Heating system for electric vehicle equipped with engine for power generation

Abstract

To provide a configuration in which the heat obtained from an intermediate reaction of a fuel is used for heating, the product of the intermediate reaction is used as the fuel for an engine, and sufficient heating effect is obtained without requiring equipment for the removal of harmful substances from combustion exhaust of the fuel separately from the engine, in an electric vehicle equipped with an engine for power generation.SOLUTION: A heating system 1 for an electric vehicle equipped with an engine for power generation includes a reactor 3 which brings about an exothermic reaction for synthesizing a reaction product to be used as fuel for an engine for power generation from this fuel by receiving the fuel from a fuel tank 2 that stores the fuel to be used in an engine for power generation, and heat exchanger means 4 which receives the reaction product from the reactor and heats the air sent into a vehicle cabin by the heat of the reaction product, and the reaction product passed through the heat exchanger means is recovered to the fuel tank.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a heating system equipped in an electric vehicle, and more particularly to a heating system for an electric vehicle equipped with a generator engine in which the electricity generated is supplied to a drive motor and a battery. [Background technology]

[0002] In electric vehicles and other motor-driven vehicles, if the power of the on-board battery is used for heating, the power for electric running is consumed, shortening the driving distance, or the heating performance of a heat pump type heater using electricity decreases when the outside air temperature is low, so a configuration has been proposed in which fuel is installed in the vehicle and heat for heating is obtained using the fuel without using the power of the battery. For example, Patent Document 1 proposes a fuel-using heater system that aims to improve the heating performance inside the vehicle and increase the temperature of the battery in cold regions of electric vehicles, by supplying fuel and an oxidizer to a catalyst, and increasing the temperature of each part of the vehicle using the heat generated when the fuel undergoes an oxidation reaction, and at the same time, a part of the catalyst-passed fuel and the oxidizer are circulated and pass through the catalyst again, reducing the amount of unreacted fuel discharged, thereby using up the fuel and increasing the amount of heat generated. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2012-153253 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] If an electric vehicle is equipped with a generator engine that uses fuel to generate electricity, it is possible to obtain heat for heating using the fuel for the engine. In this regard, if the interior of the vehicle is heated using a combustion heater that burns the fuel for the engine in a dedicated combustor, the fuel will be burned exclusively for heating, and the fuel utilization efficiency will be poor compared to waste heat heating in engine vehicles. In addition, the combustor (separate from the engine) will need to be equipped with a mechanism for removing harmful substances (such as nitrogen oxides and hydrogen produced by partial oxidation of fuel) from the exhaust.

[0005] Meanwhile, various attempts have been proposed to synthesize fuel components equivalent to gasoline from alcohols such as methanol and ethanol, with the aim of achieving carbon neutrality. In general, the reaction of synthesizing fuel components equivalent to gasoline from alcohols is an exothermic reaction, and the heat obtained therefrom can be used for heating air. In addition, since such a reaction does not involve burning fuel (alcohol, etc.), there is no need to provide a configuration for removing harmful substances such as nitrogen oxides. Therefore, if a reaction (intermediate reaction) is carried out to synthesize products such as fuel components equivalent to gasoline from fuels such as alcohol, and the heat obtained in the intermediate reaction is used to heat an electric vehicle (equipped with a generator engine), and the product obtained in the intermediate reaction is used as fuel for the generator engine, a sufficient heating effect can be expected in the electric vehicle, and there is an advantage in that it is not necessary to provide equipment for removing harmful substances from the exhaust gas generated by the combustion of fuel, separate from the engine, for the purpose of removing harmful substances from the exhaust gas generated by the combustion of fuel.

[0006] Thus, the main object of the present invention is to provide a configuration in which, in an electric vehicle equipped with a generator engine, the heat obtained from an intermediate reaction of fuel is utilized for heating, and the product of the intermediate reaction is used as fuel for the engine, thereby providing a sufficient heating effect without requiring any equipment separate from the engine for removing harmful substances from the exhaust gas from the combustion of the fuel. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] According to the present invention, the above problem is solved by a heating system for an electric vehicle equipped with a generator engine, a reactor that receives fuel from a fuel tank that stores the fuel to be used in the power generation engine and causes an exothermic reaction to synthesize a reaction product from the fuel to be used as fuel in the power generation engine; a heat exchanger means for receiving the reaction product from the reactor and for heating air to be sent into the vehicle interior with the heat of the reaction product; Including, This is accomplished by a system configured such that the reaction products from the heat exchanger means are returned to the fuel tank.

