Fuel Cell Anode Purging Noise Reduction via Injector Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fuel cell systems experience noise increase during anode purging, reducing quietness, due to the configuration of multiple injectors used for hydrogen supply.
Innovation Solution
A fuel cell system with a controller that adjusts the number of driven injectors and target pressure based on cell voltage and supply pressure measurements to optimize anode purging, including a first control to fix the driving number and increase target pressure when voltage is low, and a second control to cancel fixation and maintain target pressure when supply pressure is reached.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If multiple injectors are used to supply hydrogen gas to the fuel cell stack during anode purging, then the purging effectiveness is improved, but the noise level increases and quietness is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the number of driven injectors based on cell voltage conditions. During normal operation, not all injectors are driven simultaneously. The controller selectively activates only the necessary number of injectors based on real-time voltage measurements, thereby reducing noise during anode purging while maintaining purging effectiveness when needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The controller changes the operational parameters of the injectors by adjusting the driving number (number of active injectors) and target pressure values based on cell voltage conditions. When voltage is above a threshold, fewer injectors are driven with lower target pressure; when voltage drops below the threshold, more injectors are activated with higher target pressure to ensure adequate purging while minimizing noise.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If the number of driven injectors is reduced to suppress noise during anode purging, then quietness is improved, but the risk of poor power generation increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements a feedback mechanism where the controller continuously monitors cell voltage and adjusts the number of driven injectors and target pressure accordingly. When cell voltage drops below a predetermined threshold, indicating potential poor power generation, the controller increases the driving number and target pressure to ensure adequate purging and prevent further voltage degradation, thus maintaining power generation stability while still controlling noise during normal operation.
Data Source
AI summary
A fuel cell system, comprising: a fuel cell stack configured to include a plurality of cells; a number “n” of injectors arranged in parallel to supply an anode gas to the fuel cell stack, where the number “n” represents an integral number of not less than 2; a cell voltage meter configured to measure a voltage of at least one cell among the plurality of cells; a pressure gauge configured to measure a supply pressure that is a pressure of the anode gas supplied to the fuel cell stack; and a controller configured to respectively input control signals into the number “n” of injectors by using the voltage measured by the cell voltage meter and the supply pressure measured by the pressure gauge and to control a driving number that denotes a number of injectors to be driven among the number “n” of injectors, wherein when the measured voltage is equal to or higher than a predetermined voltage value, the controller is configured to set a target value of the supply pressure and the driving number according to a required electric power, when the measured voltage is lower than the predetermined voltage value, the controller is configured to perform a first control that fixes the driving number to the number “n” while setting a target value for purging that is a higher value than the target value according to the required electric power to the target value of the supply pressure, and when the supply pressure reaches the target value for purging by the first control, the controller is configured to perform a second control that cancels fixation of the driving number while continuing setting the target value for purging to the target value of the supply pressure.