HYDROGEN FILL STATION

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a hydrogen refueling station. According to the prior art, such hydrogen refueling stations consist of a low-pressure storage tank, a pressure boosting system, a high-pressure storage tank, a cooling unit, a metering unit, a central system control unit, and a dispenser for refueling vehicles. Apart from the dispenser, the system components are arranged separately from the dispenser in an external container. The dispenser is supplied with hydrogen from this container during vehicle refueling.

[0002] The dispenser at a hydrogen filling station, according to current technology, is equivalent to the fuel pump at a petrol or diesel filling station. It is equipped with a filling valve designed as a dispensing nozzle.

[0003] Because the container monolithically integrates the components, the system components cannot be modified. Furthermore, it is considered a disadvantage that the hydrogen delivered to the dispenser is no longer cooled, regardless of the distance between the container and the dispenser. This results in a very slow response time from the cooling system at large distances between the container and the dispenser.

[0004] Such hydrogen pumps or filling stations are known, for example, from documents US 10 236 522 B2, EP 3 339 716 A1, EP 3 767 154 A1 and JP 2016 138594 A.

[0005] Based on this, the invention aims to provide a dispenser and to make a system of the type mentioned above more flexible.

[0006] This problem is solved by the features of the independent claims. The dependent claims contain advantageous and, in some cases, self-inventive further developments of this invention.

[0007] The basic idea of ​​the invention is to build the filling station in such a modular way that all components can be changed independently of each other.

[0008] In this system, a dispenser forms the central component of the filling station. This central unit integrates the cooling system, the metering device, the dispensing unit, and the system control. Additional components can also be incorporated into the dispenser. This advantageously positions the components required for filling the vehicle's fuel tank close to the dispensing point and thus close to the vehicle. Simultaneously, the entire system is controlled via the dispenser as the central and therefore leading component.

[0009] It is particularly advantageous to physically integrate the measuring device, the dispensing device, and the system control into a single fuel dispenser and to locate the cooling unit directly upstream of this dispenser. The cooling unit advantageously comprises an aluminum block through which a hydrogen flow passes, acting as a heat exchanger, and a cooling circuit with a compressor. At least the heat exchanger is located outside the dispenser to facilitate the dissipation of process heat. The heat exchanger is preferably positioned directly upstream of the dispenser to ensure that the hydrogen is cooled as close as possible to the point of filling the vehicle. Other cold storage devices or heat exchangers besides an aluminum block can also be used.

[0010] The compressor is integrated into the fuel dispenser. During refueling, the hydrogen being pumped into the vehicle's tank can be cooled close to the vehicle to the desired temperature, preferably -30°C to -40°C. The aluminum block can be cooled quickly by the cooling system. The short response time of the cooling system is a key advantage of this vehicle-integrated system. This allows the cooling system to be regulated quickly at all times. In this way, unintended interruptions of refueling processes due to insufficient fuel cooling can be prevented.

[0011] The large pressure tanks, each containing hydrogen at different operating pressures, and the intermediate pressure boosting systems (i.e., the compressors) can be optimally designed for each specific application and are connected to and controlled by the central control unit. The control system can be adapted to the various system components. Typically, the hydrogen is stored in a low-pressure storage tank. A compressor system is assigned to the low-pressure storage tank to buffer the hydrogen before it is transferred to a high-pressure storage tank at a filling pressure of 350 to 450 bar or 700 to 880 bar, and then injected into the vehicle's fuel tank at this high pressure.

[0012] Alternatively, the invention also makes it possible to introduce the hydrogen compressed by pressure boosting systems directly into the dispenser. This significantly simplifies the system design by eliminating the need for high-pressure storage tanks and reduces system costs.

[0013] The system can be adapted to different applications by changing individual components. The system control can also be modified.

[0014] The invention is explained in more detail using an exemplary embodiment. The figures shown are: FIG. 1 Four assemblies of a hydrogen filling station in several variants and FIG. 2 The detailed view of the dispenser made of FIG. 1 .

[0015] In the left part of the Fig.1 Several low-pressure storage systems for larger hydrogen reserves are shown, namely a low-pressure tank 1, a container consisting of several gas cylinders placed on a pallet 2, and several hydrogen containers 3 arranged one above the other in a rack. In these low-pressure storage systems, which are used alternatively, hydrogen is usually stored at a pressure on the order of 200 bar to 300 bar.

[0016] In process step A, a compressor downstream of these low-pressure storage tanks compresses the hydrogen and buffers it in a further process step B in one or more parallel high-pressure storage tanks. The implementation example shows two compressors: a lower-power compressor 4 and a higher-power, high-performance compressor 5.

[0017] The compressor 4 can compress the hydrogen to a pressure of 300 to 450 bar. The high-performance compressor 5 compresses the hydrogen to up to 700 to 880 bar. In this embodiment, the high-pressure storage tanks 6, 7, and 8 are containers for gas cylinders 2 placed on a pallet. The high-pressure storage tank 6 contains hydrogen at a pressure of 350 bar, while the high-pressure storage tanks 7 and 8 contain hydrogen at a pressure of 700 bar.

