Vehicle and method for acquisition of hydrogen gas on vehicle and collection of solid product containing carbon

Abstract

To provide a vehicle which can use common liquid fuel including hydrocarbon to obtain hydrogen gas therein as well as prevent carbon dioxide from being discharged into the atmosphere.SOLUTION: A vehicle includes: a fuel tank in which liquid fuel including hydrocarbon is reserved; a fuel reformer which decomposes the hydrocarbon in the liquid fuel reserved in the fuel tank into hydrogen gas and a solid product containing carbon; and a hydrogen engine which uses the hydrogen gas obtained from decomposition by the fuel reformer as a fuel. The solid product containing the carbon produced by the fuel reformer is stored in the fuel tank.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a vehicle and a method for obtaining hydrogen gas and recovering carbonaceous solids on board the vehicle. [Background technology]

[0002] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses that automobile fuel can be reformed on-board by using low-temperature plasma for the reforming reaction of automobile fuel. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2005-337032 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] For example, when the technology of Patent Document 1 is used to obtain hydrogen gas for operating a hydrogen engine on a vehicle, carbon dioxide and the like are generated along with the hydrogen.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a vehicle that can obtain hydrogen gas on board using a common liquid fuel containing hydrocarbons while suppressing carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere, and a method for obtaining hydrogen gas on board the vehicle and recovering solid matter containing carbon. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] A vehicle according to one aspect of the present invention includes a fuel tank for storing a liquid fuel containing hydrocarbons, a fuel reformer for decomposing the hydrocarbons in the liquid fuel stored in the fuel tank into hydrogen gas and solids containing carbon, and a hydrogen engine that uses the hydrogen gas decomposed by the fuel reformer as fuel. The solids containing carbon produced by the fuel reformer are stored in the fuel tank. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a vehicle that can obtain hydrogen gas on board using a common liquid fuel containing hydrocarbons while suppressing carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere, and a method for obtaining hydrogen gas on board a vehicle and recovering a solid material containing carbon. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a schematic block diagram of a vehicle according to an embodiment; [Figure 2] 1 is a schematic block diagram of a fuel reformer for a vehicle according to an embodiment; [Figure 3] 1 is a schematic diagram showing a process flow for removing sediment (solid matter containing carbon) from a vehicle according to an embodiment, and also showing a process flow for producing hydrogen gas within the vehicle. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram of a vehicle according to a first modified example. [Figure 5] FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram of a vehicle according to a second modified example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] A vehicle 10 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. FIG.

[0010] As shown in FIG. 1, a vehicle 10 includes a fuel tank 12, a fuel reformer 14, a hydrogen gas tank 16, a hydrogen engine 18, a warning display unit (display unit) 20, and a control unit 22.

[0011] Liquid fuel containing hydrocarbons is stored in the fuel tank 12. Fossil fuels such as regular gasoline, premium gasoline, diesel, and kerosene are stored in the fuel tank 12, selectively or in a mixture. The fuel stored in the fuel tank 12 may also be waste oil such as cooking oil or engine oil.

[0012] As will be described later, the fuel tank 12 is used as a recovery device that recovers solid carbon and / or solid carbon compounds (hereinafter, mainly referred to as carbon-containing solids). The fuel tank 12 is provided with a sediment amount sensor (sensor that detects the amount of sediment) 12a that detects the amount of carbon-containing solids as sediment in the fuel tank 12. The sediment amount sensor 12a detects whether sediment has accumulated from the bottom of the fuel tank 12 to a certain height in the fuel tank 12, for example, by light transmittance.

[0013] In this embodiment, examples of solid carbon include diamond, fullerene, carbon nanotube, carbon black, activated carbon, carbon fiber, etc. In this embodiment, examples of solid carbon compounds include organic compounds.

[0014] In this embodiment, the fuel reformer 14 is connected to the fuel tank 12. In this embodiment, the fuel reformer 14 is preferably disposed above the fuel tank 12.

