JP2004354039A - High-pressure tank - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a high-pressure tank hardly causing a reduction in strength of a liner to ensure the sealing property between the liner and a heat exchanger. <P>SOLUTION: A hydrogen tank 1 comprises a heat exchange unit 16 for inhibiting an internal temperature change. The heat exchange unit 16 comprises a heat exchanger 18 having a plurality of heat medium tubes 17, and a header part 19 to which the ends of the heat medium tubes 17 are fixed by brazing or welding. The heat exchange unit 16 is mounted on the liner 3 by fitting the header part 19 to a hole part 24, and fixing the header part 19 to a lid part 7 by a screw 21. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a high-pressure tank that includes a hollow liner and a fiber-reinforced plastic that covers an outer peripheral surface of the liner, and stores gas at a high pressure inside the liner.

In recent years, awareness of suppressing global warming has increased, and in particular, development of fuel cell electric vehicles, hydrogen engine vehicles, and the like has been actively conducted for the purpose of reducing carbon dioxide emitted from vehicles. In a fuel cell electric vehicle, hydrogen and oxygen are electrochemically reacted to generate electric power, and the electric power is supplied to a motor to generate a driving force. As this kind of hydrogen supply source, a high-pressure tank filled with hydrogen is used, and an example of the high-pressure tank is disclosed in Patent Document 1 and the like. This high-pressure tank (pressure vessel) includes a liner made of metal or resin, and its outer periphery is coated with a coating material to ensure pressure resistance.
Japanese Translation of PCT International Publication No. 2000-504810 (page 6-42, FIG. 2)

  By the way, when a high-pressure tank is filled with a gas, the internal pressure increases with an increase in the temperature of the gas due to compression work. However, when CFRP (Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastics), which has poor heat transfer, is used as the coating material, the pressure generated in the high pressure tank is improved, but the heat generated inside is difficult to radiate to the outside. There is a problem in that the filling amount of is less than the specified amount. In addition, there is a demand to shorten the gas filling time of the high-pressure gas as much as possible. However, if the gas filling is performed rapidly, the temperature rise becomes remarkable and the gas filling amount is hindered.

  Further, in order to increase the amount of gas that can be filled in the high-pressure tank, an occlusion material may be arranged inside the tank in some cases. The occluding material generates heat of adsorption or heat of reaction when it comes into contact with gas molecules. Therefore, when the occluding material is incorporated, it is necessary to remove the heat of adsorption and the heat of reaction in addition to the heat of compression of the gas. For this reason, it is necessary to cool the internal gas in order to rapidly fill the high-pressure gas with a specified amount, and as a cooling method, there is a method of attaching a heat exchanger to the high-pressure tank.

  This heat exchanger includes a heat medium pipe that passes through the inside and outside of the tank, takes in cold water from outside through the heat medium pipe, suppresses a temperature rise of the gas, and discharges hot water warmed by heat exchange to the outside. . When the heat exchanger is installed in a high-pressure tank, for example, it is necessary to penetrate the liner at the side of the liner and draw out the heat medium pipe to the outside. Need to secure. The sealing can be achieved by brazing, bonding, or the like. However, in this case, the strength (fatigue strength) of the liner is reduced, and there is a problem that the durability is deteriorated.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a high-pressure tank in which the strength of the liner can be hardly reduced in securing the sealing performance between the liner and the heat exchanger. Is to do.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the invention according to claim 1 includes a hollow liner that is divided at least on one side, a fiber-reinforced plastic that covers an outer peripheral surface of the liner, and is housed inside the liner. A high-pressure tank that includes a heat exchanger and stores gas at a high pressure inside the liner. The heat exchanger is attached by joining the heat exchanger to a header portion and fixing the header portion to one of inner surfaces of the liner main body and the divided body of the liner by locking means.

  According to the present invention, the heat exchanger is attached to the liner by joining the heat exchanger to the header and fixing the header to one of the inner surfaces of the liner main body and the divided body by the locking means. By the way, when the heat exchanger is attached to the liner, the strength of the liner is reduced if brazing or welding is used, but in this configuration, the heat exchanger is joined to the header, and it is attached to the liner. Therefore, it is not necessary to use brazing, welding, or the like, and the liner strength hardly decreases.

  In the invention described in claim 2, in the invention described in claim 1, the liner is divided at one end side, and an opening for fixing the header portion is provided at an end opposite to the divided side. ing. The header portion includes a small-diameter portion that can be inserted into the opening portion, and a large-diameter portion having a larger diameter than the opening portion.A male screw portion is formed on an outer peripheral surface of the small-diameter portion, and the male screw portion is used. A header is fixed to the liner.