[0008] In the above configuration, the "electric vehicle" may be any type of electric vehicle equipped with a generator engine. The "exothermic reaction" in the present invention may be an exothermic reaction that synthesizes a reaction product to be used as fuel in the generator engine from a fuel used in the generator engine (rather than burning the fuel), such as a reaction that produces synthetic gasoline (fuel components equivalent to gasoline) from alcohol. The "reactor" may be any type of reactor that is appropriately adjusted to cause the exothermic reaction. The "heat exchanger means" may be any type of heat exchanger that receives the reaction product from the reactor and heats the air sent into the vehicle cabin with the heat of the reaction product, as described above. Specifically, the heat exchanger means may be configured to circulate the reaction product to a radiator, and to blow air against the radiator with a blower fan to heat the air with the heat of the reaction product. The reaction product that has dissipated heat in the heat exchanger means is returned to the fuel tank and used as fuel for the generator engine.

[0009] According to the above configuration, the heat obtained from the intermediate exothermic reaction that converts fuel into reaction products (which are also used as fuel for the engine) is used to heat the vehicle interior. With this configuration, the heat obtained from the exothermic reaction of fuel is used for heating, so it is expected that the air can be sufficiently heated without consuming the battery's power for heating, and since fuel is not burned for heating, there is no need to prepare an exhaust purification device for removing harmful substances from the exhaust, separate from the generator engine.

[0010] In the system of the present invention described above, when the generator engine is operating, heating may be performed using exhaust heat from the engine. Also, when the outside air temperature is higher than a certain temperature, the heating effect of the heat pump can be expected, and in that case, heating using the heat pump may be performed.

[0011] In the above configuration, the reaction products from the reactor are returned to the fuel tank and used as fuel for the power generation engine, and since there is no need to supply the reaction products to the reactor again, the fuel tank may be provided with an optional configuration for preventing the reaction products from flowing into the reactor, such as a check valve. Alternatively, the reaction products may be stored in a separate tank (both the same fuel as that supplied to the reactor and stored in the fuel tank, and the reaction products, may be sent as fuel to the power generation engine). Effect of the Invention

[0012] Thus, the system of the present invention makes it possible to effectively heat the interior of an electric vehicle equipped with a generator engine without requiring a separate exhaust purification device for the exhaust of the generator engine and without using power from a battery. In the system of the present invention, if a fuel other than a fossil fuel is used as the fuel stored in the fuel tank, this contributes to carbon neutrality. Note that the system of the present invention may be used in combination with other heating systems as necessary.

[0013] Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description of preferred embodiments of the invention. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the configuration of a vehicle heating system according to this embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the operation of the system of this embodiment. [Explanation of symbols]

[0015] 1...heating system, 2...fuel tank, 2a...fuel filler, 2b...fuel supply path to reactor, 2c...receptacle for reaction products, 3...reactor, 3a...injector, 3b...reaction product discharge path, 4...heat exchanger (radiator), 4a...blower fan, 5...reaction product recovery path, 6...check valve BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THEINVENTION

[0016] The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to some preferred embodiments thereof with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals indicate like parts.

[0017] System Configuration The heating system according to the present embodiment is applied to heating the interior of an electric vehicle (a vehicle that runs on a motor operated by electric power charged to a battery from the outside or from the generator engine) equipped with a generator engine. Referring to FIG. 1, the heating system 1 according to the present embodiment is basically composed of a reactor 3 that receives fuel from a fuel tank 2 that stores fuel used in the generator engine and causes an intermediate reaction of the fuel, a heat exchanger 4 that receives a reaction product of the intermediate reaction from the reactor 3 and heats the air sent to the passenger compartment with the heat of the reaction product, and a recovery flow path 5 that returns the reaction product from the heat exchanger 4 to the fuel tank 2. The fuel tank 2 may be a tank of a normal type that stores fuel supplied from the outside of the vehicle through a fuel filler port 2a. In the reactor 3, fuel from the fuel tank 2 is injected from an injector 3a through a fuel supply path 2b into an inner tank of the reactor 3, where an intermediate reaction to be described later, i.e., an exothermic reaction that synthesizes a reaction product from the fuel to be used as fuel in the generator engine, is caused. Then, the reaction products having heat synthesized by the intermediate reaction in the reactor 3 are sent to the heat exchanger 4 through the sending path 3b. The heat exchanger 4 may be configured like a radiator, and the air flow wi introduced by the blower fan 4a is heated by the heat of the reaction products as it passes through the radiator, becoming hot air wo, which is sent into the vehicle cabin, thereby heating the cabin. Thereafter, the reaction products that have released heat in the heat exchanger 4 are collected into the fuel tank 2 through the collection path 5.

