Device and method for testing sealability and / or leakage of component

Abstract

To provide a method and device capable of efficiently testing sealability or leakage of channels formed in different components, particularly components.SOLUTION: A method is for the sealability testing and / or leakage measurement of a component with a plurality of channels. The method includes applying a predefined input state to an input configuration of channels of the component, measuring an output state at an output configuration of channels of the component, and determining a sealing state and / or a leakage rate of the component based on the measurement. The input configuration has at least two channels of the component and the output configuration has at least one other channel of the component, or the input configuration has at least one channel of the component and the output configuration has at least two other channels of the component.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an apparatus for tightness checking and / or leak measurement of structural parts. The present invention also relates to a method for tightness checking and / or leak measurement of structural parts. [Background technology]

[0002] A pipe-guided structural part (i.e. a structural part having at least one pipe) can be used in various applications. For example, the pipe-guided structural part can be a bipolar plate. The bipolar plate is a component of a fuel cell. In the sense of the present invention, a "fuel cell", as it is known per se, is understood to be a device that can directly convert part of the energy from the reaction of an oxidant (e.g. oxygen) with a reductant (e.g. hydrogen) into electrical energy. On the one hand, the tightness or lack of leakage of such a structural part may be necessary to ensure its correct operation. On the other hand, dangers may arise from leakage. For example, in a fuel cell, leaking hydrogen may combine with oxygen from the surrounding environment or with oxygen leaking out of the fuel cell due to another leak, causing an explosion. Technical devices that operate with a medium that is often easily ignited must comply with high safety standards and comply with the corresponding standards.

[0003] Therefore, there is a need to reliably and efficiently test the hermeticity and perform leak measurements on such structural components.

[0004] In the prior art, examples of tightness testing devices measure each line separately, i.e., the tightness or leak rate of each line in turn is determined or measured separately. Furthermore, when a leak is detected, it must be determined where the leak leads (i.e., for example, to one line, to another line, or to the surrounding volume). Thus, different devices are required to perform the tightness test and leak measurement for different types of structural components with different configurations of the lines, in particular the configurations of the line inlets and the line outlets. Thus, in the prior art, it is not possible to test different structural components using a single device. Furthermore, in the prior art, the measurement is performed separately for each line, which usually results in a very long inspection time. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE It is an object of the present invention to provide a method and a device with which it is possible to efficiently test different structural components, in particular lines formed in structural components, for tightness or leakage. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] This problem is solved by a method for tightness checking and / or leakage measurement of a structural part having the features of claim 1, in particular by the method comprising the steps of applying a given inlet condition to an inlet arrangement of the lines of the structural part, measuring an outlet condition at an outlet arrangement of the lines of the structural part and determining the tightness and / or leakage rate of the structural part on the basis of this measurement, whereby the inlet arrangement can comprise at least two lines of the structural part and the outlet arrangement can comprise at least one further line of the structural part or the inlet arrangement can comprise at least one line of the structural part and the outlet arrangement can comprise at least two further lines of the structural part.

[0007] In this case, the leak measurement may consist of a measurement or determination of the leak rate (i.e. a quantitative measurement of the magnitude of the leak) and a measurement or determination of the leak path (i.e. information on whether a leak is occurring, for example, into another pipeline or into the surrounding volume, i.e., out of a structural component).

[0008] In this case, the leak rate is the measurement variable (i.e., measured directly or indirectly) and the tightness is the test variable (i.e., derived from another measurement). For example, if the measured leak rate in all lines or combinations of lines is zero, the structural part can be said to be functionally well-sealed (i.e., tight).

[0009] For the sake of completeness, it is mentioned here that in practice it is not permissible to specify a leakage rate of zero according to DIN-EN 1779. In practice, therefore, a structural part is said to be functionally properly sealed if it has a leakage rate lower than the respective maximum permissible leakage rate, which in this case is a property of the structural part and is often specified as such.

[0010] A combination of an inlet configuration and an outlet configuration may be referred to as a measurement configuration. If the same conduits do not appear in either the inlet or outlet configuration, the measurement configuration may be referred to as "non-overlapping," i.e., whereby measurements based on such a measurement configuration on a defect-free structural part are not influenced by the conduits.

[0011] The inlet condition may be a common or identical condition for all the lines of the inlet arrangement, for example a given pressure of a given gaseous substance, and the outlet condition may be a common measurement for all the lines of the outlet arrangement.

[0012] In a leak-free structural component, the outlet state in the non-overlapping measurement configurations is independent of the inlet state: if a given inlet condition changes, resulting in a change in the outlet state, it can be inferred that there is a leak, and in particular in that case a leak between at least one line in the inlet configuration and one line in the outlet configuration can be detected.

[0013] In other words, a method is provided that allows for the measurement of the leakage rate and / or the tightness check of the pipe-guiding structural components and the pipes of the pipe-guiding structural components. In particular, it can be checked whether the structural components have leaky pipes or whether all the pipes of the structural components are tightly sealed. Furthermore, it can be determined where the leakage occurs, i.e., for example, into another pipe or into the surrounding volume. Using the method according to the invention, a quantitative and integrated tightness check of the test object guiding the pipes is possible.

[0014] With the method according to the invention, a significant reduction in the measurement time can be achieved, in particular by measuring several lines simultaneously, so that if the several lines as a whole are found to be sealed, then each of the individual lines of the several lines is also sealed. Instead, by measuring several combinations of lines, it is possible to check the seal of each of the individual lines and / or to determine the leakage rate and / or leakage path.

[0015] These measurement configurations (i.e. each combination of inlet and outlet configurations) can be selected such that no duct of the structural component is defined in the inlet configuration (i.e. as the inlet) and at the same time in the outlet configuration (i.e. as the outlet), so that among all possible combinations of ducts, only those combinations of ducts that are suitable as candidates for the measurement are examined.