  According to the present invention, the header portion has the small diameter portion and the large diameter portion, the small diameter portion is inserted into the opening provided on the side opposite to the divided side of the liner, and formed on the outer peripheral surface of the small diameter portion. The header part is fixed to the liner using a male screw part. Therefore, the internal pressure acting on the header portion acts to enhance the sealing performance of the sealing portion between the header portion and the inner surface of the liner, and the sealing performance is enhanced.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the first or second aspect of the present invention, the heat exchanger includes a heat medium pipe through which a heat medium supplied from the outside passes through the liner. Is a device that performs cooling or heating by flowing through the heat medium pipe, and the heat medium pipe is formed in the header portion so that the heat medium flows therethrough, and the flow path and the inside of the heat medium pipe communicate with each other. Is fixed to the header portion.

  According to this invention, in addition to the operation of the invention described in claim 1 or 2, in the case where a heat exchanger for cooling or heating by flowing an external heat medium through the heat medium pipe is used, Must be drawn from the inside of the liner to the outside. If brazing, welding, or the like is used to secure the seal of the drawn portion, the liner strength is reduced. However, if the configuration of the present invention is used, the passage of the heat medium pipe can be drawn out without performing brazing, welding, or the like on the liner, and the liner strength hardly decreases.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the third aspect of the present invention, the airtightness between the inside of the liner and the passage of the heat medium pipe is provided on a joint surface between the inner surface of the liner and the header portion. Sealing material is interposed. According to this invention, in addition to the effect of the third aspect of the invention, since the sealing material is interposed on the joint surface between the inner surface of the liner and the header portion, the high-pressure gas inside the liner flows through the heat medium. It becomes difficult to leak to the passage side of the heat medium pipe.

  According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the third or fourth aspect of the invention, the header portion is attached to the divided body, and the divided body is made of resin. According to the present invention, the heat medium enters and exits the passage of the heat medium pipe through the divided body to which the header portion is attached. When the divided body is made of metal, the heat of the heat medium is easily radiated to the outside through the divided body, and conversely, the heat medium is easily heated by the external heat. However, since the divided body is made of resin, the heat insulating property is higher than that of the case where the divided body is made of metal. It will be performed efficiently.

  The invention according to claim 6, further comprising: a hollow liner having at least one side divided, a fiber-reinforced plastic covering an outer peripheral surface of the liner, and a heat exchanger housed inside the liner. Is a high-pressure tank for storing gas at a high pressure inside. The heat exchanger is a device that performs cooling or heating by flowing a heat medium supplied from the outside through a heat medium pipe through a passage provided through the liner, and the liner is a split type. The heat exchanger has a liner main body and a lid, and the heat exchanger is attached to an inner surface of a base of the lid by joining an end of the heat medium pipe.

  According to the present invention, the heat exchanger is attached to the liner by joining the end of the heat exchanger to the inner surface of the base of the lid. By the way, when attaching a heat exchanger to a liner, if brazing, welding, etc. are used, the strength of a liner will fall. However, in this configuration, although the heat medium pipe is directly joined to the liner, since the heat medium pipe is joined to the thick base in the liner, the liner strength is not easily affected, and the heat medium pipe is hardly affected. Even when the pipe is joined to the liner, a decrease in the liner strength can be suppressed.

  In the invention described in claim 7, in the invention described in any one of claims 2 to 6, the heat medium enters and exits on one side of both end portions of the liner. According to this invention, in addition to the effect of the invention described in any one of claims 2 to 6, the heat medium enters and exits on one side of both side ends of the liner, so that, for example, a heat medium source Is arranged near the heat medium inlet of the liner, the distance between the heat medium outlet and the heat medium source is substantially the same as the distance between the heat medium inlet and the heat medium source, and the tube extending from the heat medium outlet There is no need to return the path to the heat medium source.

  In the invention described in claim 8, in the invention described in claim 7, the gas enters and exits from a side opposite to a side where the heat medium enters and exits from both ends of the liner. According to this invention, in addition to the effect of the invention described in claim 7, gas flows in and out of the both ends of the liner from the side opposite to the side where the heat medium enters and exits, so that one end of the liner is heated. The medium can be used for the gas and the other can be used for the gas, and one end does not need to be shared between the heat medium and the gas, and the configuration of the high-pressure tank is simplified.

  According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the invention according to any one of the second to eighth aspects, the heat exchanger includes a plurality of the heat medium tubes. According to this invention, in addition to the operation of the invention described in any one of claims 2 to 8, a heat exchanger having a plurality of heat medium tubes is used, so that the effect of suppressing the temperature in the high-pressure tank is high. Become.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, in ensuring the sealing performance between a liner and a heat exchanger, the intensity | strength of a liner can be hard to fall.

(1st Embodiment)
Hereinafter, a first embodiment in which the high-pressure tank of the present invention is embodied as a hydrogen tank will be described with reference to FIGS.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic sectional view of the hydrogen tank 1. The hydrogen tank 1 as a high-pressure tank has an elongated hollow (cylindrical) shape, and a storage chamber 2 therein is filled with hydrogen under high pressure. The reason why the pressure of the storage chamber 2 is set to be high is to increase the filling amount of hydrogen. For example, when the pressure of the storage chamber 2 is set to 25 MPa, hydrogen can be charged about 250 times as much as in the atmosphere. The hydrogen tank 1 has a tip (the right end in FIG. 1) at which hydrogen enters and exits from both ends, and a base end (the left end in FIG. 1) on the opposite side.

