage tank 201. By arranging the valve in the flow battery system, the electrolyte liquid level of the positive and negative electrode storage tanks 201 is balanced, the leakage of the flow battery system is reduced, and the operation efficiency of the flow battery system is improved.

[0074] Although some presently preferred embodiments of the application are discussed above by way of various examples, it should be appreciated that the detailed description is in no way intended to limit the scope of the application, which is defined by the appended claims. On the contrary, it is intended to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the application. For example, although the system components described above can be implemented by hardware devices, they can also be implemented by software solutions, such as installing the described system on an existing server or mobile device.

[0075] Similarly, it should be noted that the description of the application embodiments above sometimes combines multiple features into a single embodiment, drawing or description of an embodiment. This method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention that the application requires more features than are explicitly recited in a limitation thereof. Rather, it is within the intent of the application that features of the application can be sub-combined and then combined in other specific embodiments or configurations.

[0076] Some embodiments use numerical values to describe components, quantities of attributes. It should be understood that such numerical values used in the description of the embodiments are in some examples modified by the terms "about", "approximately", or "generally". Unless otherwise stated, "about", "approximately", or "generally" indicates ±20% variation. Accordingly, numerical values used in the specification and claims of some embodiments are approximations. Such approximation is contemplated to obtain desired properties according to individual embodiments. In some embodiments, numerical values should be considered to be defined with the specified number of significant digits and carried out ordinary rounding methods. Although numerical ranges and parameters setting the breadth of some embodiments of the application are approximations, such numerical values in specific embodiments are intended to be as precise as possible.

Claims

1. An automatically controlled valve for balancing electrolyte of positive and negative electrode reservoirs of a liquid flow battery, characterized in that, The automatic control valve comprises an actuator, a signal interface, a valve body, a valve, an upper pressure sensor and a lower pressure sensor; The actuator is connected to the signal interface and the valve body; The signal interface is in communication connection with the upper pressure sensor and the lower pressure sensor; A pipeline is arranged in the valve body, and the pipeline is used for electrolyte circulation; The valve is arranged in the pipeline; The upper pressure sensor is mounted on the inner upper wall of the pipeline, and is arranged to detect the pressure of the electrolyte on the inner upper wall of the pipeline; The lower pressure sensor is mounted on the inner lower wall of the pipeline, and is arranged to detect the pressure of the electrolyte on the inner lower wall of the pipeline; The actuator is used to calculate the liquid level of the electrolyte and control the opening or closing of the valve according to the upper pressure sensor and the lower pressure sensor.

2. The automatically controlled valve according to claim 1, wherein A liquid level sensor is arranged in the pipeline to detect the height of the electrolyte in the pipeline.

3. The automatically controlled valve according to claim 2, wherein The liquid level sensor, the upper pressure sensor and the lower pressure sensor are integrally arranged, and the liquid level sensor is arranged between the upper pressure sensor and the lower pressure sensor.

4. The automatically controlled valve according to claim 2, wherein The signal interface is in communication connection with the liquid level sensor.

5. The automatically controlled valve according to claim 1, wherein The actuator comprises a driving mechanism arranged to obtain the height of the electrolyte from the actuator, and drive the opening or closing of the valve when the height of the electrolyte reaches a preset height range.

6. The automatically controlled valve according to claim 5, wherein The valve is a ball, and a first opening and a second opening are oppositely arranged on the ball, and the diameters of the first opening and the second opening are less than or equal to the inner diameter of the pipeline.

7. The automatically controlled valve according to claim 5, wherein The driving mechanism is a motor, and the driving mechanism is used to drive the rotation of the valve.

8. The automatically controlled valve according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein The signal interface comprises a first signal interface and a second signal interface, the upper pressure sensor comprises a first upper pressure sensor and a second upper pressure sensor, and the lower pressure sensor comprises a first lower pressure sensor and a second lower pressure sensor, wherein the first upper pressure sensor and the first lower pressure sensor are arranged on a first side of the valve, the second upper pressure sensor and the second lower pressure sensor are arranged on a second side of the valve, the first signal interface is used to communicate with the first upper pressure sensor and the first lower pressure sensor, and the second signal interface is used to communicate with the second upper pressure sensor and the second lower pressure sensor.

9. The automatically controlled valve according to claim 8, wherein A first pipeline interface and a second pipeline interface are further included, the first pipeline interface is in communication with a first end of the pipeline, the first upper pressure sensor and the first lower pressure sensor are arranged between the first pipeline interface and the valve, the second pipeline interface is in communication with a second end of the pipeline, the second upper pressure sensor and the second lower pressure sensor are arranged between the second pipeline interface and the valve, the first pipeline interface is used to communicate with one of the positive electrode tank and the negative electrode tank of the flow battery, and the second pipeline interface is used to communicate with the other of the positive electrode tank and the negative electrode tank of the flow battery.

10. A flow battery system, characterized by, A battery pack comprising a positive electrode reservoir, a negative electrode reservoir, and an automatically controlled valve as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the automatically controlled valve is disposed between the positive electrode reservoir and the negative electrode reservoir.

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