[0016] In one embodiment, the inlet condition is one or more of a given pressure, a given concentration, a given chemical element, a given chemical compound, and a given mixture of chemicals, and the measurement of the outlet condition is one or more of a pressure, a concentration, a given chemical element, a given chemical compound, and a given mixture of chemicals, i.e., in a structural component having an unsealed line in an inlet arrangement, the given inlet condition corresponds to a measured outlet condition, to the effect that a change in outlet condition occurs for the given inlet condition when the unsealed line in the inlet arrangement is not sealed to a line in the outlet arrangement.

[0017] In one embodiment, application and measurements are performed for a number of different measurement configurations, each measurement configuration comprising a given inlet configuration (possibly different for the different measurement configurations) and a given outlet configuration (possibly different for the different measurement configurations), and the sealing condition and / or leak rate of the structural component is determined based on application and measurements for the number of different measurement configurations, i.e., specifically, measurements are performed for the different measurement configurations.

[0018] In one embodiment, for a series of measurements, each inlet condition can be a different pressure, a different concentration, a different chemical element, a different chemical compound, and a different mixture of chemicals.

[0019] The use of different elements, compounds or mixtures allows for a rapid series of measurements, since in some cases it is not necessary to take into account in subsequent measurements the medium still remaining in the device or structural part because a different medium (i.e. a different element, compound or mixture) is used.

[0020] The use of different pressures or densities allows a series of measurements to be differentiated based on differences in the pressure or density of the medium, thereby allowing a series of rapid measurements to be made.

[0021] These measurement configurations can be selected such that the lines in the inlet configuration are complementary to the lines in the outlet configuration, i.e., in particular, the same lines do not appear in both the inlet and outlet configurations, in which case, in one implementation, rather than testing the entire set of these possible measurement configurations, only a selected subset can be tested so that all relevant leak paths can be measured.

[0022] In one embodiment, a number of different measurement configurations are identified such that in at least one measurement configuration of the plurality of measurement configurations, each line appears in combination with a respective other line, such that each leak path is included in at least one measurement configuration, i.e. each leak path causes a detectable leak in at least one measurement configuration. The appearance of two lines in combination means that one of these lines appears in the inlet configuration, while the other line appears in the outlet configuration.

[0023] In one embodiment, a leak rate is determined for each of a plurality of measurement configurations, and a leak rate between two lines is determined based on the respective leak rates for the plurality of measurement configurations, such that a leak rate between two individual lines can be estimated from measurements for different measurement configurations.

[0024] The problem of the present invention is also solved by an apparatus for tightness checking and / or leakage measurement of structural parts having the features of claim 7, in particular by the apparatus comprising an inlet, an outlet, a receiving device configured to receive the structural part and to connect the inlet with an inlet arrangement of the lines of the structural part and to connect the outlet with an outlet arrangement of the lines of the structural part, and a measuring device configured to apply given inlet conditions to the inlet and to measure outlet conditions at the outlet and to determine the tightness and / or leakage rate of the structural part on the basis of this measurement, wherein the inlet arrangement comprises at least two lines of the structural part and the outlet arrangement comprises at least one further line of the structural part, or the inlet arrangement comprises at least one line of the structural part and the outlet arrangement comprises at least two further lines of the structural part.

[0025] The device may further comprise a closure member, where the receiving member and the closure member are configured to form a common sealing surface and are arranged such that the receiving member and the closure member are removably movable relative to one another, in particular so that the device can be opened, the structural component placed in the receiving member, and then the device can be closed again using the closure member.

[0026] The device may further comprise a pressing member that may be configured to connect the structural component with the receiving member by applying a force to the structural component towards the receiving member, for example, a pressure acts on the pressing member, resulting in a force on the structural component, the pressing member may be configured in the form of a piston, thus allowing to clamp the structural component regardless of its thickness, and further the pressing member may provide a variable force exerted on the structural component by the pressing member and the receiving member.

[0027] The device may include an adapter plate having parts specific to the structural component that connect the conduits of the structural component with the inlets and outlets. In this way, the device may use various structural components that differ, for example, in their external geometries, or in the location and / or number of conduits or conduit openings.

[0028] In one implementation, the apparatus is configured to apply pressure, vacuum, or both to an internal passage of a structural component.

[0029] In one embodiment, the device may comprise valves configured to open and close the connections between the inlets of the device and the lines of the structural components and between the outlets of the device and the lines of the structural components. These valves may be arranged in or on the adapter plate, in or on the accommodation unit, or externally. These valves may be configured, when opened or closed, to connect the lines of the structural components required in the inlet configuration with the inlet and to not connect all other lines with the inlet. Furthermore, these valves may be configured, when opened or closed, to connect the lines of the structural components required in the outlet configuration with the outlet and to not connect all other lines with the outlet. In this case, "connecting" may be understood as passing a medium (e.g. a chemical element, chemical compound or mixture of chemicals) and "not connecting" may be understood as not passing a medium.

[0030] The measuring instrument may be one or more of a quadrupole mass spectrometer, a time-of-flight mass spectrometer, a sector field mass spectrometer, a pressure measuring instrument, a differential pressure measuring instrument and a flow measuring instrument or one of these optical spectrometer groups or may consist of a corresponding instrument.

[0031] This measuring device is -7 Within the range of hPa to 5MPa, 10 -6 hPa to 4.5MPa or 10 -4 It can be configured to measure pressure ranges in the range of hPa to 4 MPa.

[0032] The measuring device can be configured to measure a gaseous medium, preferably selected from among gaseous refrigerants, ammonia, hydrocarbons, fluorohydrocarbons, hydrofluoroolefins, water vapor, nitrogen, air, oxygen and test gases having a molar mass of 4u, 3u or 2u.

[0033] The pipe guidance component can consist of or be a bipolar plate, for example a graphite bipolar plate or a monoplate.

[0034] According to the invention, leakage measurement and / or tightness testing of pipe guiding structural components is possible.

