VEHICLE WITH CATALYTIC BURNER FOR AIR CONDITIONING A PASSENGER COMPARTMENT

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a vehicle with a passenger compartment and an air conditioning system for air conditioning the passenger compartment.

[0002] DE 199 31 061 A1 discloses a generic fuel cell-powered vehicle with a catalytic burner designed to heat fuel cells. The catalytic burner can be operated with fuel from a partial flow of the fuel for the fuel cell and can be used as an auxiliary or auxiliary heater for a passenger compartment of the vehicle.

[0003] CN 109 291 830 B teaches a vehicle with a fuel cell system and a catalytic burner for hydrogen combustion, which is thermally connected to heat exchangers for heating a passenger compartment, according to the preamble of independent patent claim 1.

[0004] WO 2011 / 048734 A1, EP 1 465 274 A2, WO 2007 / 117229 A1 and EP 1 906 108 A2 relate to further fuel cell systems.

[0005] The invention is based on the object of providing a vehicle with efficient heating.

[0006] The problem is solved by the subject matter of independent patent claim 1. Further developments and embodiments of the invention are found in the features of the dependent patent claims.

[0007] A vehicle according to the invention, for example a land vehicle, water vehicle, or aircraft, in particular a large-capacity vehicle such as a bus or a rail vehicle, comprises a passenger compartment and an air conditioning system for air conditioning the passenger compartment. Furthermore, the air conditioning system comprises a burner, in particular a catalytic burner, for the, in particular catalytic, combustion of a fuel gas for exclusively heating an air flow for the passenger compartment. According to the invention, the burner is free of connections to a coolant flow for a fuel cell of the vehicle for transferring thermal energy, in particular heat, from the burner to the coolant flow. According to an advantageous development, the burner is designed as a catalytic burner. It can serve to heat the air flow for the passenger compartment when the vehicle is stationary and thus be part of an auxiliary heater.

[0008] The vehicle further comprises an electric drive and a fuel cell system for supplying the electric drive with energy, wherein the fuel cell system comprises at least one fuel cell. Furthermore, the vehicle comprises a fuel gas tank for storing fuel gas for the fuel cell. The fuel gas can be hydrogen. The fuel gas tank is connected to the burner of the air conditioning system, in particular by means of fuel gas-carrying pipes, so that fuel gas from the fuel gas tank can be fed to the burner, in particular a catalytic burner, for combustion, in particular catalytic combustion, in the burner.

[0009] Furthermore, the air conditioning system has a first control unit for regulating or controlling the air flow for the passenger compartment. It is also suitably configured to control combustion in the burner, in particular the catalytic burner. It can also be configured accordingly to regulate or control the supply of fuel gas from the fuel gas tank to the burner.

[0010] The fuel cell system has a second control unit. The first and second control units are different from one another. The first control unit of the air conditioning system is then designed to regulate or control the combustion of fuel gas in the burner and, if necessary, to correspondingly regulate or control the supply of fuel gas from the fuel gas tank to the burner, independently of the operation of the fuel cell; further developed, it is also designed to operate independently of the regulation or control of the fuel cell system by the second control unit, in particular at least independently of the operation and regulation or control of the coolant flow for the fuel cell by the second control unit of the fuel cell system.

[0011] The regulation or control of the air conditioning system and the fuel cell system are therefore separate and independent of each other.

[0012] The vehicle is further developed as a passenger transport vehicle, specifically a rail vehicle. The passenger compartment is the interior of the vehicle's car body intended for passenger accommodation.

[0013] Air conditioning systems, also abbreviated to HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning), are air conditioning and climate control systems used to generate and maintain a specified quality of the air in the passenger compartment in terms of temperature, humidity, etc., particularly regardless of ambient conditions such as the weather. The vehicle's air conditioning system is designed to bring the air in the passenger compartment into a specified state. For this purpose, it is designed to heat and / or cool, humidify and / or dry air, and, if necessary, filter or exchange air, and, in particular, to generate or influence local air currents. To heat the air in the passenger compartment, the air flow for the passenger compartment can be heated using a burner.