  The hydrogen tank 1 includes a hollow liner 3 having an outer shape of the tank, and a high-strength CFRP 4 as a fiber-reinforced plastic covering substantially the entire outer peripheral surface of the liner 3. The high-strength CFRP 4 secures the pressure resistance (mechanical strength) of the hydrogen tank 1 and is wound around the liner 3 by a filament winding method (FW method). In the FW method, while the liner 3 is rotated, the carbon fiber is wound around the liner 3 so as to have a helical winding layer and a hoop winding layer while impregnating the carbon fiber with a resin (for example, an unsaturated polyester resin or an epoxy resin). Is a method of heat curing.

  The liner 3 is made of, for example, an aluminum alloy to ensure the airtightness of the hydrogen tank 1. The liner 3 is of a split type on the base end side, and includes a main body 5 as a substantially cylindrical liner main body, and a lid 7 as a split body that covers an opening 6 on the base end side of the main body 5. I have. A valve 10 is attached to the end 8 of the liner 3 at the end of an air passage 9 that communicates the storage chamber 2 with the outside. Can be switched between

  The lid 7 has a shape having a base portion 11 at a central portion, and the base portion 11 is formed in a state where two passages 12 and 13 communicating the housing chamber 2 and the outside are arranged substantially in parallel. The lid 7 is fixed to the main body 5 by a plurality (for example, eight) of screws 14 arranged at substantially equal intervals along the circumferential direction at the peripheral portion thereof. A sealing material 15 for ensuring airtightness in the storage chamber 2 is interposed at a joint portion between the main body 5 and the lid 7.

  The storage chamber 2 of the liner 3 houses a heat exchange unit 16 that suppresses a temperature change in the tank when filling or releasing hydrogen. The heat exchange unit 16 includes a heat exchanger 18 having a plurality of (three in this embodiment) heat medium pipes 17 arranged along the radial direction of the liner 3, and attachment of the heat exchange unit 16 to the lid 7. A substantially disk-shaped header portion 19 is provided as an attachment target serving as a portion. The heat medium pipe 17 has a substantially U shape formed by bending a single pipe, and these ends are fixed to the header 19 by brazing, welding, or the like.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic exploded view for explaining the assembly of the lid 7 and the heat exchange unit 16. Holes 22 for inserting screws 21 are formed in the thin portion 20 of the lid 7 at substantially equal intervals along the circumferential direction of the liner 3. A plurality of screw holes 23 are formed on the surface of the header 19 on the side of the lid 7 at positions corresponding to the holes 22. The heat exchange unit 16 fits the header 19 into a hole 24 formed in the inner surface of the lid 7, inserts a screw 21 into the hole 22, locks the head at the step, and fixes the shaft. It is fixed to the lid 7 by screwing it into the screw hole 23. The screw 21, the hole 22, and the screw hole 23 constitute a locking means.

  By the way, the internal temperature of the hydrogen tank 1 rises at the time of filling with hydrogen, and the internal temperature falls at the time of releasing hydrogen. To suppress this temperature change, cold water or hot water (heat medium) flows through the heat medium pipe 17. In the embodiment, cold water flows when filling with hydrogen, and warm water flows from one end to the other when releasing hydrogen. For this reason, one end (upper end in FIG. 1) of each heat medium pipe 17 is the upstream end 17a of the water path, and the other end (lower end in FIG. 1) is the downstream end. 17b.

  In the header portion 19, at a position corresponding to the upstream end portion 17a of each heat medium pipe 17, a plurality of flow passages 25 extending through the space between the upstream end portion 17a and the lid portion 7 (in this embodiment, three channels 3). One) is formed. These flow paths 25 are arranged substantially in parallel, and the diameter of the flow paths is substantially the same as the inner diameter of the heat medium pipe 17. The inner surface of the lid 7 is formed with a concave portion 26 which is set to have a greater diameter than that of the passage 12. The concave portion 26 connects the passage 12 and the three flow paths 25.

  Further, similarly to the upstream side of the heat medium pipe 17, the header portion 19 penetrates between the downstream end 17b and the lid 7 at a position corresponding to the downstream end 17b of each heat medium pipe 17. (Three in this embodiment) are formed. These flow paths 27 are also arranged substantially in parallel, similarly to the upstream flow path, and the diameter of the flow path is substantially the same as the inner diameter of the heat medium pipe 17. A concave portion 28 having a diameter larger than that of the passage 13 is formed on the inner surface of the lid portion 7, and the concave portion 28 connects the passage 13 and the three flow paths 27.

