FUEL TANK, HYDROGEN REMAINING LEVEL DETECTION SYSTEM, AND FUEL CELL SYSTEM

• Main Authors: YASUO KOJI, KIBUNE KENJI
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 17.05.2012
• Subjects: BASIC ELECTRIC ELEMENTS; BLASTING; CHEMISTRY; COMPOUNDS THEREOF; ELECTRICITY; FILLING VESSELS WITH, OR DISCHARGING FROM VESSELS, COMPRESSED,LIQUEFIED, OR SOLIDIFIED GASES; FIXED-CAPACITY GAS-HOLDERS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; HEATING; INORGANIC CHEMISTRY; LIGHTING; MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; METALLURGY; NON-METALLIC ELEMENTS; PROCESSES OR MEANS, e.g. BATTERIES, FOR THE DIRECT CONVERSIONOF CHEMICAL INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY; REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS [GHG] EMISSIONS, RELATED TO ENERGYGENERATION, TRANSMISSION OR DISTRIBUTION; STORING OF DISTRIBUTING GASES OR LIQUIDS; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS; TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINSTCLIMATE CHANGE; VESSELS FOR CONTAINING OR STORING COMPRESSED, LIQUEFIED ORSOLIDIFIED GASES; WEAPONS

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To calculate the change of the volume of a hydrogen storage metal regardless of the attitude of a fuel tank.SOLUTION: A fuel tank 14 includes: multiple pellets 24 formed of a hydrogen storage metal which is capable of storing hydrogen to be supplied to fuel cells; a support mechanism 26 configured to support the multiple pellets such that they are layered mutually closest to one another while still permitting the volume of the multiple pellets to change; a housing unit 28 configured to house the multiple pellets in a layered state which is maintained by the support mechanism; and detection units 18 configured to detect the positions of both ends of the multiple pellets which change due to changes in the volume of the multiple pellets.