[0014] For this purpose, the vehicle's air conditioning system can be further developed to include a suitably designed first heat exchanger for, in particular, the direct transfer of heat from the, in particular catalytic, combustion of the fuel gas in the, in particular catalytic, burner to the air flow for the passenger compartment. The first heat exchanger is then, in turn, free of any connections to the coolant flow for the vehicle's fuel cell for transferring heat to the coolant flow. In one embodiment, the burner, the first heat exchanger, and the air flow for the passenger compartment are free of any connection to the coolant flow for the vehicle's fuel cell.In order to transfer the heat from the catalytic combustion to the air flow for the passenger compartment, the first heat exchanger of the air conditioning system is connected to lines for conducting the waste heat, for example an exhaust gas flow, of the burner and lines for conducting the air flow for the passenger compartment.

[0015] According to a further development, the air conditioning system is free of additional, in particular electrical, heating elements for heating the air flow for the passenger compartment.

[0016] The burner therefore serves exclusively to heat the air in the passenger compartment and not to heat a fuel cell in the vehicle. It is dedicated exclusively to the air conditioning system and is located separately from any fuel cell in the vehicle. Heat generated by the burner is not transferred to the fuel cell's coolant.

[0017] At least the burner, in particular the catalytic burner, of the air conditioning system, in particular the entire air conditioning system, is arranged separately from the fuel cell system in the vehicle. In addition, at least the burner, in particular the catalytic burner, of the air conditioning system, but in particular the entire air conditioning system of the vehicle, is designed to be operable independently of the vehicle's fuel cell system.

[0018] It is advantageous to connect the burner to the fuel gas tank for the fuel cell to supply the burner with fuel gas from the fuel gas tank for the fuel cell.

[0019] A further development of the inventive solution is that the at least one fuel cell of the fuel cell system is arranged in the roof area of ​​a vehicle body. The air conditioning system can also be arranged in the roof area of ​​a vehicle body, but separately from the fuel cell system.

[0020] According to a further development, the fuel cell system can be free of a burner or heating elements for heating the coolant flow for the vehicle's fuel cell. The vehicle's fuel cell is thus not preheated. The air conditioning system's burner is not coupled to the fuel cell's coolant flow in such a way as to transfer heat from the burner to the coolant flow.

[0021] Additionally, the vehicle can have a second heat exchanger for transferring heat from the fuel cell's coolant flow to the air flow for the passenger compartment. The second heat exchanger is then arranged upstream of the first heat exchanger in the air flow for the passenger compartment. The waste heat from the fuel cell can thus also be used to heat the air flow for the passenger compartment. No waste heat from the burner is transferred to the fuel cell's coolant flow via the second heat exchanger. The first and second heat exchangers are not identical.

[0022] If the vehicle has a second heat exchanger for transferring heat from the coolant flow of the fuel cell to the air flow for the passenger compartment, the first control unit of the air conditioning system is suitably designed to regulate or control the transfer of heat from the coolant flow of the fuel cell to the air flow for the passenger compartment.

[0023] As already explained above, the first heat exchanger – and thus also the burner associated with it, in particular a catalytic burner – is arranged downstream of the second heat exchanger in the air flow for the passenger compartment. The regulation or control of the combustion, in particular the catalytic combustion, in the burner can be dependent on the temperature of the air flow for the passenger compartment downstream of the second heat exchanger. It is therefore not independent of the state of the fuel cell system. If the fuel cell is not in operation, no waste heat from the fuel cell would be transferred to the air flow for the passenger compartment. However, if the air flow for the passenger compartment is already heated by the waste heat from the fuel cell, the heating by the burner can be reduced.

[0024] In addition to the dependence on the temperature of the air flow for the passenger compartment after the second heat exchanger, the control of the combustion in the burner can also be dependent on a current actual temperature and depending on a predetermined target temperature of the room air in the passenger compartment of the vehicle and / or depending on a fill level or pressure of fuel gas in the fuel gas tank.