  On the inner surface of the lid 7, substantially annular grooves 29, 30 are formed around the recesses 26, 28, respectively. The groove 29 is provided with a sealing material 31 for ensuring airtightness with the accommodation chamber 2 of the upstream water path, and the groove 30 is provided with a sealing material 32 for ensuring airtightness with the accommodation chamber 2 of the downstream water path. Are attached. A groove 33 is formed all around the outer peripheral surface of the header portion 19, and a sealing member 34 for ensuring airtightness between the housing chamber 2 and the passage of the heat medium pipe 17 is attached to the groove 33. Have been.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the heat exchange unit 16 is housed in the housing chamber 2 by fitting the base end side into the hole 24. A plurality of substantially disk-shaped fins 36 are fixed to the heat medium pipe 17 at equal intervals along the axial direction of the liner 3, and the fins 36 enhance the effect of suppressing a temperature change in the hydrogen tank 1.

  A powdery hydrogen storage alloy (MH powder) is accommodated between the fins 36 so as to be in contact with the fins 36. The hydrogen storage alloy has a function of increasing the amount of hydrogen charged in the hydrogen tank 1, and enables hydrogen to be charged several hundred to 1000 times as much as in the atmosphere. At the radial end of the fin 36, a filter 37 (shown by a broken line) permeable to hydrogen is attached so as to cover all the fins 36.

  Here, the hydrogen storage alloy generates heat by absorbing heat or reaction heat when storing hydrogen, and absorbs heat when releasing hydrogen. Therefore, the temperature of the hydrogen tank 1 rises due to the heat generated by the heat of adsorption or heat of reaction of the hydrogen storage alloy at the time of filling with hydrogen and the compression work generated at the time of compressing and filling the gas into the tank. However, the temperature change is suppressed by flowing cold water or hot water through the heat medium pipe 17.

Next, the operation of the hydrogen tank 1 of this embodiment will be described.
A series of processes for manufacturing the hydrogen tank 1 will be described. The hydrogen storage alloy is housed inside a heat medium pipe 17 around which a plurality of fins 36 are fixed and surrounded by a filter 37 covering the outer periphery thereof. A heat exchanger 18 is prepared. Then, in a positioning state where the passage of the heat medium pipe 17 and the flow paths 25 and 27 of the header section 19 are in communication with each other, the ends (the upstream end 17a and the downstream end 17b) of the heat medium pipe 17 are brazed. Alternatively, the heat exchanger unit 16 in which the heat exchanger 18 and the header unit 19 are integrated with each other is fixed to the header unit 19 by welding.

  Subsequently, with the sealing members 31, 32, 34 interposed between the inner surface of the lid 7 and the header 19, the header 19 is fitted into the hole 24, and the header 19 is screwed with the screw 21. Attach and fix to the lid 7. After the heat exchange unit 16 is attached, the lid 7 is fixed to the main body 5 with the screws 14 while the heat exchanger 18 is housed inside the main body 5, and the split liner 3 is integrated. Then, the liner 3 is set in a FW device (not shown), and the carbon fiber impregnated with the thermosetting resin is wound around the outer periphery of the liner 3 by the FW method. Form CFRP4.

  In this embodiment, the end portion of the heat medium pipe 17 is fixed to the header portion 19 having the flow paths 25 and 27, and the header portion 19 is positioned in the passages 12 and 13 of the lid portion 7, and the header portion 19 is screwed to the lid portion 7. , The heat exchange unit 16 is attached to the liner 3. By the way, when the heat exchanger 18 is mounted, it is necessary to draw the heat medium pipe 17 to the outside. However, when the heat medium pipe 17 is drawn through the liner 3, brazing, welding, or the like is performed to seal the portion. When the liner 3 is subjected to high heat treatment, the liner strength is reduced. However, if the configuration of this embodiment is used, there is no need to perform brazing, welding, or the like on the liner 3, and the strength of the liner 3 is ensured while ensuring the sealing performance.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) The heat medium pipe 17 of the heat exchanger 18 was fixed to the header 19, and the header 19 was attached to the lid 7 with the screw 21. Therefore, even in the configuration in which the heat exchanger 18 is installed inside the liner 3, the liner 3 does not need to be brazed or welded in order to ensure the sealing performance, so that a decrease in the liner strength can be suppressed. .

  (2) The base part 11 is formed at the base end of the liner 3, and the header part 19 is fitted into a hole 24 that is recessed at a position corresponding to the base part 11, and is fixed with screws 21. Accordingly, since the passage of the heat medium pipe 17 does not protrude from the side of the liner 3, there is no problem even if the high strength CFRP 4 is formed on the outer periphery of the liner 3 by the FW method.

  (3) Since the heat exchanger 18 is attached to the liner 3 using the header portion 19, the flow paths 25 and 27 provided in the header portion 19 are appropriately changed, so that the structure of the lid portion 7 is not changed. Any type of heat exchanger 18 can be used.

(4) Since the liner 3 is of a split type in which the liner 3 is divided into the main body 5 and the lid 7, the internal components such as the heat exchange unit 16 and the like can be put inside the liner 3.
(5) Since the header portion 19 is fixed to the lid portion 7 by the screw 21, the header portion 19 can be fixed to the lid portion 7 with a simple configuration.