[0015] As shown in FIG. 2, the fuel reformer 14 has a bubble generating unit 32 that generates bubbles in the liquid fuel in the fuel tank 12 or in the liquid fuel extracted from the fuel tank 12 by a pump or the like (not shown), and an electromagnetic wave generating unit 34 that irradiates the bubbles generated by the bubble generating unit 32 with electromagnetic waves.

[0016] An ultrasonic vibration generator, for example, is used as the bubble generating unit 32. Alternatively, the bubble generating unit 32 may generate bubbles by reducing the pressure inside the fuel tank 12 or a container containing the liquid fuel using a vacuum pump or the like. Alternatively, the bubble generating unit 32 may generate bubbles by appropriately heating the liquid fuel.

[0017] The electromagnetic wave generating unit 34 preferably generates, for example, a high frequency of 10 MHz or more or a microwave of 2 GHz or more.

[0018] The hydrogen gas tank 16 shown in FIG. 1 is formed to be able to withstand an appropriate high pressure, and stores the hydrogen gas decomposed in the fuel reformer 14 and supplies the hydrogen gas to the hydrogen engine 18.

[0019] A pressure sensor 16a is also provided in the hydrogen gas tank 16. The pressure sensor 16a is capable of detecting the pressure inside the hydrogen gas tank 16, i.e., the amount of hydrogen.

[0020] The hydrogen engine 18 shown in FIG. 1 is an internal combustion engine that uses hydrogen gas as fuel.

[0021] The warning display unit 20 is provided, for example, on an instrument panel. The warning display unit 20 lights up when the amount of sediment detected by the sediment amount sensor 12a exceeds a predetermined threshold, and turns off when the amount of sediment detected by the sediment amount sensor 12a falls below the predetermined threshold. The control unit 22, which will be described later, controls the display unit 20 in accordance with the amount of sedimentation of carbon-containing solid matter detected by the sediment amount sensor 12a. The control unit 22 controls the warning display unit 20 to display a predetermined message when the amount of sediment is higher than the predetermined threshold, and controls the warning display unit 20 not to display a predetermined message when the amount of sediment is below the predetermined threshold.

[0022] The control unit 22 controls the sediment amount sensor 12a and the pressure sensor 16a. The control unit 22 controls the bubble generation unit 32 and the electromagnetic wave generation unit 34 of the fuel reformer 14. The control unit 22 also controls the hydrogen engine. It is also preferable that the hydrogen gas tank 16 is provided with an adjustment valve (not shown) that adjusts the amount of hydrogen gas supplied to the hydrogen engine 18, and that this adjustment valve be controlled by the control unit 22.

[0023] The control unit 22 is, for example, a computer. The control unit 22 includes a processor or integrated circuit (control circuit) including a CPU (Central Processing Unit), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or the like, and a storage medium such as a memory. The control unit 22 may include one or more processors or integrated circuits. The control unit 22 performs processing by executing programs stored in a storage medium, or the like.

[0024] When the vehicle 10 is parked or stopped, it is considered that the vehicle 10 is in a standby state. When the vehicle 10 is moving, it is considered that the vehicle 10 is in an operating state. In these states (standby / operating states of the vehicle 10), the vehicle 10 can operate as follows.

[0025] For example, when the vehicle 10 is turned on while the vehicle 10 is parked, or at appropriate intervals while the vehicle 10 is stopped or in operation, the control unit 22 acquires the output of the pressure sensor 16a in the hydrogen gas tank 16 (step S1). If the output of the pressure sensor 16a is higher than a predetermined first threshold (step S2—Yes), the control unit 22 detects the amount of sediment in the fuel tank 12 using the sediment amount sensor 12a (step S13). Note that such detection by the sediment amount sensor 12a is performed after a predetermined time has elapsed since the fuel reformer 14 was stopped. This is because, when solids containing carbon as sediment are pumped into the fuel reformer 14 together with the liquid fuel, the sediment accumulates at the bottom of the fuel tank 12 and waits until it is stored in the fuel tank 12. Furthermore, the action of the bubble generating unit 32 of the fuel reformer 14 may cause the sediment to be agitated together with the liquid fuel, causing the sediment to accumulate at the bottom of the fuel tank 12 and wait until it is stored in the fuel tank 12. Therefore, the sediment amount sensor 12a can more reliably obtain the accumulation height (amount) of solids containing carbon.

