An alkaline hydrogen production apparatus and system

Abstract

This invention provides an alkaline hydrogen production alkali preparation device and system. The alkaline hydrogen production alkali preparation device includes a feeding robot, an alkali tank, and a bag-opening module, a dissolving module, and a filtration module mounted on the alkali tank. The bag-opening module includes a bag-opening knife assembly and a negative pressure adsorption device located at the alkali tank inlet. The dissolving module includes a mechanical stirring device located below the inlet and a gas-assisted dissolving system located at the bottom of the alkali tank. The filtration module includes an inner coarse filter and an outer fine filter located below the inlet and surrounding the mechanical stirring device. This alkaline hydrogen production alkali preparation device can operate efficiently and continuously, with a production capacity matching large-scale alkali preparation needs. It can achieve automatic bag cutting and dust-free processing, significantly reducing the risk of pipeline blockage and overall tank concentration deviation.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model belongs to the field of alkaline hydrogen production technology, specifically relating to an alkaline hydrogen production alkali preparation device and an alkaline hydrogen production system. Background Technology

[0002] Hydrogen energy, as a clean and efficient secondary energy carrier, is becoming a key force in the global energy structure transformation. Currently, there are various hydrogen production processes, such as alkaline water electrolysis, proton exchange membrane water electrolysis, solid oxide water electrolysis, natural gas hydrogen production, and biomass hydrogen production. Compared to other hydrogen production technologies, alkaline water electrolysis is more mature, has lower costs, and is suitable for large-scale hydrogen production, making it the mainstream water electrolysis hydrogen production technology in China. Alkaline water electrolysis uses a 30% KOH solution as the electrolyte to produce hydrogen through electrolysis. In practical applications, to ensure the efficient and continuous operation of alkaline water hydrogen production equipment, a large amount of alkaline solution is usually required to guarantee a sufficient supply of raw materials.

[0003] Currently, the alkali solution used in alkaline water hydrogen production mainly relies on manual preparation. Workers transport alkali tablets to the alkali solution tank's feeding port, remove the outer packaging, and pour the solution into the tank. This manual preparation method suffers from several drawbacks: low efficiency and high operating costs due to manual bag handling and unpacking; the strong alkali dust generated during unpacking and pouring poses a health hazard; the alkali tablets dissolve in pure water, releasing a large amount of heat and producing significant amounts of alkali mist, posing a risk of respiratory burns; packaging fragments or other impurities can easily enter through the feeding port, contaminating the alkali solution and clogging pipelines; and the alkali tablets dissolve insufficiently due to manual stirring. Therefore, it is necessary to provide an alkali preparation device for alkaline water hydrogen production that can solve the above problems. Utility Model Content

[0004] The purpose of this invention is to address the shortcomings of existing technologies and provide an alkaline hydrogen production device and system that can shorten the time required for the complete dissolution of alkali tablets and is less prone to clogging.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solution of this utility model is implemented as follows:

[0006] Based on one aspect of this utility model, an alkaline hydrogen production and alkali preparation device is provided, including a feeding robot, an alkali tank, and a bag-removing module, a dissolving module, and a filtering module disposed on the alkali tank. The bag-removing module includes a bag-removing knife assembly disposed at the inlet of the alkali tank and a negative pressure adsorption device disposed on the bag-removing knife assembly. The dissolving module includes a mechanical stirring device disposed below the inlet and a gas-assisted dissolving system disposed at the bottom of the alkali tank. The filtering module includes an inner coarse filter screen and an outer fine filter screen disposed below the inlet and surrounding the mechanical stirring device.

[0007] In one embodiment, the feeding robot includes a robotic arm and a composite actuator disposed at the execution end of the robotic arm. The composite actuator includes a vacuum suction cup for adsorbing the packaging bag of alkali tablets, a gripper for grasping the packaging bag of alkali tablets, and a strain gauge load cell for weighing the alkali tablets.

[0008] In one embodiment, the joints of the robotic arm employ sealed bearings, and the surface of the composite actuator is electroplated with a nickel-based alloy coating.

[0009] In one embodiment, the bag-opening knife assembly includes a handle, a plurality of blades spaced apart on the handle, and a blade drive motor for driving the blades to cut.

[0010] In one embodiment, the handle is provided with a compressed air nozzle with an air pressure of 0.5~0.8MPa, and the surface of the blade is electroplated with a nickel-based alloy coating.