[0025] Nevertheless, the regulation or control of the burner is considered independent of the operation and regulation or control of the fuel cell system, in particular independent of the operation and regulation or control of the fuel cell's coolant flow. The air conditioning system and fuel cell can therefore be operated independently of each other and are designed accordingly.

[0026] The operation of the fuel cell is not required to heat the passenger compartment. The use of battery power to generate heat using electric heating elements is also not necessary according to the invention. The heat required to heat the passenger compartment is generated simply and efficiently by the air conditioning system's burner, particularly a catalytic burner, which can be fed with fuel gas from the fuel cell's fuel gas tank.

[0027] Heat generation in a catalytic burner is more efficient than heat generation via a fuel cell and much more efficient than using energy from traction batteries, which in turn receive energy only from recuperation and the fuel cell. Furthermore, heating the vehicle with a fuel cell means longer operation and thus greater aging of the fuel cell. A catalytic burner can also generate a higher temperature, resulting in more efficient heating. The system can also be used to maintain temperature during standby mode.

[0028] The invention permits numerous embodiments. It is explained in more detail with reference to the following figures, each of which illustrates an exemplary embodiment. Identical elements in the figures are provided with the same reference numerals. Fig. 1 schematically shows a first embodiment of the invention, Fig. 2 schematically shows a further embodiment of the invention.

[0029] In Fig. 1 A rail vehicle 1 for passenger transport is shown schematically with a passenger compartment 2 and an air conditioning system 3 for air conditioning the passenger compartment 2. The air conditioning of the passenger compartment is achieved via an air flow 5 for the passenger compartment.

[0030] Air is extracted from the passenger compartment 2 and released into the environment of the vehicle 1 and / or partially supplied to the air conditioning system 3. Additionally, air from the environment of the vehicle 1 can be supplied to the air conditioning system 3 and subsequently to the passenger compartment 2. For the sake of simplicity, only the air flow 5 is shown, which is initially extracted from the passenger compartment 2 at 15 and, after being conditioned, in particular heated, at position 16, is then supplied back to the passenger compartment 2.

[0031] To heat the air flow 5 for the passenger compartment 2, i.e. the air flow supplied to the passenger compartment 2, the air conditioning system 3 comprises a catalytic burner 4. The waste heat of the burner 4 is transferred to the air flow 5 for the passenger compartment of the vehicle 2 in a first heat exchanger 8.

[0032] For this purpose, the catalytic burner 4 is connected to a fuel gas tank 11 via fuel gas-carrying pipes and a valve 17, which regulates the flow of fuel gas from the fuel gas tank 11 into the burner 4. The valve 17 is controlled by a first control unit 12 of the air conditioning system 3.

[0033] The control of the burner 4 and thus the heat transfer via the first heat exchanger 8, for example by controlling the air flow 5 through the first heat exchanger 8 via a further, first valve 18, is also carried out by the first control unit 12 of the air conditioning system 3. The valve 18 is designed as a bypass valve in order to mix heated air with cold air.

[0034] The first control unit 12 is connected to the aforementioned components via corresponding signal lines 21. It can also be connected to temperature sensors, humidity sensors, and other sensors and actuators, which are not shown here for the sake of clarity. Other components of the air conditioning system 3, such as compressors, humidifiers, throttles, etc., for further influencing the air of the airflow 5 for the passenger compartment 2, are also not explained in detail here.

[0035] In addition, the rail vehicle 1 comprises a fuel cell system 10 in a container on the roof of the rail vehicle 1, separate from the air conditioning system 3. This fuel cell system 10 comprises at least one fuel cell 6 and a coolant circuit 7 for cooling the fuel cell 6. The fuel cell is connected to the fuel gas tank 11 via fuel gas-carrying pipes and a further valve 19. The valve 19 regulates the flow of fuel gas to the fuel cell 6. The valve 19 is controlled by a second control unit 13 of the fuel cell system 10, which is connected via signal lines 22 at least to the fuel cell 6, the valve 19 and to a further heat exchanger 24. The heat exchanger 24 is arranged in a coolant flow 7 for cooling the fuel cell 6 and releases excess heat to the environment of the rail vehicle 1.