[0026] When the control unit 22 determines that the amount of sediment is higher than the threshold value (step S14-Yes), it operates the warning display unit 20 to turn on the warning display (step S15). Therefore, when the amount of sediment is higher than a predetermined threshold value, the control unit 22 controls the warning display unit 20 to display a predetermined message.

[0027] When the control unit 22 determines that the amount of sediment is equal to or less than the threshold value (step S14-No), the control unit 22 ends the process. When the amount of sediment is equal to or less than the predetermined threshold value, the control unit 22 controls the warning display unit 20 not to display a predetermined message.

[0028] The control unit 22 controls the warning display unit 20 in accordance with the amount of sediment detected by the sediment amount sensor 12a after a predetermined time has elapsed since the operation of the fuel reformer 14 was stopped.

[0029] For example, when sediment is removed at a gas station or the like and the control unit 22 detects via the sediment amount sensor 12a that the amount of sediment has fallen below a predetermined threshold (step S16-Yes), the control unit 22 controls the warning display unit 20 to turn off the warning display (step S17).

[0030] If the sediment has not been removed, that is, if the control unit 22 keeps detecting that the sediment amount is higher than the predetermined threshold value in the sediment amount sensor 12a (step S16-No), the process of step S16 is repeated until the sediment is removed and the process of step S16 becomes Yes.

[0031] The first threshold value is set to a state where the amount of hydrogen gas remaining in the hydrogen gas tank 16 for powering the hydrogen engine 18 is low.

[0032] If the output of the pressure sensor 16a is equal to or less than the predetermined first threshold value (step S2-No), the control unit 22 operates the fuel reformer 14 (step S23).

[0033] The control unit 22 causes the bubble generator 32 of the fuel reformer 14 to generate bubbles in the liquid fuel in the fuel tank 12 or in the liquid fuel pumped from the fuel tank 12 to the fuel reformer 14 by a pump. The control unit 22 then controls the electromagnetic wave generator 34 to irradiate the bubbles with electromagnetic waves. This generates high-energy plasma in the bubbles. The liquid fuel containing hydrocarbons is then decomposed by the plasma, and hydrogen gas and solids containing carbon are synthesized.

[0034] Because hydrogen gas is relatively light, it passes above the liquid fuel and is stored in the hydrogen gas tank 16. At this time, the control unit 22 uses the pressure sensor 16a to detect the pressure inside the hydrogen gas tank 16 (step S24). The control unit 22 controls the bubble generation unit 32 and the electromagnetic wave generation unit 34 of the fuel reformer 14 to generate hydrogen gas until the pressure inside the hydrogen gas tank 16 becomes higher than a predetermined second threshold due to hydrogen gas, that is, until the pressure sensor 16a detects that the pressure has reached the predetermined second threshold.

[0035] Immediately after the control unit 22 detects that the pressure inside the hydrogen gas tank 16 has reached a predetermined second threshold pressure due to hydrogen gas, i.e., that the pressure sensor 16a has reached the predetermined second threshold pressure (step S25-Yes), the control unit 22 stops the operation of the bubble generating unit 32 and the electromagnetic wave generating unit 34 of the fuel reformer 14 (step S26).

[0036] On the other hand, if the control unit 22 detects that the pressure inside the hydrogen gas tank 16 has not reached the predetermined second threshold due to hydrogen gas (step S25-No), it continues to detect the pressure inside the hydrogen gas tank 16 using the pressure sensor 16a while driving the fuel reformer 14 (step S24).

[0037] The second threshold pressure is higher than the first threshold pressure, but is lower than the allowable pressure of the hydrogen gas tank 16.

[0038] Then, the control unit 22 detects the pressure of the hydrogen gas in the hydrogen gas tank 16 using the pressure sensor 16a, for example, at appropriate time intervals (step S1).