[0035] In this case, the method according to the invention and the device according to the invention can be adapted to the structural part to be inspected, which can also be referred to as a specimen, for example, by the use of an adapter plate and suitable valve positions, without the need for an entirely new method or an entirely new device.

[0036] The method according to the invention and the device according to the invention can be used for tightness testing and leakage measurement of bipolar plates. Further fields of application are monoplates, heat exchangers and all test objects with several test spaces, where process steps are saved when using several test gases in succession, for example in applications related to post-vacuum and cleaning.

[0037] The herein described aspects of the invention, i.e. the device for tightness checking and / or leakage measurement of structural parts on the one hand and the method for tightness checking and / or leakage measurement of structural parts on the other hand, can be advantageously improved in all significant respects of the embodiments described in relation to the respective other aspects.

[0038] In the following, the invention is explained by way of example only on the basis of schematic drawings. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0039] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of a measurement setup using a device according to the invention; [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the structure of an apparatus according to one embodiment. [Diagram 3] 1 is a schematic diagram of a model of a pipe guidance structural component in an apparatus according to one embodiment; [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a possible configuration using the pipe guidance structural component of FIG. 3 according to one embodiment; [Diagram 5] Schematic diagram of all measurement configurations based on one embodiment of the pipe guidance structural parts in a device configured for leak measurement [Figure 6A] Schematic diagram of a measurement setup according to one embodiment showing only the known effects of leakage paths. [Figure 6B] Schematic diagram of a measurement setup according to one embodiment showing only the known effects of leakage paths. [Figure 7A] A graph showing an example of finding non-overlapping measurement configurations [Figure 7B] A graph showing an example of finding non-overlapping measurement configurations [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is a flow chart of a procedure for the complete inspection of a pipe guide plate having three pipes and a peripheral measurement volume according to one embodiment. [Figure 9] Flowchart of the method according to the invention DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0040] FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a typical structure of a measuring installation 100 using a device according to the invention. A device 102 for tightness checking and / or leakage measurement of a structural part 104 with a number of ducts is shown. In this case, the structural part 104 can be, for example, a bipolar plate, and the ducts can be respectively associated with two openings (for example, an inlet and an outlet) of the bipolar plate. For example, the bipolar plate can have six openings for guiding a cooling medium (by inlet 112 and outlet 106), an oxidizing agent (by inlet 114 and outlet 108) and a reducing agent (by inlet 116 and outlet 110) through the bipolar plate. In the device 102, the structural part 104 can be at least partially surrounded by a surrounding volume 118.

[0041] In one implementation, an inlet condition can be applied to at least a subset of the line inlets 112, 114, 116, for example, by application of pressure from a pressure source 120. Valves 122, 124, 126 can be used to connect selected line inlets 112, 114, 116 to the pressure source 120.

[0042] In one implementation, for example, a measurement device 128 may be used to measure outlet conditions at at least a subset of each of the line outlets 106, 108, 110 and / or the surrounding volume 118. Valves 130, 132, 134, 136 may be used to connect selected line outlets 106, 108, 110 and / or the surrounding volume 118 with the measurement device 128.

[0043] The device for measuring and / or testing the tightness of at least one pipe guidance structural part may have at least a three-part structure with a receiving member, a closing member and a pressing member. The receiving member and the closing member may be configured to form a common gas-tight sealing surface. The receiving member and the closing member may be arranged to be removably movable relative to one another. The receiving member may be configured to receive the at least one pipe guidance structural part in a form-matching manner. The pressing member may be configured to connect the pipe guidance structural part to the receiving member in a pressure-clamping manner. The device may comprise at least two ports and piping suitable for guiding a gaseous medium and at least one measuring device.

[0044] The measuring device can be configured to analyze the properties and / or the state of motion of the gaseous medium, where analysis of the state of motion can be understood to mean, for example, a flow measurement, and analysis of the properties of the gaseous medium can be understood to mean analysis of a measuring device configured to determine the material composition of the gaseous medium, where for example a mass spectrometer can be used for that purpose.

[0045] In some embodiments, a suitable measuring instrument for determining the material composition is selected, and may be a mass spectrometer, in particular a sector field mass spectrometer, a QMS (quadrupole mass spectrometer), an OES (optical emission spectrometer), a ΔP (pressure change or differential pressure) measuring instrument, a flow measuring instrument with different inlet pressure ranges versus different outlet pressure ranges, the pressure ranges being in absolute pressure, e.g., 10 -7 hPa to 5MPa, e.g., 10 -6 hPa to 4.5MPa, e.g., 10-4 The pressure can be in the range of 0.15 hPa to 4 MPa.

[0046] In this case, the gaseous medium is advantageously selected from among ammonia, hydrocarbons, fluorohydrocarbons, hydrofluoroolefins, water vapor, nitrogen, air, oxygen and test gases having a molar mass of 4u, 3u or 2u, where "u" stands for normalized atomic mass unit.

[0047] With the device according to the invention, in particular by using a pressure member, a thickness-independent clamping of the bipolar plate (BPP) and at the same time a sealing of the environment of the BPP can be achieved, and moreover advantageously the force exerted on the BPP by the pressure member and the receiving member can be adjusted modularly.

[0048] In one embodiment, the internal conduits of the received bipolar plate can be pressurized and / or evacuated as desired, so that each possible measurement configuration can be pressurized as desired, thereby also allowing the ambient environment of the BPP to be pressurized during measurement or inspection operations.

[0049] 2 shows a schematic cross-section 200 of the structure of the device according to one embodiment. In this case, a multi-piece structure is shown consisting of a receiving unit 202 (which can serve as a seat for a structural part 204, e.g. a bipolar plate), a pressing member 206 (which can be configured as a piston, for example) and a closing member 210 (which can also serve as a piston guide). For example, the conduit-guiding structural part 204 can have six openings for the passage of the cooling medium, the oxidizing agent and the reducing agent. These openings are connected to each other in pairs via conduits. The pressing member 206 can be moved along a movement direction 208 in order to reliably press the structural part 204 with a settable force against the receiving member 202 regardless of the thickness of the structural part 204.

