Pilot-Main Tank Valve Layout for Compact Hydrogen Shut-Off
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing shut-off valves for hydrogen storage tanks in vehicles with fuel cell drives are structurally complex, heavy, and require high installation space due to high safety requirements and system pressures, leading to potential deformation and increased weight.
Innovation Solution
A compact safety valve design with a pilot and main valve system, utilizing a solenoid coil and permanent magnet to minimize magnetic forces required for opening, combined with a throttle duct and pneumatic assistance for low-energy operation, and a geometrically optimized magnetic circuit.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional shut-off valves are used to meet high safety requirements and system pressures, then safety and reliability are improved, but device complexity, weight, and installation space increase
Solution Approach 1:
The valve device is divided into a pilot valve and a main valve. The pilot valve (with pilot valve element and first seal seat) controls the opening and closing of the main valve (with main valve element and second seal seat). This segmentation allows the main valve to be simpler in structure while relying on the pilot valve for precise control, thereby reducing overall device complexity while maintaining safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The pilot valve element acts as an intermediary to control the main valve element. Instead of directly controlling the main valve with complex mechanisms, the pilot valve element uses a simpler structure to trigger the main valve's opening and closing actions through the driver element, reducing the complexity of the main valve while ensuring reliable operation.
2Reliability
If conventional shut-off valves are used to meet high safety requirements and system pressures, then safety and reliability are improved, but weight increases
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the valve into pilot and main components, each can be optimized for minimal weight. The pilot valve element and main valve element use separate seal seats and simpler individual structures, reducing material usage and overall weight while maintaining the safety function through their coordinated operation.
3Reliability
If conventional shut-off valves are used to meet high safety requirements and system pressures, then safety and reliability are improved, but installation space increases
Solution Approach 1:
The pilot valve element is positioned within the valve housing such that it interacts with the main valve element in a nested arrangement. The driver element connects both valve elements, allowing compact integration. This nesting reduces the overall installation space required while maintaining the safety function through the coordinated operation of pilot and main valves.
4Quantity of substance
If high system pressures are used for hydrogen storage, then storage capacity is improved, but acceleration forces and deformation risks in accidents increase
Solution Approach 1:
The segmented valve design with separate pilot and main valves allows for more distributed force management. The pilot valve element and main valve element can independently respond to pressure changes and external forces, potentially reducing the impact of acceleration forces on the overall system during accidents while maintaining high storage capacity.
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 design achieves efficient, low-energy operation with minimal magnetic forces, reducing weight and deformation, while ensuring safe and cost-effective hydrogen storage and delivery.
Implementation Method 1
The valve device comprises a solenoid coil, by means of which solenoid coil the pilot valve element can be moved along the longitudinal axis of the tank device
Implementation Method 2
The valve device comprises a solenoid coil, by means of which solenoid coil the pilot valve element can be moved
Implementation Method 3
A permanent magnet is arranged at one end of the pilot valve element, which permanent magnet is arranged in the valve device in such a way that a positive pole element of the permanent magnet is arranged in the direction of a housing cover of the valve device and a negative pole element of the permanent magnet is arranged in the direction of the tank. Furthermore, the permanent magnet is arranged in a positive pole region of a permanent magnetic field generated by the solenoid coil when the solenoid coil is energized.
Data Source
AI summary
A tank device for storing a gaseous medium includes a valve device and a tank. The valve device includes a valve housing with a pilot valve element. The pilot valve element interacts with a first seal seat and thus forms a pilot valve, wherein the pilot valve element can be moved by a solenoid coil. Furthermore, the valve housing includes a main valve element which interacts with a second seal seat and thus forms a main valve. The pilot valve element additionally has a transverse bore perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the tank device, said transverse bore opening into a transverse bore of the main valve element arranged perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the tank device. A driver element is at least partly arranged in the transverse bore of the pilot valve element and in the transverse bore of the main valve element.