[0011] In one embodiment, the inner coarse filter is a stainless steel wire mesh or nickel-based alloy mesh with a mesh diameter of 100~150μm, and the outer fine filter is a polytetrafluoroethylene mesh or polyetheretherketone filter with a mesh diameter of 10~20μm. The distance between the inner coarse filter and the outer fine filter is ≥200mm. The mesh of the inner coarse filter facing the bottom of the alkali tank and the mesh of the outer fine filter facing the bottom of the alkali tank are both arranged at an inclined angle of 10°~60°. A crystallization collection tank is provided at the bottom of the outer fine filter.

[0012] In one embodiment, the mechanical stirring device includes a stirring drive motor, a rotating shaft, and an upper propulsion blade group and a lower stirring blade group sequentially arranged on the rotating shaft from the feed inlet. The upper propulsion blade group includes 3 to 4 helical blades with an inclination angle of 25° to 45°, and the lower stirring blade group includes 2 to 6 straight blades with an inclination angle of 10° to 60°. Alternatively, the lower stirring blade group includes a six-bladed disc turbine with a blade curvature radius of 50-100 mm.

[0013] In one embodiment, the gas-assisted dissolution system includes an air inlet located at the bottom of the alkali tank and a one-way valve located at the air inlet. The air inlet is connected to a gas supply system via a pipeline. The gas-assisted dissolution system uses 0.5~0.8MPa high-purity nitrogen gas.

[0014] In one embodiment, the blade surfaces of both the upper propulsion blade group and the lower stirring blade group are electroplated with a nickel-based alloy coating, and the inner wall of the alkali tank is provided with several sets of guide plates.

[0015] Based on another aspect of this utility model, an alkaline hydrogen production system is provided, including an alkaline hydrogen production alkali preparation device as described in any of the preceding claims.

[0016] Compared with existing technologies, the alkali-based hydrogen production and alkali preparation device of this invention uses a feeding robot to grasp, transport, and precisely dispense alkali tablets, improving overall efficiency and supporting 24-hour continuous operation, matching the production capacity to meet large-scale alkali preparation needs. The bag-unpacking module is equipped with a bag-unpacking knife group and a negative pressure adsorption device, which can realize automatic cutting and dust-free treatment of packaging bags. Operators do not need to enter the work area, and the dust concentration during the unpacking process is significantly reduced, eliminating the risk of respiratory burns from manual operation. The filtration module, through the setting of a two-stage filtration, significantly improves the impurity removal rate, with a 100% interception rate of large particulate impurities, significantly reducing the risk of pipeline blockage. The dissolution module integrates two synergistic dissolution technologies: a mechanical stirring device and a gas-assisted dissolution system, which significantly shortens the full dissolution time and effectively reduces the overall concentration deviation of the tank. Attached Figure Description

[0017] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of an alkaline hydrogen production and alkali preparation device according to the present invention.

[0018] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached diagram: 1. Feeding robot; 2. Alkali tank; 3. Bag-opening knife assembly; 4. Negative pressure adsorption device; 5. Inner coarse filter; 6. Outer fine filter; 7. Vacuum suction cup; 8. Gripper; 9. Rotating shaft; 10. Upper propulsion blade assembly; 11. Lower stirring blade assembly; 12. Air inlet. Detailed Implementation

[0019] This embodiment provides an alkaline hydrogen production system, including as follows: Figure 1 The alkaline hydrogen production and alkali preparation device shown includes a feeding robot 1, an alkali tank 2, and a bag-unpacking module, a dissolving module, and a filtering module installed on the alkali tank 2.