[0050] To be able to measure structural components 204 having different conduits (e.g., different numbers of conduits or different locations where the conduits enter and exit the structural component 204), an adapter plate 212 can be provided between the receiving unit 202 and the structural component 204. This adapter plate 212 can guide the inlet or outlet 214 of the receiving unit 202 to the respective conduit inlets and conduit outlets of the structural component 204.

[0051] FIG. 2 illustrates different packings 216 that seal the individual components and structural parts 204 of the device.

[0052] The BPP can be placed flat in the adapter housing. The housing can have an opening and at least one gasket suitable for creating an airtight connection by pressure tightening. The openings in the adapter housing that are in contact with the openings in the BPP can pass through the adapter plate and merge again with openings on the opposite side of the adapter housing. These openings are always the same for different adapter housings and can be referred to as standardized adapter openings.

[0053] In one embodiment, the device includes a chamber bottom and a chamber lid. In this case, the chamber bottom can include openings that are mated to the adapter openings and match the nominal width of the standardized adapter openings. In one embodiment, the nominal width of the openings is 1 / 4 inch, which corresponds to a diameter of about 6 mm.

[0054] In one embodiment, the pipe-guiding structural part is realized flatly. For example, the pipe-guiding part is a bipolar plate, which can also be called BPP. The bipolar plate is an essential component of a fuel cell. In the sense of the present invention, a fuel cell, as it is known per se, is understood to be a device that can convert part of the energy from the reaction of an oxidant (e.g. oxygen) and a reductant (e.g. hydrogen) directly into electrical energy. Technical devices that operate with a medium that is often easily ignited must comply with high safety standards and the corresponding regulations.

[0055] Further, by way of non-exhaustive example, monoplates are understood to be pipe-guiding structural components, from which bipolar plates are often assembled.

[0056] Existing systems for carrying out measurements and inspections based on currently valid standards are technically burdensome and often time consuming in terms of technical evaluation.

[0057] In the prior art, no adaptive devices are known. Due to its modular structure, the subject matter according to the invention includes mechanical adapters. In this case, the accommodation can be easily replaced from the perspective of the subject matter according to the invention by using a geometrically modified pipe guidance structural part. This is advantageous, since in this way the service life in industrial applications is extended. Furthermore, the modular design of the system reduces the maintenance or cleaning burden, since the adaptive accommodation can be cleaned or maintained separately from the rest of the installation.

[0058] With the device according to the invention, the clamping force of the device for sealing the pipe-guiding structural parts can be variably set, which allows a continuous optimization of the test parameters without re-creation. Furthermore, this variable clamping force allows the test conditions to be adapted to change within the measurement path, which allows a test that is particularly gentle on the bipolar plates. This reduces the possibility of material damage occurring in the bipolar plates during the test.

[0059] Additionally, the device offers the advantage that the environment surrounding the bipolar plate can be pressurized as well as evacuated.

[0060] Furthermore, this adaptive device allows inspection of test objects with wide tolerances without modification or other measures.

[0061] End plates are often thicker in construction. These plates can be inspected in the same housing without additional modifications, set times, ejections or other measures.

[0062] 3 shows a schematic diagram of a model 300 of a pipe guidance structural part in a device according to one embodiment. The pipe guidance structural part consists of pipes 1, 2, 3 and a surrounding volume 4. Theoretically possible leak paths are labeled with letters A, B, C, D, E, F and G. In this case, A represents a leak path between pipe 1 and the surrounding volume 4, B represents a leak path between pipe 2 and the surrounding volume, C represents a leak path between pipe 3 and the surrounding volume, D represents a leak path between pipe 1 and pipe 2, E represents a leak path between pipe 2 and pipe 3 and F represents a leak path between pipe 1 and pipe 3.

[0063] Furthermore, in Fig. 3, a leakage path G between the volume surrounding the device and the environment surrounding the device is illustrated, however, this leakage path can be neglected if the hermeticity of the device against the environment is guaranteed.

[0064] FIG. 4 shows a possible structure 400 based on one implementation using the pipe guidance structural component 300 of FIG. 3. A pressure source 404 is connected to the structural component 300 using a valve. For example, the pressure source 404 is connected to the surrounding volume 4 using a valve 408. A measuring device 402 is connected to the structural component 300 using a valve. For example, the measuring device 402 is connected to the surrounding volume 4 using a valve 406. These valves 410 and 412 can be used to ventilate the device based on the illustrated structure 400. Different measuring configurations can be measured by suitable valve settings (i.e. valve settings for blocking or conducting / guiding). In this case, measuring a measuring configuration is understood to mean applying a medium at a given pressure to at least one pipe and measuring at least one other pipe that is not identical to the at least one pipe that is applied with this pressure by a suitable measuring device. In this case, the physical detection limits influence the applicability of the measuring means.

[0065] In one embodiment, a method for measuring a leak path and / or inspecting a tightness of a pipeline guidance structural component includes: 1. determining all inlet or outlet configurations; 2. Selecting non-overlapping measurement configurations; 3. Measuring the selected measurement configuration; has.

[0066] These measurements are then combined to reflect the different leak paths, and the following equation can be used to estimate the line-specific leak rate, which is not directly obtainable by measurement:

[0067] Non-overlapping measurement configurations can be converted into a matrix representation, where the row and column symbols correspond to the numbers of the individual conduits or cavities, respectively. In the non-limiting example below, the leakage paths are represented by the letters A, B, C, D, E, F and G, as illustrated in FIG. 3. The letters A, B and C represent leakage paths from one conduit to the surrounding volume, respectively, and D, E and F represent leakage paths between the individual conduits that do not pass through the surrounding volume.

