Hydrogen gas cooling method and hydrogen gas cooling system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016131434-A1
Application number	US-201414890562-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 17, 2014
Priority date	Jul 31, 2013
Publication date	May 12, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

A hydrogen gas cooling method is provided. The method includes a preparation step and a cooling step. In the preparation step, a heat exchanger that contains a layered body of a first layer and a second layer is prepared. The first layer has a plurality of first micro channels, and the second layer has a plurality of second micro channels. In the cooling step, hydrogen gas is cooled by exchanging heat between the hydrogen gas flowing in the first channels with brine flowing in the second channels.

First claim

1 . A hydrogen gas cooling method, the method comprising:
preparing a heat exchanger, which comprises a stacked body comprising a first layer and a second layer stacked upon one another, wherein the first layer comprises a plurality of first flow passages that are fine flow passages and the second layer comprises a plurality of second flow passages that are fine flow passages; and cooling a hydrogen gas which is allowed to flow through each of the first flow passages while allowing a brine that is a non-evaporative antifreeze and has a temperature lower than the hydrogen gas to flow through each of the second flow passages to perform heat exchange between the hydrogen gas flowing through the first flow passages and the brine flowing through the second flow passages, wherein in said cooling, the hydrogen gas is allowed to flow through each of the first flow passages such that the hydrogen gas flowing through each of the first flow passages moves from one side to the other side in a particular direction orthogonal to a stacking direction of the first layer and the second layer while the brine is allowed to flow through each of the second flow passages such that the brine flowing through each of the second flow passages moves from the other side to the one side in the particular direction, and a temperature and a flow rate of the brine fed into each of the second flow passages are controlled such that a temperature of the brine at a feed-out port of the second flow passages is higher than a temperature of the hydrogen gas at a feed-out port of the first flow passages.

2 . The hydrogen gas cooling method according to claim 1 , wherein
in said preparing, the heat exchanger is a heat exchanger comprising a stacked body in an interior of which each of the first flow passages and each of the second flow passages are formed to each have a meandering shape, and in said cooling, the hydrogen gas is allowed to flow along the meandering shape of each of the first flow passages through each of the first flow passages, and the brine is allowed to flow along the meandering shape of each of the second flow passages through each of the second flow passages.

3 . The hydrogen gas cooling method according to claim 1 , wherein
in said cooling, the flow rate of the brine fed into each of the second flow passages is controlled such that the temperature of the brine at the feed-out port of the second flow passages is higher by at least 10° C. than the temperature of the brine at an inflow port of the second flow passages.

4 . A hydrogen gas cooling system comprising:
a cooler that cools a brine that is a non-evaporative antifreeze; a heat exchanger that is connected to the cooler such that the brine circulates between the heat exchanger and the cooler, and allows a hydrogen gas to be subjected to heat exchange with the brine supplied from the cooler, thereby cooling the hydrogen gas; a pump that delivers the brine that has been cooled by the cooler from the cooler to the heat exchanger; and a control unit that controls a temperature of the brine, wherein the heat exchanger comprises a stacked body in which a first layer in which a plurality of first flow passages that are fine flow passages into which the hydrogen gas is fed and flows therethrough are arranged and a second layer in which a plurality of second flow passages that are fine flow passages into which the brine is fed and flows therethrough are arranged are stacked upon one another, and allows heat exchange between the hydrogen gas flowing through the first flow passages and the brine flowing through the second flow passages to be performed, each of the first flow passages comprises a first inflow port that receives the hydrogen gas and a first feed-out port that discharges the hydrogen gas, and the first inflow port and the first feed-out port are disposed such that the hydrogen gas that is fed from the first inflow port into the first flow passages and flows through the first flow passages toward the first feed-out port moves from one side to the other side in a particular direction orthogonal to a stacking direction of the first layer and the second layer, each of the second flow passages comprises a second inflow port that receives the brine and a second feed-out port that discharges the brine, and the second inflow port and the second feed-out port are disposed such that the brine that is fed from the second inflow port into the second flow passages and flows through the second flow passages toward the second feed-out port moves from the other side to the one side in the particular direction, and the control unit controls an operation of the cooler and a flow rate of the brine that the pump delivers, such that the temperature of the brine at the second feed-out port is higher than a temperature of the hydrogen gas at the first feed-out port.

5 . The hydrogen gas cooling system according to claim 4 , further comprising:
a first feed-out port temperature detection portion that detects the temperature of the hydrogen gas at the first feed-out port; and a second feed-out port temperature detection portion that detects the temperature of the brine at the second feed-out port, wherein based on the temperature detected by the first feed-out port temperature detection portion and the temperature detected by the second feed-out port temperature detection portion, the control unit controls the flow rate of the brine that the pump delivers.

6 . The hydrogen gas cooling system according to claim 4 , wherein
each of the first flow passages and each of the second flow passages are formed in the stacked body to each have a meandering shape.

7 . The hydrogen gas cooling system according to claim 4 , wherein
the control unit allows the pump to deliver the brine such that the brine flows through each of the second flow passages at such a flow rate that the temperature of the brine at the second feed-out port is higher by at least 10° C. than the temperature of the brine at the second inflow port.

Assignees

• Kobe Steel Ltd

Inventors

• Noishiki Koji
• Miwa Yasutake
• Shimizu Kunihiko
• Kurishiro Yuji

Classifications

• F28F7/02

  Blocks traversed by passages for heat-exchange media {(F28D7/0008 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• F28D9/0037

  the conduits for the other heat-exchange medium also being formed by paired plates touching each other (F28D9/0043 takes precedence) · CPC title

• F28F3/086

  having one or more openings therein forming tubular heat-exchange passages · CPC title

• H01M8/04074

  Heat exchange unit structures specially adapted for fuel cell · CPC title

• F28D9/0093 Primary

  Multi-circuit heat-exchangers, e.g. integrating different heat exchange sections in the same unit or heat-exchangers for more than two fluids · CPC title