[0039] In the vehicle 10, this process continues, producing hydrogen gas from the hydrocarbon-containing liquid fuel to power the hydrogen engine 18.

[0040] Then, after the control unit 22 stops the operation of the bubble generation unit 32 and the electromagnetic wave generation unit 34 of the fuel reformer 14, for example, the carbon-containing solid matter synthesized together with the hydrogen gas is collected and stored at the bottom of the fuel tank 12. Also, when the fuel is pumped up to the fuel reformer 14 outside the fuel tank 12 and decomposed by plasma in the fuel reformer 14 to synthesize hydrogen gas and solid carbon, the carbon-containing solid matter is returned by gravity from the fuel reformer 14 to the fuel tank 12 and collected and stored at the bottom of the fuel tank 12.

[0041] Therefore, the fuel tank 12 is used as a recovery device for recovering solids containing carbon.

[0042] The solid matter containing carbon that accumulates at the bottom of the fuel tank 12 can be collected by removing it at, for example, a gas station.

[0043] The method for obtaining hydrogen gas and recovering carbon-containing solids on the vehicle 10 according to this embodiment includes decomposing hydrocarbons from a liquid fuel containing hydrocarbons stored in the fuel tank 12 into hydrogen gas and carbon-containing solids, storing the hydrogen gas in the hydrogen gas tank 16 as fuel for powering the hydrogen engine 18, storing the carbon-containing solids in the fuel tank 12, and recovering the carbon-containing solids in the fuel tank 12 from within the fuel tank 12. In this way, hydrogen gas for powering the hydrogen engine 18 on the vehicle 10 and carbon-containing solids from the hydrocarbons are obtained using a common liquid fuel containing hydrocarbons, thereby reducing carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere from the vehicle 10.

[0044] In this way, the vehicle 10 according to this embodiment decomposes the liquid fuel containing hydrocarbons into carbon-containing solids together with hydrogen gas, thereby preventing the carbon component from being decomposed into carbon dioxide. The vehicle 10 according to this embodiment can then prevent carbon dioxide from being released into the atmosphere by recovering the carbon-containing solids, for example, when refilling the fuel tank 12 with liquid fuel. Furthermore, the vehicle 10 according to this embodiment enables the effective use of fossil fuels while preventing carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere. Furthermore, the vehicle 10 according to this embodiment can utilize existing infrastructure for supplying liquid fuels, potentially eliminating the need for a hydrogen supply infrastructure.

[0045] When recovering solid matter containing carbon, there is a possibility that in addition to the solid matter containing carbon, some liquid fuel will also be extracted from the fuel tank 12. For this reason, it is preferable to catch the solid matter containing carbon using a filter, for example, and extract as little liquid fuel as possible from the fuel tank 12.

[0046] Therefore, according to this embodiment, a vehicle 10 can be provided that can obtain hydrogen gas as fuel on board using a general liquid fuel containing hydrocarbons, while suppressing carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere.

[0047] (First Modification) FIG. 4 shows a schematic block diagram of a vehicle 10 according to a first modified example.

[0048] 4, the vehicle 10 may have a replaceable fuel tank 12, for example, at a gas station. That is, the fuel tank 12 in which carbonaceous solids have accumulated may be removed from the vehicle 10, and a new fuel tank 12 may be installed on the vehicle 10. Alternatively, the fuel tank 12 in which carbonaceous solids have accumulated may be removed from the vehicle 10, and the new fuel tank 12 may be installed on the vehicle 10 after the carbonaceous solids have been removed.

[0049] By putting liquid fuel containing hydrocarbons into the fuel tank 12 in which no solid matter containing carbon has accumulated, hydrogen gas and solid matter containing carbon can be synthesized.

[0050] The liquid fuel in the removed fuel tank 12 can be reused by removing solid matter including carbon, for example, by passing it through a filter.

[0051] Therefore, according to the first modification, it is possible to provide a vehicle 10 that can obtain hydrogen gas as fuel on board the vehicle using a general liquid fuel containing hydrocarbons, while suppressing carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere.