[0068] In this case, the letter G represents the leakage path occurring between the measuring device and the surrounding environment, which is a property of the device used and is therefore ignored in the following.

[0069] Thus, the factor m relating to the interaction between the pressurized line and the line connected to the measuring instrument ij The matrix representation consisting of

[0070]

number

[0071]

number

[0072] In the case of non-overlapping measurement configurations, the coefficients of the elements of such matrices are exclusively values ​​1 and 0. In this case, the value 1 is used for possible leakage paths and the value 0 is used when no such paths are definitely present.

[0073] In this case, the coefficients of the leak paths cannot be univocally assigned to the values ​​0 or 1, except for non-overlapping measurement configurations, since processes such as, for example, permeation, can cause crosstalk between the leak paths.

[0074] It is not always possible to measure the leak paths individually (ie, A, B, C, D, E and F, respectively) due to their interdependencies.

[0075] Only the leak path G can be determined individually, for example by a so-called background measurement, since this path is characteristic of the device. This leak path should be taken into account in particular if the surrounding volume is the volume being measured. In this case, the following equation holds for the entire leak path: L'=L+L(G) Here, L(G) represents the individually measured leak rate of leak path G.

[0076] There are always at least three leak paths assigned to each pipeline.

[0077] For example, in the introduced notation, the pressurization configuration for one line in a non-overlapping configuration is represented as follows: ●Pipeline 1 → Complementary set (1 → 2&3&4)

[0078]

number

[0079]

number

[0080]

number

[0081]

number

[0082] None of the above configurations provide a unique measurement for each leak path, but in accordance with the present invention, all six possible leak paths can be checked for leaks with a reduced number of measurements, i.e., a tightness check can be performed with less than six measurements per leak path.

[0083] We will first illustrate this measure for the present example of three conduits and one surrounding volume.

[0084] In this regard, three measurement configurations (i.e., combinations of these three leak paths) are investigated, for example 14->23, 24->13 and 34->12, where the numbers before the arrows respectively represent the pipes to which the inlet conditions are applied (i.e., the inlet configurations) and the numbers after the arrows represent the pipes to be measured (i.e., the outlet configurations), i.e., for example, "14->23" means to apply a common inlet condition to pipes 1 and 4 and to measure on pipes 2 and 3.

[0085] Then, for these three configurations, the following matrices are obtained:

[0086]

number

[0087] In this case, for each element of the matrix whose row number corresponds to a line in the inlet configuration and whose column number corresponds to a line in the outlet configuration, the component 1 is obtained, and it is intuitively clear why only components 0 can occur on the main diagonal (since non-overlapping measurement configurations cannot have common channels in both the inlet and outlet configurations).

[0088] So, for example, in measurement configuration 14->23, the following elements of the matrix are equal to 1: ●First row, second column ●First row, third column ●Fourth row, second column ●Fourth row, third column

[0089] Furthermore, the elements obtained by transposing (i.e. by "switching" the rows and columns) are equal to 1. In the example of measurement configuration 14->23, the following elements of the matrix are: ●First row, second column ●First row, third column ●Fourth row, second column ●Fourth row, third column

[0090] All other components are 0.

[0091] In this case, for the chosen measurement configuration, the sum of these matrices results in the following matrix:

[0092]

number

[0093] Therefore, the leakage rate of all the leakage paths is L=1 / 2·(2A+2B+2C+2D+2E+2F) It becomes.

[0094] Note that for this test method, each leak path has exactly two components in the resulting sum. Furthermore, all possible leak paths are covered by the three non-overlapping measurement configurations in this example. Therefore, all six leak paths are completely determined by the measurements of the three non-overlapping configurations.

[0095] Further analysis of the constructed matrix shows that it is sufficient to measure all six leakage paths in an integrated manner based on two measurement configurations, which is symbolized by the fact that the elements between the lines in the sum of the two matrices corresponding to the two measurement configurations are not equal to 0.

[0096] Therefore, two measurements (corresponding to two of the three measurement configurations 14->23, 24->13 and 34->12 above) are sufficient to be able to realize the test. In this case, in this example, two measurements can be considered as sufficient test criteria, e.g.

[0097]

number

[0098] That is, using these two measurement configurations (14->23 and 34->12), it can be first checked whether a leak occurs or not. If neither of these two measurement configurations shows a leak, it can be deduced from this that the structural part as a whole is not leaking.

[0099] If at least one of these two measurement configurations is leaking (i.e. if there is at least one leak from one line of the inlet configuration of the measurement configuration to one line of the outlet configuration), further determination and quantification of the leak path can be performed.

[0100] Then, for accurate determination and quantification of the leak paths, a measurement configuration can be found to account for the effect of the leak paths against each other, and ultimately determine the extent of each individual leak path.

[0101] For example, the following four measurement configurations can be considered:

[0102]

number

[0103] By appropriately combining these equations 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7, the contribution of the desired leakage path can be identified.

[0104] For example, but not limited to, here, the contribution of A should be specified. This can be done, for example, by the following three equations 8, 9 and 10: 8. The sum of equations 5, 2, 3, and 4, 9. The sum of equations 6, 7, and 1, and 10. Difference between Equations 9 and 8

[0105] And these formulas become:

[0106]

number

[0107] Here, equation 10 contains only a component 4*A. This identifies the leakage path A. Similarly, for example (but not limited to), the contribution of E should also be identified here. For this purpose, the following equation can be used:

[0108]

number

[0109] Again, as can be seen from Equation 13, the leakage path E is completely determined by 4*E.

[0110] It turns out that one equation can be found for each leak path.

[0111] Generalizing from this matrix description, one can derive that a set of measurement configurations can be selected, and that in the union of the selected configurations, each matrix element on either side of the line has at least a value of 1.

[0112] In this case, an advantageous selection rule involves generalizing to n pipes (n being a natural number greater than or equal to 2), where every two pipes are subjected to the same state (e.g., pressure or measurement), and one of these pipes is always the peripheral pipe n, and the complement pipes are each in a different state.

