Electrolysis device having a converter and method for providing instantaneous reserve power for an AC voltage grid

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11851776-B2
Application number	US-202117355565-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 23, 2021
Priority date	Dec 27, 2018
Publication date	Dec 26, 2023
Grant date	Dec 26, 2023

Abstract

A method for operating an electrolysis device, having a converter which is connected on an AC voltage side to an AC voltage grid via a decoupling inductance and draws an AC active power from the AC voltage grid, and an electrolyzer, which is connected to the converter on the DC voltage side, is provided. The method includes operating the electrolysis device, when a grid frequency corresponds to a nominal frequency of the ACT voltage grid and is substantially constant over a time period, with an electrical power which is between 50% and 100% of a nominal power of the electrolyzer, and operating the converter in a voltage-impressing manner, such that an AC active power drawn from the AC voltage grid is changed on the basis of a change and/or a rate of change of the grid frequency in the AC voltage grid.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for operating an electrolysis device having a converter, which is connected, on an AC voltage side, to an AC voltage grid via a decoupling inductance and draws an AC active power from the AC voltage grid, and an electrolyzer, which is connected to the converter on a DC voltage side, comprising:
operating the electrolysis device, when a grid frequency corresponds to a nominal frequency of the AC voltage grid and is substantially constant over a time period, with an electrical power which is between 50% and 100% of a nominal power of the electrolyzer; and
operating the converter in a voltage-impressing manner, such that the AC active power drawn from the AC voltage grid is changed on the basis of a change and/or a rate of change of the grid frequency in the AC voltage grid.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the converter provides an instantaneous reserve power, wherein when operating in the voltage-impressing manner the converter emulates a behavior of a synchronous machine with respect to frequency changes in the AC voltage grid or uses droop mode control which comprises a frequency/power characteristic curve.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1 , wherein a change in the AC active power drawn from the AC voltage grid results in a change in a DC voltage at the electrolyzer, and wherein the change in the DC voltage at the electrolyzer results in a change in a DC power consumed by the electrolyzer, which change corresponds to the change in the AC active power.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising producing a voltage transformation between the electrolyzer and the converter using a first DC/DC converter.

5. The method as claimed in claim 4 , further comprising:
exchanging electrical power between the converter and a PV generator connected on the DC voltage side, wherein the PV generator is connected to a DC link circuit in parallel with the electrolyzer, and
feeding an electrical power generated by the PV generator into the electrolyzer or into the AC voltage grid.

6. The method as claimed in claim 5 , further comprising:
stabilizing a voltage used by the first DC/DC converter; and
controlling the first DC/DC converter using feedforward control to set a DC current setpoint of the first DC/DC converter on the basis of a phase difference between a grid voltage and an AC voltage at an input of the converter.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1 , further comprising exchanging electrical power between the converter and a battery connected on the DC voltage side, wherein the battery is connected to a DC link circuit in parallel with the electrolyzer via a second DC/DC converter.

8. The method as claimed in claim 7 , further comprising:
stabilizing the voltage of the DC link circuit using the second DC/DC converter; and
controlling the second DC/DC converter using feedforward control to set a DC current setpoint value of the second DC/DC converter on the basis of a phase difference between a grid voltage and an AC voltage at an input of the converter.

9. An electrolysis device, comprising:
an electrolyzer; and
a converter connected to the electrolyzer, wherein the converter is configured to draw electrical AC active power from an AC voltage grid, and wherein the converter is further configured to be operated in a voltage-impressing manner, such that a change in a grid frequency in the AC voltage grid causes a change in an active power drawn from the AC voltage grid.

10. The electrolysis device as claimed in claim 9 , further comprising a first DC/DC converter disposed between the electrolyzer and the converter.

11. The electrolysis device as claimed in claim 9 , further comprising a photovoltaic generator connected to a DC link circuit in parallel with the electrolyzer on a DC voltage side of the electrolysis device.

12. The electrolysis device as claimed in claim 9 , further comprising a battery connected to a DC link circuit of the electrolysis device in parallel with the electrolyzer via a second DC/DC converter on a DC voltage side of the electrolysis device.

13. A method for providing instantaneous reserve power for an AC voltage grid by means of a converter which draws electrical AC power from the AC voltage grid and supplies an electrolyzer with electrical DC power, wherein the converter is operated in a voltage-impressing manner, such that a change in a grid frequency in the AC voltage grid causes a change in the AC power drawn from the AC voltage grid.

14. The method as claimed in claim 13 , wherein, at a grid frequency which corresponds to a nominal frequency of the AC voltage grid, an active power drawn from the AC voltage grid and supplied to the electrolyzer is between 50% and 100% of a nominal power of the electrolyzer.

15. The method as claimed in claim 13 , wherein the converter exchanges electrical power with a battery connected on a DC voltage side if a change in the grid frequency causes a change in the AC power and the DC power supplied to the electrolyzer is at an edge of an operating range of the electrolyzer, wherein the operating range is limited by a lower onset power of between 10% and 20% of the nominal power and an upper maximum power of between 80% and 100% of the nominal power of the electrolyzer, wherein the battery is connected to a DC link circuit of the converter in parallel with the electrolyzer via a DC/DC converter.

16. The method as claimed in claim 15 , wherein the converter exchanges electrical power with a photovoltaic (PV) generator connected on a DC voltage side of the converter, wherein, in the case of a grid frequency which corresponds to a nominal frequency of the AC voltage grid, the PV generator is operated at a maximum power point and the electrolyzer is operated with nominal power, wherein the power of the PV generator is reduced if a change in the grid frequency occurs which causes the converter to reduce an AC power currently being fed in or to increase the AC power currently being drawn, and wherein the electrical DC power of the electrolyzer is reduced if a change in the grid frequency occurs which causes the converter to increase an AC power currently being fed in or to reduce an AC power currently being drawn.

Assignees

• Sma Solar Technology Ag

Inventors

• Falk Andreas
• Hardt Christian

Classifications

• C25B15/02 Primary

  Process control or regulation · CPC title

• C25B9/65

  Means for supplying current; Electrode connections; Electric inter-cell connections · CPC title

• H02M3/04

  by static converters · CPC title

• H02J3/14 Primary

  by switching loads on to, or off from, the networks, e.g. progressively balanced loading · CPC title

• C25B1/04

  by electrolysis of water · CPC title