Compressed Hydrogen Filling With Latent Heat Buffer Cooling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing hydrogen filling systems face challenges in providing high availability and controllable cooling power while minimizing capital costs, particularly due to peak power demands and significant capital costs associated with high-powered chillers and cryogenic storage methods.
Innovation Solution
A system utilizing a latent heat storage medium in the form of a buffer medium that undergoes a solid-liquid phase transition, decoupling the cooling of hydrogen from the cooling of the buffer medium, allowing for continuous cooling with low-power refrigeration and maintaining a consistent hydrogen temperature during filling operations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If high-powered chillers are used to meet peak cooling demand during hydrogen filling, then the hydrogen temperature can be controlled within specification, but capital costs increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The buffer medium is pre-cooled to a temperature below the required hydrogen filling temperature before the filling operation begins. This preliminary cooling action stores thermal energy in the buffer medium, which is then available to meet the peak cooling demand during filling without requiring oversized chillers.
Solution Approach 2:
A buffer medium is introduced as an intermediary thermal storage component between the chiller and the hydrogen stream. This buffer medium absorbs and releases thermal energy, decoupling the peak power demand from the continuous cooling requirement, thereby allowing the use of smaller, more cost-effective chillers.
2Temperature
If cryogenic liquid hydrogen storage is used to provide cooling, then the target temperature can be achieved, but evaporation losses occur during idle periods
Solution Approach 1:
The system changes the temperature parameter of the buffer medium dynamically - cooling it below the target temperature before filling operations and allowing it to warm up during idle periods. This avoids the continuous evaporation losses associated with storing cryogenic liquid hydrogen at fixed low temperatures.
3Temperature
If the buffer medium is continuously cooled to maintain hydrogen temperature, then consistent cooling is achieved, but power consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of continuous cooling, the buffer medium is cooled periodically before filling operations and then allows natural warming during idle periods. This periodic action pattern reduces the cumulative power consumption while maintaining temperature consistency during the critical filling operations.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system ensures uniform cooling of hydrogen to a specified temperature range, preventing undershooting, and reduces capital costs by using low-power refrigeration, suitable for various applications including motor vehicles and logistics sites.
Implementation Method 1
a buffer medium (17) which acts as a latent heat storage medium and is in thermal connection at a first heat exchanger surface (18) with at least one substream (12) of the hydrogen (2) to be supplied to the container (10) during a filling operation
Implementation Method 2
buffer medium (17) which acts as a latent heat storage medium
Implementation Method 3
at a first heat exchanger surface (18) with at least one substream (12) of the hydrogen (2) to be supplied to the container (10)
Implementation Method 4
at a second heat exchanger surface (19) with a refrigeration source (20), wherein, at the second heat exchanger surface (19), the buffer medium (17) is cooled to a temperature below a required temperature of the hydrogen (2) to be supplied to the container (10)
Implementation Method 5
the pressure increase in the tank and the negative Joule-Thomson coefficient in the relevant state range leads to a marked warming of the hydrogen in the container
Data Source
AI summary
A device for filling a container, in particular a vehicle tank, with compressed gaseous hydrogen includes a gas supply system for providing compressed gaseous hydrogen, a connection mechanism for producing a fluidic connection to a container to be filled, and a cooling device for cooling the hydrogen to be supplied to the container. The cooling device includes a cooling unit for cooling the hydrogen. The cooling device has a buffering medium which functions as a latent heat accumulator and which is thermally connected to the gaseous hydrogen to be supplied to the container on a first heat exchanger surface and to the cold source on a second heat exchanger surface.