  (6) Since the sealing members 31, 32, and 34 are interposed on the joint surface between the inner surface of the lid portion 7 and the header portion 19, the space between the passage of the heat medium pipe 17 and the storage chamber 2 of the liner 3 is provided. Airtightness can be secured, and high-pressure gas hardly leaks into the passage of the heat medium pipe 17.

  (7) Since the passages 12 and 13 serving as the inlet and outlet of the cold water or hot water are formed in the lid portion 7, the cold water or the hot water flows in / from one side of the liner 3. Therefore, for example, when a cold or hot water supply source is provided on the lid 7 side, the distance between the supply source and the water inlet is substantially the same as the distance between the supply source and the water outlet. Thus, there is no need to pull back a pipe (not shown) extending from the water outlet.

  (8) The lid 7 serves as an inlet / outlet for cold water or hot water, and the end of the liner 3 on the opposite side to the lid 7 serves as an inlet / outlet for hydrogen gas. Therefore, if one of the ends is shared by water and hydrogen gas, the structure becomes complicated. However, since each end is dedicated, this kind of problem does not occur.

(9) Since the heat exchanger 18 having the plurality of heat medium tubes 17 is used, the cooling effect or the heating effect inside the tank is improved by that much, and the temperature suppressing effect inside the hydrogen tank 1 can be increased.
(10) Since the heat exchanger 18 and the header 19 are arranged side by side in the axial direction of the liner 3, the hydrogen tank 1 can be made compact in the radial direction.

(Second embodiment)
Next, a second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. This embodiment is different from the first embodiment in the mounting structure of the end portion of the heat medium pipe 17, and the other basic configuration is the same. Therefore, the same portions are denoted by the same reference numerals, detailed description thereof will be omitted, and only different portions will be described.

  FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view of the base end side of the hydrogen tank 1. A concave portion 38 is formed on the inner surface of the lid 7 at a portion surrounded by the sealing material 15. The ends (upstream end 17a and downstream end 17b) of the heat medium pipe 17 are brazed or welded in a state where the paths 12, 13 and the path of the heat medium pipe 17 communicate with the inner surface of the lid 7. Directly attached by Further, the heat exchanger 18 of this embodiment has a configuration having only one heat medium pipe 17.

Also in this configuration, the following effects are obtained in addition to the effects similar to the effects (4), (7), and (8) of the above-described embodiment.
(11) Even if the heat medium pipe 17 is fixed to the lid 7 by brazing or welding, it is fixed to the thick base 11, so that the strength of the liner 3 does not significantly decrease. In addition, since the base 11 is located at the base end of the liner 3 and the heat medium pipe 17 is fixed at a position corresponding to the base 11, the high-strength CFRP 4 is wound around the liner 3 by the FW method. Even if there is no problem.

(Third embodiment)
Next, a third embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. This embodiment is the same as the first and second embodiments in that the liner 3 is divided on one side (one end side) and includes a main body 5 and a lid 7, but the header is different from the main body. This embodiment is largely different from the first and second embodiments in that a cover 7 is provided with an air passage 9 and a valve 10 in the lid 5. The same parts as those in the first embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description is omitted. 4A is a schematic sectional view of the hydrogen tank 1, and FIG. 4B is a partially enlarged view of FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 4A, the lid 7 is formed at the center thereof with a ventilation path 9 communicating the housing chamber 2 with the outside so as to extend along the axis of the liner 3. A valve 10 is attached to the end.

  The liner 3 has an opening 40 at the end opposite to the divided side to which the header 39 of the heat exchange unit 16 is fixed, and the opening 40 has a female screw 41. An annular recess 42 is formed inside the liner 3 along the end of the opening 40. A recess 42 a for accommodating the sealing material 43 is formed in the recess 42 so as to face the opening 40.

  The header portion 39 is made of metal (for example, made of an aluminum alloy) and includes a small-diameter portion 39a that can be inserted into the opening portion 40 and a large-diameter portion 39b larger in diameter than the opening portion 40. A portion 44 is formed. The large diameter portion 39b is formed smaller in diameter than the recess 42 and larger in diameter than the step portion 42a. The header portion 39 is fixed to the liner 3 by using the male screw portion 44 and specifically screwing the male screw portion 44 to the female screw portion 41.

  Passages 45 and 46 for the heat medium are formed in the header portion 39, and the ends of the heat medium pipe 17 (the upstream end 17 a and the downstream end 17 a) are formed in a state where the passages 45 and 46 communicate with the passage of the heat medium pipe 17. The end 17b) is fixed by brazing or welding. A plurality of (for example, two) concave portions 47 are formed at the tip of the small diameter portion 39a. The concave portion 47 is for locking a locking portion of a tool (not shown) used when screwing the header portion 39 to the liner 3 when manufacturing the hydrogen tank 1.