[0020] In this embodiment, the loading robot 1 serves as a raw material supply module, comprising a multi-degree-of-freedom robotic arm and a composite actuator located at the end of the robotic arm. The composite actuator includes a vacuum suction cup 7 for adsorbing the alkali tablet packaging bags, a gripper 8 for grasping the alkali tablet packaging bags, and a strain gauge load cell for weighing the alkali tablets. The vacuum suction cup 7 has a negative pressure ≥-70 kPa and is used to adsorb the packaging bags for flat transport of the entire bag. The gripper 8 is a servo gripper with an adjustable clamping force of 0-800 N. The strain gauge load cell can weigh the gripped alkali tablets in real time, used for real-time statistics of the amount of alkali tablets fed in. The robotic arm joints of the loading robot 1 use sealed bearings. The gripper 8 is also equipped with a pressure sensor to monitor the clamping force. The pressure sensor provides feedback on the interaction force between the gripper 8 and the alkali tablet packaging bags, allowing for timely adjustment of the clamping force of the gripper 8 during alkali tablet feeding, preventing the alkali tablet packaging bags from falling out of the gripper 8 into the alkali tank. The surface of the composite actuator is electroplated with a nickel-based alloy alkali-resistant coating, preferably Ni60, which helps reduce the corrosion rate and improve the service life of the workpiece. The robotic arm of the feeding robot 1 integrates a vacuum suction cup 7 and a gripper 8 that can provide force feedback through a strain gauge weighing sensor. It can grasp, transport, and place alkali tablets, with a single feeding time of no more than 30 seconds. Compared with the time required for manual feeding, the overall efficiency is improved by more than 75%, and it supports 24-hour continuous operation, with production capacity matching the needs of large-scale alkali preparation.

[0021] In this embodiment, the bag-opening module includes a bag-opening knife assembly 3 and a negative pressure adsorption device 4 located at the inlet of the alkali tank 2. The bag-opening knife assembly 3 includes a handle, four fan-shaped blades evenly distributed at 90° intervals on the handle, and a blade drive motor that drives the blades to cut. The blade drive motor drives the four blades to pierce and cut the alkali flake packaging bag. The cutting force is adjustable from 30 to 800 N, automatically matching according to the packaging bag material: 30-100 N for cutting PE film bags, 100-300 N for cutting woven bags, and 300-800 N for cutting composite kraft paper bags. The blade surface is electroplated with a nickel-based alloy, preferably Ni60, to reduce the corrosion rate and improve the service life of the workpiece. The handle is also equipped with a compressed air nozzle with an air pressure of 0.5-0.8 MPa for blowing away residual alkali after each cut. The bag-opening module, with its bag-opening knife assembly and negative pressure adsorption device, enables automatic cutting and dust-free processing of the packaging bags. Operators do not need to enter the work area, and the dust concentration during the unpacking process is significantly reduced, eliminating the risk of respiratory burns from manual operation.

[0022] In this embodiment, the dissolving module includes a mechanical stirring device located below the feed inlet and a gas-assisted dissolving system located at the bottom of the alkali tank 2. The filtration module is a two-stage filter design to prevent impurities from falling into the alkali tank 2, including an inner coarse filter 5 and an outer fine filter 6 located below the feed inlet and surrounding the mechanical stirring device. The inner coarse filter 5 is a stainless steel wire mesh or nickel-based alloy mesh with a mesh diameter of 100~150μm, preferably 316 stainless steel or Ni60, with a mesh diameter preferably of 120 micrometers, used to intercept large particulate impurities, such as undissolved alkali flakes, packaging fibers, etc.; the outer fine filter 6 is a polytetrafluoroethylene mesh or polyetheretherketone filter with a mesh diameter of 10~20μm, with a mesh diameter preferably of 15 micrometers, used to filter small crystals and suspended matter. The spacing between the inner coarse filter 5 and the outer fine filter 6 is set to ≥200mm to avoid cumulative clogging. The surface of the outer fine filter 6 is coated with a full-coverage polyether nano-alkali-repellent coating or a nano-Al2O3 / TiO2 composite alkali-repellent coating for anti-crystallization treatment. Simultaneously, the mesh of the inner coarse filter 5 facing the bottom of the alkali tank 2 and the mesh of the outer fine filter 6 facing the bottom of the alkali tank 2 are both arranged at an installation angle of 10°~60°. A crystallization collection tank is provided at the bottom of the outer fine filter 6. By setting up a two-stage filtration system, the impurity removal rate of the filtration module is significantly improved, with a 100% rejection rate for large particulate impurities (>1mm), significantly reducing the risk of pipeline clogging.

