State of Charge Indicator for Metal Hydride Storage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for determining the state of charge in metal hydride fuel storage systems are error-prone, particularly due to low fluid weight and constant pressure operation, which leads to uncertainty in assessing the remaining hydrogen in the system.
Innovation Solution
A state of charge indicator that responds to the deformation of a solid component in contact with the fluid, where the deformation is a direct function of the fluid mass within the enclosure, independent of secondary effects like temperature and pressure, allowing for accurate mass determination.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If weight-based fuel gauging is used to measure fluid stored within metal hydrides, then the measurement can be obtained, but the error increases dramatically as the amount of fuel lowers due to low fluid weight compared to overall system weight
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a solid component as an intermediary that couples to the fluid enclosure. This solid component deforms in response to fluid mass changes, and the deformation is measured by a transducer. The intermediary converts the difficult-to-measure low-weight fluid mass into a measurable deformation signal, resolving the measurement precision problem when fuel quantity is low.
2Measurement precision
If pressure-based measurement is used to correlate internal pressure to state of charge, then pressure can be measured, but the measurement indicates system temperature rather than state of charge because hydrides operate at constant pressure
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the measurement from the pressure domain and places it in the deformation domain. By measuring the deformation of the solid component that couples to the fluid enclosure, the system obtains state of charge information independent of the constant pressure operation and temperature effects that plague pressure-based measurements.
3Quantity of substance
If conventional powder-based hydride systems are used, then fuel storage is achieved, but the system packs and induces large strains on the enclosure, confounding the determination of remaining hydrogen
Solution Approach 1:
The solid component acts as a mediator between the fluid enclosure and the transducer. It couples to the enclosure and deforms in response to fluid mass, providing a measurement that is not confounded by the packing and strain issues of powder-based hydride systems. The intermediary isolates the measurement mechanism from the problematic packing behavior.
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 solution provides a reliable and accurate indication of the state of charge with minimal error, independent of environmental factors, ensuring precise assessment of the remaining hydrogen in the system.
Implementation Method 1
a state of charge indicator for a fluid enclosure... responds to a deformation of a solid component in contact with the fluid, where the deformation is a function of the mass of fluid contained within the fluid enclosure
Data Source
AI summary
Embodiments of the invention relate a charge indicator for determining the mass of a fluid contained within a fluid enclosure, wherein the charge indicator responds to a deformation of a solid component in contact with the fluid and wherein the deformation is a function of the mass of fluid contained within the fluid enclosure.