[0018] In the above configuration, the fuel tank 2 supplies fuel (supplied through the fuel filler 2a) and the reaction products recovered through the recovery passage 5 to the power generation engine (not shown), and may be used to generate electricity to drive the motor or to charge the battery. In this regard, the reaction products may be mixed with the fuel in the fuel tank 2, but in order to prevent the reaction products from being sent back to the reactor 3, the reaction products from the recovery passage 5 may be stored in a receiving tank 2c that communicates with the fuel tank 2 via a check valve 6. The check valve 6 is configured to allow a flow from the outside to the inside of the receiving tank 2c, but to prevent a flow from the inside to the outside of the receiving tank 2c, so that only the fuel supplied through the fuel filler 2a exists outside the receiving tank 2c, and the fuel and the reaction products are mixed inside the receiving tank 2c. The fuel (including the reaction products) supplied to the power generation engine (Eng) is sent out from the receiving tank 2c.

[0019] As will be described later, in the above configuration, the supply of fuel to the reactor 3 and the recovery of the reaction product to the fuel tank 2 are carried out only when the heat generated by the intermediate reaction in the reactor 3 is used for heating. When the power generating engine is in operation, the waste heat of the engine can be used to heat the vehicle interior, so heating using the heat generated by the intermediate reaction in the reactor 3 does not need to be carried out. Similarly, if the vehicle is equipped with a heating device using a heat pump, when heating using the heat pump is effective (when the outside air temperature is higher than a predetermined threshold value that may be set as appropriate), heating using the heat generated by the intermediate reaction in the reactor 3 does not need to be carried out.

[0020] Intermediate reaction in reactor 3 The intermediate reaction induced in the reactor 3 may be any reaction that synthesizes a reaction product from the fuel to be used as fuel in the power generation engine. The reactor 3 is placed in a state where the conditions (temperature, pressure, catalyst, etc.) for the exothermic reaction to proceed are appropriately adjusted, and the reactor 3 is configured to induce an exothermic reaction when fuel is supplied from the fuel tank 2.

[0021] Reactions that can be used as exothermic reactions in the reactor 3 include, for example, reactions that produce synthetic gasoline with a large number of carbon atoms in the molecule by polymerization of methanol or ethanol (methanol to gasoline, ethanol to gasoline). In addition, partial oxidation of fuels is also expected to be used.

[0022] System Operation The heating system using the exothermic reaction of the reactor 3 of this embodiment may be operated when heating is commanded and the generator engine is not operating, as shown in Fig. 2. Referring to the figure, in operation, specifically, when a heating command is issued (step 1-heating ON), if the engine is operating (step 2), air heated by the waste heat of the engine is blown into the vehicle cabin (step 3). On the other hand, when the engine is not operating (step 2), fuel is supplied to the reactor, an intermediate reaction is induced, and the air heated by the heat there is blown into the vehicle cabin as described above (step 5). In this regard, if the vehicle is equipped with a heat pump type heating device, it may be determined whether or not the outside air temperature is lower than an appropriately set threshold value prior to step 5 (step 4), and if the outside air temperature is not lower than the threshold value (when the heat pump type heating is active), heating by the heat pump may be performed (step 6).

[0023] The heating system of the present embodiment described above can be said to be a system in which heat is obtained from fuel in at least two stages, and the first stage is used as a heating heat source. Since the first stage reaction is an intermediate reaction that does not generate combustion gas, heating is performed without emitting harmful substances (i.e., an exhaust purification device is not required for the reactor for the first stage reaction). In addition, the product obtained by the first stage reaction can be returned to the fuel tank and used as a fuel for driving, and the second stage exothermic reaction is a combustion reaction of the engine, and the harmful substances that are the combustion products are sufficiently purified by the exhaust purification device attached to the engine before being released into the atmosphere, so that it is expected that the emission of harmful substances is appropriately suppressed through the use of a series of fuels. The product generated in the reactor and released heat may be stored in a tank separate from the fuel tank and used as fuel for another engine other than the vehicle. If the fuel supplied to the fuel tank is not made from fossil fuels such as alcohol, the system of the present embodiment can achieve carbon neutrality.

[0024] The above description has been given in relation to the embodiment of the present invention, but it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many modifications and changes can be easily made thereto, and that the present invention is not limited to the embodiment exemplified above, but can be applied to various devices without departing from the concept of the present invention.

Claims

[Claim 1] A heating system for an electric vehicle equipped with a generator engine, a reactor that receives fuel from a fuel tank that stores the fuel to be used in the generator engine and causes an exothermic reaction to synthesize a reaction product from the fuel to be used as fuel in the generator engine; a heat exchanger means for receiving the reaction product from the reactor and for heating air to be sent into the vehicle interior with the heat of the reaction product; Including, The system is configured such that the reaction products from the heat exchanger means are returned to the fuel tank.

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