[0036] In this embodiment, the burner 4 is free of any connection to the coolant flow 7 of the fuel cell 6 of the vehicle 1.

[0037] The rail vehicle 1 is electrically powered. The drive 9 is powered by energy from the fuel cell 6, which are connected to each other via the electrical line 23.

[0038] Fig. 2 now illustrates a further embodiment of a rail vehicle 1 according to the invention. As in Fig. 1 Heat is transferred from the burner 4 to the air flow 5 for the passenger compartment 2 via a first heat exchanger 8.

[0039] Furthermore, waste heat from the fuel cell 6 can be transferred to the air flow 5 for the passenger compartment 2 of the rail vehicle 1, here via a second heat exchanger 14, which is different from the first heat exchanger 8. This occurs upstream of the burner 4 and upstream of the first heat exchanger 8. The heat transfer is also controlled by the first control unit 12 of the air conditioning system 3, for example by controlling a further, second valve 20, independently of the control of the fuel cell 6 by a second control unit 13.

[0040] Here, too, air is initially drawn in from the surroundings of the rail vehicle and / or from the interior, in particular from the passenger compartment 2, of the rail vehicle 1 by a fan controlled by the first control unit 12 at position 15. The air flow 5 for the passenger compartment 2 is first guided via the second heat exchanger 14 and only then to the air conditioning system 3 and the first heat exchanger 8 of the air conditioning system 3. In this embodiment, too, no transfer of waste heat from the burner 4 to the fuel cell 6, in particular to the coolant in the coolant flow 7 of the fuel cell 6, takes place. The burner 4 serves exclusively to heat the air flow 5 for the passenger compartment 2. It is free of any connection to the coolant flow 7 of the fuel cell 6 for transferring heat from the burner 4 to the coolant flow 7.

Claims

1. Vehicle (1) with a passenger compartment (2) and an air conditioning system (3) for air conditioning of the passenger compartment, wherein the air conditioning system (3) comprises a burner (4) for burning a combustion gas for exclusively heating an air flow (5) for the passenger compartment (2), and the burner (4) is free of a connection to a coolant flow (7) for a fuel cell (6) of the vehicle (1) for transferring heat of the burner (4) to the coolant flow (7), wherein the vehicle (1) has an electrical drive (9) and a fuel cell system (10) comprising at least one fuel cell (6) for supplying the electrical drive (9) with energy, characterised in that the vehicle (1) comprises a combustion gas tank (11) with combustion gas for the fuel cell (6), wherein the burner (4) of the air conditioning system (3) is connected to the combustion gas tank (11) for feeding combustion gas out from the combustion gas tank (11) and to the burner (4) of the air conditioning system (3), wherein the air conditioning system (3) has a first control unit (12) and the fuel cell system has a second control unit (13), wherein the first control unit (12) of the air conditioning system is embodied for the closed-loop or open-loop control of the air flow (5) for the passenger compartment (2) and for the closed-loop or open-loop control of the combustion in the burner (4) independently of the operation of the fuel cell system (10).

2. Vehicle according to claim 1, characterised in that the burner (4) of the air conditioning system (3) is a catalytic burner.

3. Vehicle according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterised in that the air conditioning system (3) has a first heat exchanger (8) for transferring the heat from the combustion of the combustion gas in the burner (4) to the air flow (5) for the passenger compartment (2).

4. Vehicle according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that the fuel cell system (10) is free of a burner for heating the coolant flow (7) for the fuel cell (6) of the vehicle (1).

5. Vehicle according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterised in that at least the burner (4) of the air conditioning system (3) is arranged separately from the fuel cell system (10) in the vehicle (1) and is embodied such that it can be operated independently.

6. Vehicle according to claim 3, characterised in that the vehicle (1) has a second heat exchanger (14) for transferring heat of the coolant flow (5) of the fuel cell (6) to the air flow (5) for the passenger compartment (2), wherein the first heat exchanger (8) is arranged downstream of the second heat exchanger (14) in the air flow (5) for the passenger compartment (2).

7. Vehicle according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterised in that the air condition system (3) is free of further heating elements for heating the air flow (5) for the passenger compartment (2).