[0113] For example, but not by way of limitation, a series of lines 1, 2, 3, 4, ... and n-1 are always subjected to a given inlet condition (eg, pressurized) along with the surrounding line n.

[0114] The sum of the coefficient matrices for the measurement configuration of interest is of the general form:

[0115]

number

[0116] Based on this measure, Generate one test method each using a minimum number (i.e., one set) of measurement configurations; • Find the individual leak rates of a system of n pipes by specifying a set of equations, respectively; It is possible.

[0117] Each step will be described in detail below.

[0118] 1. Determine all inlet and outlet configurations The number of all possible inlet configurations or all possible outlet configurations can be mathematically described by the number of combinations of k classes among n different elements without repetition, where n represents the total number of lines including the surrounding volume. In this case, the k classes are the number of lines that can be pressurized and / or that can be combined into one measurement volume. This measurement volume can be composed of all lines (or a subset thereof) of the structural part that are directly connected to the measurement device and / or the surrounding volume (which can also be referred to as the surrounding measurement volume). Therefore, the calculation of this number is performed using the binomial coefficient

[0119]

number

[0120] As a non-exhaustive example, for three (3) conduits and exactly one surrounding volume, we obtain n=4. Therefore, this value is for k={1;2;3}. Therefore, in this case, 4+6+4=14(=2 4 The result is that there are (1-2) possible combinations (4 connections for one pipeline, 6 connections for two pipelines, and 4 connections for three pipelines), giving us (1 for 4) = 4, (2 for 4) = 6, and (3 for 4) = 4.

[0121] 2. Select a non-overlapping measurement configuration Among all possible combinations of inlet configurations and outlet configurations, combinations are also found in which the combination of lines to be pressurized is the complement of the combination of lines to be measured. These combinations are called non-overlapping combinations. In these non-overlapping combinations, all through-flow leak paths are directly connected to the measurement volume, i.e., all possible leak paths are directly measured simultaneously. Therefore, the measurement signal corresponds to the sum of the leak rates of the individual leak lines.

[0122] To identify non-overlapping measurement configurations, all possible pipe permutations are interpreted as numbers and described such that the sequence of numbers represents the smallest possible number. A non-exhaustive example is the measurement configuration 431->65, so that the smallest possible numbers are 134 and 56. That is, the measurement configuration can be described as "inlet configuration->outlet configuration."

[0123] All inlet configurations thus represented are plotted in a table in ascending order for the rows, avoiding overlaps. Similarly, the numerical values ​​(representing the outlet configurations) are plotted in ascending order for the columns, from left to right. The table or matrix thus obtained (each matrix element, i.e. each matrix element represents a measurement configuration represented by a row and a column) can now be evaluated. If numerical values ​​of the same number cross (i.e. in the matrix element in question, a line is included in both the inlet and outlet configurations), it is not a valid measurement configuration. If numerical values ​​of different numbers cross (i.e. a line is not included in the inlet state and in the outlet configuration at the same time), it is an allowed measurement configuration. By this measure, a diagonal line is formed in this table, which is the longest diagonal line at the same time in this drawing. This diagonal line represents a non-overlapping measurement configuration, in which each line and the surrounding volume are not included in the inlet or outlet configuration at the same time. In this case, the row elements can represent the lines to be filled with the test gas, and the column elements can represent the measurement volumes.

[0124] In this case, by way of non-exhaustive example, the leakage path into the outer measurement volume is advantageously always represented by the largest number, with particular emphasis being placed on leakage into the surrounding measurement volume, where the number of the selected configuration is always the largest within the measurement volume.

[0125] 5 shows a schematic representation of an overall measurement arrangement 500 according to one embodiment of a conduit guidance structural part in a device configured for leakage measurement, the conduit guidance structural part having three conduits 1, 2 and 3 embedded in a volume 4. Such a structural part is shown, for example, in FIG.

[0126] Figures 6A and 6B show schematic diagrams of measurement setups 600 and 650 according to one implementation showing only the known effects of leak paths. In Figure 6A, a first conduit 602 and a second conduit 604 are shown. In this case, the first conduit has a leak both to the surrounding volume and to the second conduit 604.

[0127] However, if a measurement device 610 is connected to the second line 604, as in FIG. 6A, it can only identify leaks 608 from the first line 602 to the second line 608, but cannot identify leaks 606 from the first line 602 to the surrounding volume.

[0128] As shown in FIG. 6B, when a measurement device 656 is connected to the first line 602, it can identify leaks 654 from the first line 602 to the second line 604 as well as leaks 652 from the first line 602 to the surrounding volume.

[0129] 7A and 7B show an example of finding non-overlapping measurement configurations. The numbers in the rows represent the configuration of the lines to be filled with the test gas (i.e., the inlet configuration). The numbers in the columns, which should be read vertically, represent the lines that are joined together as a measurement volume (i.e., the outlet configuration).

[0130] FIG. 7A illustrates a chart 700 showing in graphical form possible measurement configurations for a system consisting of a conduit guidance structural component having three internal conduits and one external surrounding volume. This corresponds to an arrangement similar to FIG. 5, but with a different order of rows and columns. In this case, the blackened areas represent combinations that are not measured. The white areas represent paths suitable for measurement. In this case, the diagonal line extending from the lower left corner of the chart to the upper right corner of the chart (i.e., the second diagonal of the illustrated matrix) represents non-overlapping measurement configurations in which each conduit appears in the measurement configuration.

[0131] FIG. 7B illustrates a chart 750 of possible measurement configurations for a system consisting of a conduit guidance structural component having four inner conduits and one outer circumferential volume.