  When manufacturing the hydrogen tank 1 of this embodiment, the heat exchanger 18 is prepared and the heat medium pipe 17 is positioned in a state where the path of the heat medium pipe 17 and the paths 45 and 46 of the header portion 39 communicate with each other. The ends (upstream end 17a and downstream end 17b) are fixed to the header 19 by brazing or welding to manufacture the heat exchange unit 16 in which the heat exchanger 18 and the header 39 are integrated. I do.

  Subsequently, with the sealing material 43 fitted to the base end of the small diameter portion 39a of the header portion 39, the distal end side of the small diameter portion 39a is inserted into the opening 40, and the male screw portion 44 of the small diameter portion 39a is inserted into the opening 40. Screwed into the female screw portion 41. At this time, with the distal end side of the small-diameter portion 39a inserted into the opening 40, a locking projection of a tool (not shown) for rotating the header portion 39 is fitted into the recess 47, and through the tool. To rotate the header section 39. As a result, the male screw portion 44 is screwed into the female screw portion 41, and the header portion 39 is fixed to the liner 3. In addition, the sealing material 43 is accommodated in the step portion 42a of the concave portion 42 and is sandwiched between the liner 3 and the large-diameter portion 39b, so that the seal between the liner 3 and the header portion 39 is secured. .

  After attaching the heat exchange unit 16 to the liner 3, the lid 7 is fixed to the main body 5 with screws 14, and the split liner 3 is integrated. Then, the liner 3 is set in a FW device (not shown), and the carbon fiber impregnated with the thermosetting resin is wound around the outer periphery of the liner 3 by the FW method. Form CFRP4.

In this embodiment, the following effects are obtained in addition to the effects similar to (4), (7), and (8) of the first embodiment.
(12) The header 39 functions as a base, and the male screw 44 is screwed into the female screw 41 to be fixed to the liner 3. Accordingly, since the passage of the heat medium pipe 17 does not protrude from the side of the liner 3, no problem occurs even if the high strength CFRP 4 is formed in the liner 3 by the FW method. Further, the airtightness of the storage chamber 2 can be ensured only by providing the sealing material 43 at one place.

  (13) The header 39 is pressed toward the opening 40 by the internal pressure of the hydrogen tank 1 acting on the header 39, and the sealing member 43 is securely pressed against the liner 3 by the large diameter portion 39b. That is, the internal pressure of the hydrogen tank 1 acting on the header portion 39 acts to enhance the sealing performance of the sealing portion between the header portion 39 and the inner surface of the liner 3, and the sealing performance is enhanced.

  (14) Since the heat exchanger 18 is attached to the liner 3 by using the header portion 39 that functions as a base, the passages 45 and 46 provided in the header portion 39 are appropriately changed so that the structure of the lid portion 7 is formed. Various types of heat exchangers 18 can be used without changing the heat exchanger 18.

  (15) In fixing the header section 39 to the liner 3 in the manufacturing process of the hydrogen tank 1, the header section 39 is rotated via a tool, so that the heat exchanger 18 can be easily applied without exerting an excessive force. The male screw part 44 can be screwed with the female screw part 41.

The embodiment is not limited to the above, and for example, may be changed to the following mode.
In the first and second embodiments, the liner 3 is not limited to the one-side split type. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, both sides may be of a split type, and the base end may be closed by the lid 7 and the distal end may be closed by the lid 48.

  In the first embodiment, the concave portion 26 (28) communicating the passage 12 (13) of the lid 7 and the three flow paths 25 (27) is not limited to being formed in the lid 7. For example, as shown in FIG. 6, a configuration in which concave portions 49, 49 are formed in the header portion 19 may be employed.

  In the first embodiment, the passage 12 (13) is not limited to the configuration in which the passage 12 (13) is branched at the concave portion 26 (28) and communicates with the three flow passages 25 (27). May be done.

  In the first embodiment, the locking means is not limited to the screw 21. For example, a hook portion is provided on the inner surface of the lid portion 7, a step portion capable of locking the hook portion is provided in the header portion 19, and the hook portion is The header portion 19 may be attached to the lid portion 7 by being locked to the portion.

  In the configuration in which the header 19 is attached to the cover 7 and the heat medium is introduced into the heat medium pipe 17 through the passage 12 formed in the cover 7 as in the first embodiment, the cover 7 is made of metal. Instead, it may be made of resin. When the cover 7 is made of metal, when the heat medium is supplied to the heat exchanger 18 by the heat medium, the heat is released to the outside while the heat medium passes through the cover 7 to lower the temperature of the heat medium, or vice versa. When cooling with the heat medium, the heat medium is warmed, and the heat exchange efficiency in the heat exchanger 18 decreases. However, when the lid 7 is made of resin, since the resin has higher heat insulating properties than metal, the temperature change of the heat medium during passing through the lid 7 is small, and the heat exchange efficiency in the heat exchanger 18 is small. Will be higher.

  In the first embodiment, the screw 21 is inserted from the header portion 19 side without being limited to the configuration in which the screw 21 is inserted from the lid portion 7 side and screwed to the header portion 19 to attach the header portion 19 to the lid portion 7. It is good also as a structure attached.