[0052] (Second Modification) FIG. 5 shows a schematic block diagram of a vehicle 10 according to a second modified example.

[0053] As shown in FIG. 5, the fuel tank 12 of the vehicle 10 includes a main tank 13a that stores carbon-containing solids generated by the fuel reformer 14, and a sub-tank 13b that is connected to the main tank 13a. The fuel tank 12 also includes a filter 13c that is provided between the main tank 13a and the sub-tank 13b and that suppresses the flow of solids. In this case, when an appropriate amount of carbon-containing solids (amount exceeding a threshold) accumulates in the main tank 13a, a portion of the liquid fuel is temporarily transferred to the sub-tank 13b, for example, through the filter 13c. In other words, the fuel tank 12 of this modification is capable of transferring liquid fuel from the main tank 13a to the sub-tank 13b. After the carbon-containing solids are removed from the main tank 13a, the liquid fuel can be returned from the sub-tank 13b to the main tank 13a.

[0054] The main tank 13a may be removed from the vehicle 10 and replaced, as explained in the example of the fuel tank 12 of the first modified example.

[0055] Therefore, according to the second modification, a vehicle 10 can be provided that can obtain hydrogen gas as fuel on board the vehicle using a general liquid fuel containing hydrocarbons, while suppressing carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere.

[0056] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made in the implementation stage without departing from the spirit of the invention. Furthermore, the embodiments may be implemented in appropriate combinations, in which case the combined effects can be obtained. Furthermore, the above-described embodiments include various inventions, and various inventions can be extracted by combining selected elements from the disclosed elements. For example, if the problem can be solved and the desired effect can be obtained even if some elements are deleted from all elements shown in the embodiments, the configuration from which these elements are deleted can be extracted as an invention. [Explanation of symbols]

[0057] 10...vehicle, 12...fuel tank, 12a...sediment amount sensor, 14...fuel reformer, 16...hydrogen gas tank, 16a...pressure sensor, 18...hydrogen engine, 20...warning display unit, 22...control unit, 32...bubble generating unit, 34...electromagnetic wave generating unit.

Claims

1. a fuel tank in which a liquid fuel containing hydrocarbons is stored; a fuel reformer that decomposes the hydrocarbons of the liquid fuel stored in the fuel tank into hydrogen gas and carbon-containing solids; a hydrogen engine that uses the hydrogen gas decomposed by the fuel reformer as fuel; and The carbon-containing solids produced by the fuel reformer are stored in the fuel tank. vehicle.

2. a sensor for detecting the amount of sedimentation of the carbon-containing solid matter stored in the fuel tank; a control unit that controls a display unit in accordance with the amount of precipitation detected by the sensor; 10. The vehicle of claim 1, comprising:

3. The vehicle described in claim 2, wherein the control unit controls the display unit to display a predetermined display when the amount of precipitation is higher than a predetermined threshold, and controls the display unit not to display the predetermined display when the amount of precipitation is equal to or less than the predetermined threshold.

4. The vehicle according to claim 2 , wherein the control unit controls the display unit in accordance with the amount of precipitation detected by the sensor after a predetermined time has elapsed since the operation of the fuel reformer was stopped.

5. The fuel tank is removable from the vehicle. The vehicle of claim 1 .

6. The fuel tank is a main tank for storing the carbon-containing solid material produced by the fuel reformer; a sub-tank connected to the main tank; a filter that suppresses the flow of solid matter between the main tank and the sub-tank; have The vehicle of claim 1 .

7. The main tank is removable from the vehicle.

7. The vehicle of claim 6.

8. The vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the carbon-containing solid material includes at least one of solid carbon and a solid carbon compound.

9. decomposing hydrocarbons contained in a liquid fuel stored in a fuel tank into hydrogen gas and solids containing carbon; storing the hydrogen gas in a hydrogen gas tank as fuel for driving a hydrogen engine, and storing the carbon-containing solid material in the fuel tank; recovering the carbon-containing solid matter from within the fuel tank; A method for obtaining hydrogen gas on a vehicle and recovering carbon-containing solids, comprising:

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