[0023] In this embodiment, the mechanical stirring device is located at the center of the feed inlet and includes a stirring drive motor, a rotating shaft 9, and an upper propeller blade assembly 10 and a lower stirring blade assembly 11 sequentially mounted on the rotating shaft 9 from the feed inlet. This is a double-layered paddle assembly. The upper propeller blade assembly 10 functions as a propeller to facilitate the downward flow of the alkali solution. It employs a large-angle spiral design, specifically 3-4 spiral blades with an angle of 25°-45°. The lower stirring blade assembly 11 is a paddle or turbine agitator used to generate radial flow and promote the formation of a large circulation of the alkali solution within the alkali tank 2. Specifically, it consists of 2-6 straight blades with an angle of 10°-60°. The distance between the upper propeller blade assembly 10 and the lower stirring blade assembly 11 is set to 1.0-1.2 times the blade diameter of the lower stirring blade assembly 11 to avoid flow pattern interference. The mechanical stirring device can automatically adjust its rotation speed (20-400 rpm) according to the amount of alkali flakes fed, preventing vortex cavitation and allowing the alkali flakes to disperse quickly. A gas-assisted dissolution system is located at the bottom of the alkali tank 2, including an air inlet 12. The air inlet 12 is connected to the gas supply system via a pipeline. The gas-assisted dissolution system uses 0.5~0.8MPa high-purity nitrogen gas to cause the alkali solution at the bottom to surge upwards, thereby eliminating the dead zone at the bottom of the tank. The blade surfaces of the upper propeller blade group 10 and the lower stirring blade group 11 are electroplated with a nickel-based alloy coating, preferably Ni60. The inner wall of the alkali tank 2 is provided with 3~5 sets of guide plates to eliminate vortices. In other embodiments, the lower stirring blade group 11 can also be a six-bladed disc turbine with a blade curvature radius of 50-100mm. The dissolution module integrates two synergistic dissolution technologies, namely mechanical stirring device and gas-assisted dissolution system, by setting up multiple stirring dissolution tanks, which significantly shortens the dissolution time and effectively reduces the concentration deviation of the entire tank. The automation control technology involved in this embodiment is all prior art and will not be described in detail here.

[0024] During the alkali preparation process, the feeding robot 1 uses a vacuum suction cup 7 of a multi-degree-of-freedom robotic arm to adsorb the surface of the alkali tablet packaging bag under a negative pressure of ≥-70Kpa, while the gripper 8 holds and fixes the alkali tablet packaging bag under a clamping force of 0-800N. The feeding robot 1 then transports the alkali tablets to the unpacking module. Upon arrival, the alkali tablets are placed on the four fan-shaped blades of the unpacking module. The packaging bag is pierced under the weight of the alkali tablets, and then the four blades, synchronously driven by a high-precision servo motor, cut and tear the packaging bag, causing the alkali tablets to fall into the alkali tank 2. To prevent strong alkali dust from being stirred up at the inlet, the unpacking module uses a negative pressure adsorption device 4 for negative pressure adsorption. After all the alkali tablets have entered the alkali tank 2, the feeding robot 1 recovers the packaging bag, and the air pipe located at the blade handle discharges compressed air through a compressed air nozzle to purge any residual alkali. After the alkali tablets enter through the feed inlet, the mechanical stirring device and gas-assisted dissolution system of the dissolution module are activated, and the rotation speed is automatically adjusted according to the amount of alkali tablets fed to ensure that the alkali tablets are fully dissolved. The gas-assisted dissolution system at the bottom of the alkali tank 2 introduces 0.5 to 0.8 MPa of high-purity nitrogen gas, which causes the alkali solution at the bottom to surge upward, eliminating the dead zone at the bottom of the tank and accelerating the dissolution of the alkali solution.

[0025] The alkali-based hydrogen production and alkali preparation device in this embodiment features a robotic arm for feeding alkali flakes. This arm integrates a vacuum suction cup and grippers with force feedback via strain gauge weighing sensors, enabling the grabbing, handling, and placement of alkali flakes. A single feeding cycle takes no more than 30 seconds, representing an overall efficiency improvement of over 75% compared to manual feeding. It also supports 24-hour continuous operation, matching the capacity requirements for large-scale alkali preparation. The bag-unpacking module is equipped with a bag-unpacking knife assembly and a negative pressure adsorption device, enabling automatic cutting and dust-free processing of packaging bags. Operators do not need to enter the work area, significantly reducing dust concentration during the unpacking process and eliminating the risk of respiratory burns from manual operation. The filtration module, through a two-stage filtration system, significantly improves impurity removal rates, achieving 100% retention of large particles and significantly reducing the risk of pipe blockage. The dissolution module integrates a mechanical stirring device and a gas-assisted dissolution system, resulting in a significantly shorter dissolution time and effectively reducing overall tank concentration deviation. The robot grippers and bag-unpacking knife assembly, which directly contact the workpieces, undergo surface electroplating with a nickel-based alloy to reduce the rate of strong alkali corrosion and improve workpiece lifespan.