  In the first embodiment, the header section 19 is not limited to being attached to the lid section 7. For example, the heat exchange unit 16 is housed in the main body section 5 with the header section 19 at the front end side, and the header section 19 is screwed. The heat exchange unit 16 may be attached to the main body 5 by fixing the heat exchange unit 16 to the distal end of the main body 5.

  In the configuration in which the header portion 39 is fixed to the liner 3 using the male screw portion 44 as in the third embodiment, a cylindrical portion extending in the axial direction at the tip of the liner 3 as shown in FIG. The high-strength CFRP4 may be formed in the cylindrical portion 50. In this case, the opening of the opening 40 due to the internal pressure of the hydrogen tank 1 can be suppressed.

  に お い て In the configuration in which the header portion 39 is fixed to the liner 3 using the male screw portion 44 as in the third embodiment, the entirety of the header portion 39 is not made of metal, but the portions where the passages 45 and 46 are formed. May be made of resin. For example, as shown in FIG. 7B, a housing part 51 is formed by striking the distal end side of the header part 39, and a resin stopper 52 in which a part of the passages 45 and 46 (only the passage 45 is shown) is formed. Is fixed by screws 53 in a state of being stored in the storage section 51. In the metal portion of the header portion 39, a passage for communicating the passages 45 and 46 of the plug 52 with the heat medium pipe 17 is formed, and a passage is provided between the end surface of the housing portion 51 and the end surface of the stopper 52. A seal member 54 for preventing the heat medium from leaking from the connection portions 45 and 46 is interposed. In this case, since the resin has a higher heat insulating property than the metal, the temperature change of the heat medium during the passage through the header portion 39 is smaller than that in the case where the entire header portion 39 is made of metal, and the heat exchanger The heat exchange efficiency at 18 increases. In addition, the weight of the header portion 39 can be reduced by using resin. Also in this configuration, the tubular portion 50 may be provided at the tip of the liner 3.

  As a configuration for fixing the header portion 39 to the liner 3 using the male screw portion 44, a nut may be used instead of the configuration for screwing with the female screw portion 41 formed on the liner 3. For example, as shown in FIG. 8A, a male thread 44 is formed at the tip of the header 39, and the header 39 is formed such that the male thread 44 projects outside the liner 3. Then, a nut 55 is screwed in to fix the header portion 39 to the liner 3. In this case, when the header portion 39 is fixed to the liner 3 in the manufacturing process of the hydrogen tank 1, it is not necessary to rotate the header portion 39 and the liner 3 relatively, and the nut 55 may be rotated and the fixing operation is simplified. Become.

  As shown in FIG. 8B, the header 39 is fixed to the liner 3 using the male screw 44, and the header 39 is screwed to both the female screw 41 and the nut 55 formed on the liner 3. Is also good. In this case, loosening of the threaded portion is less likely to occur than in a configuration in which the male screw portion 44 is screwed only with the nut 55 or only with the female screw portion 41.

に お い て Also in the configuration using the nut 55, the configuration may be such that the cylindrical portion 50 is not provided at the tip of the liner 3.
The position of the concave portion 47 for locking the tool used for fixing the header portion 39 to the liner 3 is not limited to the distal end surface of the header portion 39, but may be the peripheral surface of a portion protruding from the liner 3.

  代 わ り Instead of providing a recess 47 in the header portion 39 for locking a tool used for fixing the header portion 39 to the liner 3, the tool is locked in the passages 45 and 46 to rotate the header portion 39. Is also good. In this case, there is no need to form the recess 47.

  作業 In fixing the header portion 39 to the liner 3, when the male screw portion 44 is screwed into the female screw portion 41, instead of rotating the header portion 39, the liner 3 is rotated while the header portion 39 is fixed and held. Is also good. The fixing of the header portion 39 is performed, for example, via a tool.

The cold water and the hot water are not limited to entering and exiting at one end on the base end side, but may be configured such that cold water and hot water are taken in at one end and discharged at the other end.
In the first embodiment, the number of the heat medium tubes 17 included in the heat exchanger 18 is not limited to one or three, and is not particularly limited, for example, two or four or more. At this time, flow paths 25 and 27 corresponding to the number of heat medium tubes 17 are formed in the header portion 19.

  In the configuration in which the header portion 39 is fixed to the liner 3 using the male screw portion 44, the number of the heat medium tubes 17 included in the heat exchanger 18 is not limited to one and may be two or more. When the number of heat medium tubes 17 is two or more, if the entire header portion 39 is made of metal, it is necessary to form passages 45 and 46 in the header portion 39 in the same number as the number of heat medium tubes 17. In a configuration in which a part of the header portion 39 is formed of a resin stopper 52, the stopper 52 is formed with one passage 45, 46, and a recess 49 similar to that of the header portion 19 is formed on the metal portion side. The number of holes that are formed and communicate with the concave portions 49 is the same as the number of the heat medium tubes 17.