[0132] 3. Measurement of the selected measurement configuration For a system consisting of n-1 pipes and one surrounding measurement volume, the number of possible leak paths, L, is given by L = 0.5(n 2 -n) The number of non-overlapping measurement configurations, K, consisting of all the conduits and the surrounding measurement volume, can be expanded as follows:

[0133]

number

[0134] Therefore, the non-overlapping configurations grow faster than the leak paths. Now, one can select another configuration from among these configurations, so that all relevant leak paths can be jointly measured.

[0135] In this case, the selection may be performed such that each conduit appears at least twice in the set of non-overlapping measurement configurations, each of which may include a surrounding measurement volume.

[0136] For example, but not by way of limitation, the following set of parameters for a system consisting of three conduits and one surrounding measurement volume can be envisaged: Test gas inlet Measurement volume 1&2 3&4 2&3 1&4 3&1 2&4 Here, "test gas inlet" is to be understood as an inlet configuration. Here, "measurement volume" is to be understood as an outlet configuration.

[0137] Now, using this set (i.e., in particular using a subset of this measurement configuration as a non-overlapping subset of measurement configurations), a consolidated leak rate multiple can be determined, thus replacing time-consuming individual measurements, as exemplified above for the case of three pipelines, and generally described for the case of n-1 pipelines and one surrounding volume each.

[0138] FIG. 8 shows a flow chart 800 of a complete inspection sequence of a pipe guide plate with three pipes and a surrounding measurement volume according to one embodiment. After starting the inspection in 802, first a combination 1 predefined according to the method is measured in 804. If the measurement result is above a given threshold, the inspection is terminated with the result "niO" (not normal, i.e. there is an unacceptably large leak) in 812. If it is below the threshold, a combination 2 predefined according to the method is measured in 806. If the measurement result is above a given threshold, the inspection is terminated with the result "niO" in 812. If it is below the threshold, a combination 3 predefined according to the method is measured in 808. If the measurement result is above a given threshold, the inspection is terminated with the result "niO" in 812. If it is below the threshold, the sum of all previous measurements is calculated in 810. If this sum exceeds a given value (e.g., twice the threshold), the test is terminated at 812 with the result "niO", otherwise, the test is terminated at 814 with the result "iO" (normal, i.e., no unacceptably large leaks).

[0139] The method according to the invention offers the advantage that a significant reduction in measurement time can be achieved compared to conventional measures, which are characterized in that each measurement checks one suspected leak path. In such measures, for example, a large number of possible leak paths must be measured in order to identify the leak path with the highest leakage rate. After such a leak path has been found by means of a suitable measurement configuration, it is possible to check whether the test is passed or not based on the magnitude of the measured signal.

[0140] In a different embodiment, the targeted selection of measurement configurations in combination with the sequential application of different test gases, for example different concentrations of helium (substance 4), different concentrations of hydrogen (substance 2) and different concentrations of substance 3 to the test object, and the subsequent measurement of these selected measurement configurations, allows each subsequent test gas to act as a purge gas for the test gas used in the previous process step, i.e. the fast switching times of the detectors used replace the slow gas exchange times.

[0141] In an industrial environment, shorter cycle times or higher throughputs can thus be achieved, the latter being a major economic advantage, which is advantageous insofar as it allows a high degree of economy to be generated and in particular therefore allows the often time-consuming inspection or determination of structural parts to be significantly accelerated and the price of the products to be inspected to be reduced.

[0142] In short, the method according to the invention does not expect to improve the signal by using a test gas consisting of a given substance, but rather to easily switch to a different measurement configuration using a different test gas.

[0143] 9 shows a flow chart 900 illustrating a method for tightness testing and / or leak measurement of a structural component having multiple conduits according to one embodiment. At 902, a given inlet condition is applied to an inlet arrangement of the conduits of the structural component. At 904, an outlet condition is measured at an outlet arrangement of the conduits of the structural component. At 906, based on the measurement, a tightness condition and / or leak rate of the structural component is determined. The inlet arrangement includes at least two conduits of the structural component and the outlet arrangement includes at least one other conduit of the structural component, or the inlet arrangement includes at least one conduit of the structural component and the outlet arrangement includes at least two other conduits of the structural component.

[0144] In one implementation, the inlet condition consists of or is one or more of a given pressure, a given concentration, a given chemical element, a given chemical compound, and a given mixture of chemicals, and the measurement of the outlet condition includes or is detecting one or more of a pressure, a concentration, a given chemical element, a given chemical compound, and a given mixture of chemicals.

[0145] In one embodiment, these applications and measurements are performed for a plurality of different measurement configurations, each measurement configuration comprising a predetermined inlet configuration and a predetermined outlet configuration, and a sealing condition and / or a leak rate of the structural component is determined based on the applications and measurements for the plurality of different measurement configurations.

[0146] In one implementation, each inlet condition for a series of measurements comprises or is one or more of different pressures, different concentrations, different chemical elements, different chemical compounds, and different mixtures of chemicals.

[0147] In one implementation, a plurality of different measurement configurations are identified such that each conduit appears in combination with a respective other conduit in at least one measurement configuration of the plurality of measurement configurations.

[0148] In one implementation, respective leak rates for a plurality of measurement configurations are determined, and a leak rate between two conduits is determined based on the respective leak rates for the plurality of measurement configurations.

[0149] The devices and methods according to different implementations allow adaptation to changing geometric shapes of the conduit guiding structural components, for example bipolar plates.Furthermore, pressure application of the conduit guiding structural components to the surrounding environment can be performed.