[0026] Those skilled in the art should understand that the discussion of any of the above embodiments is merely exemplary and is not intended to imply that the scope of protection of this application is limited to these examples; within the framework of this application, the technical features of the above embodiments or different embodiments can also be combined, the steps can be implemented in any order, and there are many other variations of different aspects of one or more embodiments of this application as described above, which are not provided in detail for the sake of brevity.

[0027] One or more embodiments in this application are intended to cover all such substitutions, modifications, and variations that fall within the broad scope of this application. Therefore, any omissions, modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of one or more embodiments in this application should be included within the protection scope of this application.

Claims

1. An alkali hydrogen production and alkali supply device characterized by comprising: It includes a feeding robot (1), an alkali tank (2), and a bag-removing module, a dissolving module, and a filtering module installed on the alkali tank (2). The bag-removing module includes a bag-removing knife group (3) and a negative pressure adsorption device (4) installed at the feed inlet of the alkali tank (2). The dissolving module includes a mechanical stirring device installed below the feed inlet and a gas-assisted dissolving system installed at the bottom of the alkali tank (2). The filtering module includes an inner coarse filter screen (5) and an outer fine filter screen (6) installed below the feed inlet and surrounding the mechanical stirring device.

2. The caustic hydrogen generation device of claim 1, wherein, The loading robot (1) includes a robotic arm and a composite actuator located at the execution end of the robotic arm. The composite actuator includes a vacuum suction cup (7) for adsorbing the packaging bag of alkali tablets, a gripper (8) for grasping the packaging bag of alkali tablets, and a strain gauge weighing sensor for weighing the alkali tablets.

3. The caustic hydrogen generation device of claim 2, wherein the caustic solution is a sodium hydroxide solution. The joints of the robotic arm use sealed bearings.

4. The caustic hydrogen generation device of claim 1, wherein the caustic solution is a sodium hydroxide solution. The bag-opening knife assembly (3) includes a handle, a plurality of blades spaced apart on the handle, and a blade drive motor for driving the blades to cut.

5. The alkaline hydrogen production and alkali preparation apparatus as described in claim 4, characterized in that, The handle is equipped with a compressed air nozzle.

6. The alkaline hydrogen production and alkali preparation apparatus according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, The inner coarse filter (5) is a stainless steel wire mesh or nickel-based alloy mesh with a mesh diameter of 100~150μm, and the outer fine filter (6) is a polytetrafluoroethylene mesh or polyetheretherketone filter with a mesh diameter of 10~20μm. The distance between the inner coarse filter (5) and the outer fine filter (6) is ≥200mm. The mesh of the inner coarse filter (5) facing the bottom of the alkali tank (2) and the mesh of the outer fine filter (6) facing the bottom of the alkali tank (2) are both arranged at an installation angle of 10°~60°. The bottom of the outer fine filter (6) is provided with a crystallization collection tank.

7. The alkaline hydrogen production and alkali preparation apparatus according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, The mechanical stirring device includes a stirring drive motor, a rotating shaft (9), and an upper propulsion blade group (10) and a lower stirring blade group (11) arranged sequentially on the rotating shaft (9) from the feed inlet. The upper propulsion blade group (10) includes 3 to 4 helical blades with an inclination angle of 25° to 45°, and the lower stirring blade group (11) includes 2 to 6 straight blades with an inclination angle of 10° to 60°. Alternatively, the lower stirring blade group (11) includes a six-bladed disc turbine with a blade curvature radius of 50-100 mm.

8. The alkaline hydrogen production and alkali preparation apparatus according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, The gas-assisted dissolution system includes an air inlet (12) located at the bottom of the alkali tank (2) and a one-way valve located at the air inlet (12). The air inlet (12) is connected to the gas supply system through a pipeline.

9. The alkali-based hydrogen production and alkali preparation apparatus as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The inner wall of the alkali tank (2) is provided with several sets of guide plates.

10. An alkaline hydrogen production system, characterized in that, Includes the alkaline hydrogen production and alkali preparation apparatus as described in any one of claims 1-9.

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