SYSTEM FOR GENERATING HYDROGEN FROM A CHEMICAL HYDRIDE

• US 20100129266A1
• Filed: 12/22/2009
• Published: 05/27/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 07/27/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Molly Alonso
• Original Assignee: Trulife Incorporated (Trulife)
• Inventors: Brydon, Chris, Patton, John, Shurtleff, Kevin, Ladd, Eric, Pearson, Ken
• Granted Patent: US 8,152,873 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 422/119
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 7/02 by wet methods
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 8/0271 in a spiral shaped bed
• CPC Class Codes: C01B 2203/066 with fuel cells
• CPC Class Codes: C01B 3/065 from a hydride
• CPC Class Codes: F17C 11/005 for hydrogen
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/32 Hydrogen storage
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/36 Hydrogen production from non-carbon containing sources, e.g. by water electrolysis

Abstract

A system is disclosed to generate hydrogen. The system includes a fuel cartridge, a cartridge interface, and a fuel cartridge receiver. The fuel cartridge includes a liquid permeable material with one or more cavities that encloses a solid anhydrous chemical hydride. The fuel cartridge also includes a housing that is heat and pressure resistant that houses the liquid permeable material, and a liquid. The fuel cartridge also includes one or more liquid sources that introduce the liquid into the housing such that the liquid contacts at least a portion of the liquid permeable material.

Claims

1. A system to generate hydrogen, the system comprising:

a fuel cartridge;

a cartridge interface comprising an interface gas outlet port disposed on the cartridge interface, the interface gas outlet port in fluid communication with an interior of the fuel cartridge;

a fuel cartridge receiver configured to receive the cartridge interface, the fuel cartridge receiver comprising a receiver gas port disposed on the fuel cartridge receiver, the receiver gas port configured to mate with the interface gas outlet port;

the fuel cartridge comprising;

a liquid permeable material comprising one or more cavities, each cavity configured to at least partially enclose a solid anhydrous chemical hydride, each cavity comprising liquid permeable material configured to permit passage of a liquid from one side of the liquid permeable material to the other side;

a housing comprising a heat and pressure resistant material, the housing configured to receive the liquid permeable material and a liquid; and

one or more liquid sources configured to introduce the liquid into the housing such that the liquid contacts at least a portion of the liquid permeable material, the liquid reacting with the solid anhydrous chemical hydride to release hydrogen gas.

2. The system of claim 1, further comprising a cartridge cooling module comprising a blower configured to blow air and an air guide configured to direct air blown by the blower into contact with the fuel cartridge.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the air guide comprises a helical rib formed in the fuel cartridge receiver, the helical rib forming a helical path for air flow around a fuel cartridge positioned within the fuel cartridge receiver.

4. The system of claim 2, wherein the air guide comprises an air intake port positioned near one end of the fuel cartridge receiver and an air exhaust port positioned near an opposite end of the fuel cartridge receiver, the air intake port in fluid communication with the blower, and the air exhaust port integrated with the fuel cartridge receiver.

5. The system of claim 1, further comprising a condenser in fluid communication with exiting hydrogen gas, the condenser configured to remove water from the exiting hydrogen gas.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the condenser is further configured to convey the removed water to the one or more liquid sources.

7. The system of claim 1, further comprising one or more alignment sensors configured to determine whether the fuel cartridge has a predetermined alignment relative to the fuel cartridge receiver.

8. The system of claim 1, further comprising one or more temperature sensors configured to monitor a temperature of the fuel cartridge.

9. The system of claim 1, further comprising one or more pressure sensors configured to monitor a gas pressure of the hydrogen gas exiting the fuel cartridge.

10. The system of claim 1, further comprising a state of fill module configured to calculate an estimate of an amount of hydrogen gas producible by the fuel cartridge.

11. The system of claim 10, wherein the state of fill module calculates the estimate based on an amount of liquid that the one or more liquid sources inject into the housing.

12. The system of claim 10, wherein the state of fill module is further configured to store the estimate and a cartridge identifier uniquely associated with the fuel cartridge in a memory.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the state of fill module is further configured to retrieve the unique identifier from the fuel cartridge.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the fuel cartridge further comprises a radio frequency identification tag configured to communicate the unique identifier to the state of fill module.

15. The system of claim 13, wherein the fuel cartridge further comprises a bar code configured to communicate the unique identifier to the state of fill module.

16. The system of claim 12, wherein the state of fill module comprises the memory.

17. The system of claim 12, wherein the fuel cartridge comprises the memory.

18. The system of claim 1, wherein the liquid sources comprise a liquid reservoir and one or more pumps, each of the one or more pumps configured to pump a substantially consistent amount of liquid from the water reservoir into the housing in each pumping cycle.