[0150] For example, it is obvious that all the embodiments described with respect to the BPP can be generally applied to any pipeline guidance structural component. [Explanation of symbols]

[0151] 100 Schematic structure of a measuring device based on one embodiment 102 Apparatus based on one embodiment 104 Structural parts 106,108,110,112,114,116 Pipeline 118 Perimeter Volume 120 Pressure Setting 122,124,126 Valve 128 Measuring equipment 130,132,134,136 Valves 200 Cross-section of the structure of the device according to one embodiment 202 Containment Unit 204 Structural parts 206 Pressing member 208 Direction of movement 210 Closing member 212 Adapter plate 214 Entrance / Exit 216 Gasket 300 Model of a pipe guide structural component in a device based on one embodiment 1,2,3 conduit 4. Perimeter Volume A, B, C, D, E, F, G Theoretically possible leak paths 400 Possible structure based on one embodiment using the pipe guide structural component of FIG. 402 Pressure source, e.g., a vacuum pump to generate the pressure required for the measurement 404 Measuring equipment 406,408,410,412 Valves 500 All measurement configurations based on one implementation configuration 600 Measurement configuration based on one implementation configuration 602 First Pipeline 604 Second Pipeline 606 Leak 608 Leak 610 Measuring equipment 650 Measurement configuration based on one implementation configuration 652 Leak 654 Leak 656 Measuring equipment 700,750 Illustration for finding non-overlapping measurement configurations 800 Flowchart of a sequence for the complete inspection of a pipe guide plate having three pipes and a surrounding measurement volume according to one embodiment 802 start 804 Measurement Combination 1 806 Measurement Combination 2 808 Measurement Combination 3 810 Calculate the sum of all measurements 812 "abnormal" results 814 "Normal" result 900 Flowchart illustrating a method for tightness testing and / or leak measurement of a structural component having multiple conduits according to one embodiment. 902 applying a given inlet condition to an inlet configuration of a pipe of a structural component 904 Process for measuring the outlet condition at the outlet configuration of the pipe of the structural component 906 Process for determining the tightness and / or leakage rate of structural components based on measurements

Claims

1. 1. A method for tightness testing and / or leak measurement of a structural component having multiple conduits, comprising: applying a given inlet condition to the inlet configuration of the pipeline of the structural component (902); Measuring (904) an outlet condition at an outlet configuration of the pipeline of the structural component; determining (906) the sealing condition and / or leakage rate of the structural component based on the measurements; having The inlet arrangement has at least two conduits of the structural component and the outlet arrangement has at least one other conduit of the structural component, or the inlet arrangement has at least one conduit of the structural component and the outlet arrangement has at least two other conduits of the structural component. method.

2. 10. The method of claim 1 , said inlet conditions comprising one or more of a given pressure, a given concentration, a given chemical element, a given chemical compound, and a given mixture of chemicals; said measuring the outlet condition comprises detecting one or more of pressure, concentration, a given chemical element, a given chemical compound, and a given mixture of chemicals; method.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, said applying and measuring being performed for a plurality of different measurement configurations, each measurement configuration comprising a predetermined inlet configuration and a predetermined outlet configuration; the tightness and / or leakage rate of said structural component is determined based on application and measurement of a number of different measurement configurations; method.

4. 4. The method of claim 3, A method in which each inlet condition for a series of measurements comprises one or more of a different pressure, a different concentration, a different chemical element, a different chemical compound, and a different mixture of chemicals.

5. The method according to claim 3 or 4, The method further comprising identifying a plurality of different measurement configurations such that each line appears in combination with a respective other line in at least one measurement configuration of the plurality of measurement configurations.

6. The method according to any one of claims 3 to 5, determining a leak rate for each of the plurality of measurement configurations; determining a leak rate between the two pipelines based on the respective leak rates for the plurality of measurement configurations; The method further comprises:

7. A device for tightness checking and / or leakage measurement of a structural component having a plurality of lines, in particular adapted to carry out the method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, comprising an inlet and The exit, This structural component is accommodated in the housing. connecting the inlet with the inlet configuration of the pipeline of the structural component; connecting the outlet with an outlet arrangement of the pipeline of the structural component; A storage device configured as described above, Applying a given entry state to this entry, Measure the exit condition at this exit, Based on this measurement, the sealing condition and / or leakage rate of the structural component is determined; A measuring device configured as described above, Equipped with The inlet arrangement has at least two conduits of the structural component and the outlet arrangement has at least one other conduit of the structural component, or the inlet arrangement has at least one conduit of the structural component and the outlet arrangement has at least two other conduits of the structural component. Device.

8. 8. The apparatus according to claim 7, The apparatus further comprises a closure member, the receiving member and the closure member being configured to define a common sealing surface, the receiving member and the closure member being arranged for removably movement relative to one another.

9. 9. The device according to claim 7 or 8, The apparatus further comprises a pressing member configured to apply a force to the structural component towards the receiving member, thereby connecting the structural component with the receiving member.

10. 10. The device according to claim 7, further comprising: The apparatus further comprising an adapter plate having a portion specific to the structural component for connecting the lines of said structural component with said inlets and outlets.

11. 11. The device according to claim 7, further comprising: The apparatus further comprising valves configured to open and close connections between the inlet of the apparatus and the conduit of the structural component, and between the outlet of the apparatus and the conduit of the structural component.

12. 12. The device according to claim 7, further comprising: The measuring instrument comprises one or more of a quadrupole mass spectrometer, a time-of-flight mass spectrometer, a sector field mass spectrometer, a pressure measuring instrument, a differential pressure measuring instrument, and a flow measuring instrument, or a spectrometer from this group of optical spectrometers.

13. 13. The device according to claim 7, further comprising: The measuring device is 10 －７ Within the range of hPa to 5 MPa, 10 －６ Within the range of 10 hPa to 4.5 MPa －４ The device is configured to measure a pressure range within the range of hPa to 4 MPa.

14. 14. The device according to claim 7, further comprising: The apparatus, wherein the measuring device is configured to measure a gaseous medium, preferably selected from gaseous refrigerants, ammonia, hydrocarbons, fluorohydrocarbons, hydrofluoroolefins, water vapor, nitrogen, air, oxygen and test gases having a molar mass of 4u, 3u or 2u.

15. 15. The device according to claim 7, further comprising: An apparatus in which the pipeline guide structural component is a bipolar plate or a monoplate.

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