[0018] In process step C, a dispenser 9 draws the required amount of hydrogen to be filled into the vehicle from the high-pressure tanks 6, 7, 8. In a final process step D, hydrogen is dispensed at 350 bar, for example, into passenger cars, and hydrogen at 700 bar, for example, into passenger cars or commercial vehicles. For this purpose, the dispenser 9 has a control panel 10 for entering the dispensing parameters, a dispensing hose 11, and a filling valve 12. The filling valve 12 is connected to the vehicle's filler neck, and the vehicle is refueled via the dispensing hose 11 and the dispensing valve 12.

[0019] The dispenser 9 has a modular design and, in the exemplary embodiment, initially comprises a supply line 13 connected to the high-pressure tanks 6, 7, 8. An aluminum block 14 is interposed between the high-pressure tanks 6, 7, 8 and this supply line 13. This aluminum block 14 acts simultaneously as a cold storage unit and a heat exchanger. The hydrogen is introduced from the high-pressure tanks 6, 7, 8 through the aluminum block 14 into the supply line 13 at a good temperature and thus enters the dispenser 9 at a cooled temperature.

[0020] The dispenser 9 comprises a dispensing column 21. This dispensing column 21 initially contains a refrigeration compressor 15 and a drive motor 16 for this refrigeration compressor 15. A measuring device 17 interacts with measuring valves 18. A control module 19 contains the control system for the entire system. The control system also controls dispensing valves 20. Through the dispensing valves 20, the hydrogen enters the dispensing hose 11 and thus the filling valve 12 and the vehicle, which is not shown in the figures. In this exemplary embodiment, the dispensing valves 20, the dispensing hose 11, and the filling valve 12 thus form the dispensing device.

[0021] Finally, in FIG. 2An additional expansion module 22 for further technical functions is also visible. Furthermore, additional expansion modules 22 with further functions can be arranged in the dispenser 9. Due to the modular design of the dispenser 9, the various components can be easily and cost-effectively replaced when the system layout is changed. The system can be easily expanded modularly with additional components. Furthermore, conveying, power, and control lines to the other components, i.e., the storage tanks and compressors, are reduced to a minimum. Key components are grouped into modules within the dispenser. Reference symbol list:

[0022] 1 Low-pressure tank 2 Gas cylinder 3 Hydrogen tank 4 Compressor 5 High-performance compressor 6 High-pressure storage tank 7 High-pressure storage tank 8 High-pressure storage tank 9 Dispenser 10 Control panel 11 Dispensing hose 12 Filling valve 13 Supply line 14 Aluminum block 15 Refrigeration compressor 16 Drive motor 17 Measuring device 18 Measuring valve 19 Control module 20 Dispensing valve 21 Dispensing column 22 Expansion module

Claims

1. A hydrogen refueling station comprising at least the following assemblies: - a storage tank (1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8) for the hydrogen, - a pressure booster (4, 5), - a cooler (14, 15, 16), comprising a refrigeration compressor (15) and cold storage (14), - a measuring device (17), - a dispensing device (11, 12, 20), and - a system controller (19), wherein the refueling station is modular in design, such that the assemblies can each be changed and / or replaced independently of each other, wherein the hydrogen refueling station further has a central assembly as the dispenser (9), such that - the measuring device (17), - the dispensing device (11, 12, 20), and - the system controller (19) are combined and installed in a central fuel pump (21), wherein the cooling device consists of a cold storage (14) upstream from the fuel pump (21) and a refrigeration compressor (15) arranged in the fuel pump (21), wherein the cold storage (14) and the refrigeration compressor (15) are connected with each other via a feed line (13) for the hydrogen.

2. The hydrogen refueling station according to claim 1, characterized in that at least one storage tank (1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8) and one pressure booster (4, 5) are arranged outside of the central assembly.

3. The hydrogen refueling station according to one of claims 1 to 2, characterized by a low-pressure accumulator consisting of at least one low-pressure tank (1) and / or of at least one gas cylinder (2) and / or of at least one hydrogen container (3), and by at least one compressor (4) and / or at least one high-performance compressor (5) as the pressure booster, wherein the hydrogen compressed by the compressor(s) (4) or the high-performance compressor(s) (5) is cached in at least one high-pressure accumulator (6, 7, 8) before being dispensed to the dispensing device (11, 12, 20).

4. The hydrogen refueling station according to one of claims 1 to 2, characterized by a storage tank consisting of at least one low-pressure tank (1) and / or of at least one gas cylinder (2) and / or of at least one hydrogen container (3), and by at least one compressor (4) and / or at least one high-performance compressor (5) as the pressure booster, wherein the hydrogen compressed by the compressor(s) (4) or the high-performance compressor(s) (5) is introduced directly into the dispenser (9).