  The heat exchanger 18 is not limited to the cold / hot water type in which cold or hot water is sent to cool or heat the inside of the tank, but may be, for example, a fin assembly in which the heat inside the tank is transmitted to the outside by metal fins and released.

The high-pressure tank is not limited to the hydrogen tank 1 and may be used as a tank for storing other fluids such as nitrogen and compressed natural gas.
The heat medium is not limited to water, and the temperature inside the tank may be suppressed by using other fluids.

The technical idea that can be grasped from the embodiment will be described below.
(1) In the first to fifth and seventh to ninth aspects, the heat exchanger and the header are arranged side by side in the axial direction of the liner.

  (2) In claim 1, claim 3 to claim 5 and claim 7 to claim 9, the locking means is configured to change a screwed state of the shaft portion to be screwed to the mounting object and the shaft portion. And screw means having a head for holding.

(3) In the invention described in claim 2, a sealing material is interposed between the large-diameter portion and the inner surface of the liner.
(4) In the invention described in claim 2, the male screw portion is screwed to a female screw portion provided in the opening.

  (5) In the invention according to claim 2, the male screw portion is provided at a portion protruding outside the liner from the opening, and the header portion is connected to the liner via a nut screwed into the male screw portion. Fixed to.

FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the hydrogen tank according to the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a schematic exploded view illustrating the assembly of the lid and the heat exchange unit. FIG. 9 is a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of a base end side of a hydrogen tank according to a second embodiment. (A) is a schematic sectional view of a hydrogen tank of a third embodiment, and (b) is a partially enlarged view of (a). FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a hydrogen tank according to another embodiment. FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a header section according to another embodiment. (A), (b) is a partial schematic cross section of the header part of another embodiment, respectively. (A), (b) is a partial schematic cross section of the header part of another embodiment, respectively.

Explanation of reference numerals

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Hydrogen tank as a high pressure tank, 3 ... Liner, 4 ... High-strength CFRP as fiber reinforced plastic, 5 ... Body part as a liner main body, 6, 40 ... Opening, 7, 48 ... Lid part as a division body , 11 ... base part, 12, 13, 45, 46 ... passage, 15, 31, 32, 34, 43, 54 ... sealing material, 17 ... heat transfer tube, 17a ... upstream end as end, 17b ... Downstream end as end, 18 heat exchanger as equipment, 19, 39 ... header part to be attached, 21 ... bolts to form locking means, 22 ... holes to form locking means Reference numerals 23, screw holes constituting locking means, 25, 27 flow paths, 39a small diameter parts, 39b large diameter parts, 44 male screw parts.

Claims (9)

At least one side has a split liner hollow liner, a fiber-reinforced plastic covering the outer peripheral surface of the liner, and a heat exchanger housed inside the liner, and stores gas at a high pressure inside the liner. High pressure tank
A high-pressure tank to which the heat exchanger is attached by joining the heat exchanger to a header portion and fixing the header portion to one of inner surfaces of a liner body and a divided body of the liner by a locking means.   The liner is divided at one end, and an opening is provided at an end opposite to the divided side, to which the header is fixed.The header is a small-diameter part that can be inserted into the opening, and the opening is The high-pressure part according to claim 1, further comprising a large-diameter part having a diameter larger than that of the small-diameter part, a male screw part is formed on an outer peripheral surface of the small-diameter part, and the header part is fixed to the liner using the male screw part. tank. The heat exchanger is a device that performs cooling or heating by flowing a heat medium supplied from the outside through a heat medium pipe through a passage provided through the liner,
A flow path through which the heat medium flows is formed in the header part, and an end of the heat medium pipe is fixed to the header part so that the flow path communicates with the inside of the heat medium pipe. The high-pressure tank according to claim 1 or 2.   4. The high pressure according to claim 3, wherein a sealing material for ensuring airtightness between the inside of the liner and the passage of the heat medium pipe is interposed at a joint surface between the inner surface of the liner and the header portion. 5. tank.   The high-pressure tank according to claim 3, wherein the header portion is attached to the divided body, and the divided body is made of resin. At least one side has a split liner hollow liner, a fiber-reinforced plastic covering the outer peripheral surface of the liner, and a heat exchanger housed inside the liner, and stores gas at a high pressure inside the liner. High pressure tank
The heat exchanger is a device that performs cooling or heating by flowing a heat medium supplied from the outside through a heat medium pipe through a passage provided through the liner, and the liner is a split type. A configuration having a liner body and a lid,
A high-pressure tank to which the heat exchanger is attached by joining an end of the heat medium pipe to an inner surface of a base of the lid.   The high-pressure tank according to any one of claims 2 to 6, wherein the heat medium enters and exits on one side of both side ends of the liner.   The high-pressure tank according to claim 7, wherein the gas enters and exits from a side opposite to a side where the heat medium enters and exits from both side ends of the liner.   The high-pressure tank according to any one of claims 2 to 8, wherein the heat exchanger includes a plurality of the heat medium tubes.

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