Fluid Identification Device and Fluid Identification Method

• US 20100294021A1
• Filed: 02/13/2007
• Published: 11/25/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/28/2006
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Mitsui Mining and Smelting Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Mitsui Mining and Smelting Company Limited
• Inventors: Koike, Atsushi, Makino, Tsutomu
• Application Number:
  US12/294,865
• Publication Number:
  US 20100294021A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 73/25.03
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 25/18 by investigating thermal conductivity by calorimetry G01N25/20; by measuring change of resistance of an electrically-heated body G01N27/18

Abstract

A fluid identification device of long life for identification of a target fluid. The device uses at least two liquid type detection parts each of which is equipped with both of a temperature detector and a heating element, selects electrical conduction to any one of the heating elements, and identifies the target fluid based on a fluid temperature detection signal of the temperature detector in the fluid detection part not including the heating element whose electrical conduction has been selected and an output of the fluid type detection circuit.

Claims

1. An identification sensor module comprising at least two fluid detection parts contained in a container, each of said fluid detection parts being equipped with a temperature detector and a heating element disposed in the vicinity of the temperature detector.

2. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 1, which has:

a fluid detection circuit connected to the at least two fluid detection parts, and

an identification operation part to carry out identification of an identification target fluid based on an output of the fluid detection circuit.

3. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 2, wherein the identification operation part selects electrical conduction to the heating element installed in any one of the at least two fluid detection parts, correspondingly selects a fluid temperature detection signal of the temperature detector installed in any one of the fluid detection parts not including the heating element whose electrical conduction has been selected, and identifies the identification target fluid based on the selected fluid temperature detection signal and the output of the fluid detection circuit.

4. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 2, wherein:

a switch is present in each of electrical conduction routes to the heating elements installed in the at least two fluid detection parts, and

the identification operation part selects a closed state of any one of the switches installed in the at least two fluid detection parts and thereby selects electrical conduction to any one of the heating elements installed in the at least two fluid detection parts.

5. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 2, wherein regarding the fluid identification of the identification operation part comprising selecting electrical conduction to the heating element installed in any one of the at least two fluid detection parts, selecting a liquid temperature detection signal of the temperature detector installed in any one of the fluid detection parts not including the heating element whose electrical conduction has been selected, and identifying the measuring target fluid, the identification operation part performs selections of electrical conduction to plural heating elements in order.

6. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 2, wherein in the identification operation part,

property value groups, which are calculated based on the output of the liquid type detection circuit given at the time of selecting electrical conduction to the heating element installed in any one of the at least two fluid detection parts and selecting a liquid temperature detection signal of the temperature detector installed in any one of the fluid detection parts not including the heating element whose electrical conduction has been selected, are obtained in combinations of selections of electrical conduction to plural heating elements and selections of liquid temperature detection signals of the temperature detectors, and

using an average property value group obtained by averaging the corresponding property values, identification of the measuring target fluid is performed.

7. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 2, wherein in the identification operation part,

property value groups, which are calculated based on the output of the liquid type detection circuit given at the time of selecting electrical conduction to the heating element installed in any one of the at least two fluid detection parts and selecting a liquid temperature detection signal of the temperature detector installed in any one of the fluid detection parts not including the heating element whose electrical conduction has been selected, are obtained in combinations of selections of electrical conduction to plural heating elements and selections of liquid temperature detection signals of the temperature detectors, and

using a sum property value group obtained by summing up the corresponding property values, identification of the measuring target fluid is performed.

8. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 1, wherein in the identification operation part,

property value groups, which are calculated based on the output of the liquid type detection circuit given at the time of selecting electrical conduction to the heating element installed in any one of the at least two fluid detection parts and selecting a liquid temperature detection signal of the temperature detector installed in any one of the fluid detection parts not including the heating element whose electrical conduction has been selected, are obtained in combinations of selections of electrical conduction to plural heating elements and selections of liquid temperature detection signals of the temperature detectors, and

based on at least one of difference property value groups obtained by finding a difference between the corresponding property values, whether there is a defect in at least one of the at least two fluid detection parts is judged.

9. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 1, wherein the fluid detection parts are disposed in contact with the container on the identification target fluid side in such a manner that the fluid detection parts are not exposed from the container on the identification target fluid side.

10. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 1, wherein the fluid detection parts are disposed in such a manner that at least a part of the fluid detection parts is exposed from the container on the identification target fluid side.

11. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 10, wherein the exposed portion of the fluid detection parts is covered with a hydrophilic film or a filter.

12. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 1, wherein the container comprises a container main body located on the identification target fluid side and a cap located on the opposite side to the identification target fluid side.

13. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 12, wherein the container main body is made of a metal.

14. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 1, wherein a part of the fluid detection circuit and the identification operation part are incorporated into an IC.

15. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 1, wherein:

the fluid detection part is constructed by embedding a fluid detecting thin film chip, which has a fluid detecting temperature detector formed from a thin film on a chip substrate, in a synthetic resin mold so as to expose one surface of the thin film chip, and

the fluid detecting thin film chip is disposed so that the one surface thereof may be located on the identification target fluid side of the container.

16. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least two fluid detection parts comprise:

a first fluid detection part equipped with a first temperature detector and a first heating element disposed in the vicinity of the first temperature detector, and

a second fluid detection part equipped with a second temperature detector and a second heating element disposed in the vicinity of the second temperature detector.

17. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 16, wherein the identification operation part alternately performs a first fluid identification comprising selecting electrical conduction to the first heating element and selecting a liquid temperature detection signal of the second temperature detector to identify the measuring target fluid and a second liquid type identification comprising selecting electrical conduction to the second heating element and selecting a liquid temperature detection signal of the first temperature detector to identify the measuring target fluid.

18. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 16, wherein the identification operation part performs identification of the measuring target fluid by the use of an average property value group obtained by averaging the corresponding property values in a first property value group, which is calculated based on the output of the fluid detection circuit given at the time of selecting electrical conduction to the first heating element and selecting a liquid temperature detection signal of the second temperature detector, and a second property value group, which is calculated based on the output of the fluid detection circuit given at the time of selecting electrical conduction to the second heating element and selecting a liquid temperature detection signal of the first temperature detector.

19. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 16, wherein the identification operation part performs identification of the measuring target fluid by the use of a sum property value group obtained by summing up the corresponding property values in a first property value group, which is calculated based on the output of the fluid detection circuit given at the time of selecting electrical conduction to the first heating element and selecting a liquid temperature detection signal of the second temperature detector, and a second property value group, which is calculated based on the output of the fluid detection circuit given at the time of selecting electrical conduction to the second heating element and selecting a liquid temperature detection signal of the first temperature detector.

20. The identification sensor module as claimed in claim 16, wherein the identification operation part judges whether there is a defect in any one of the first and the second fluid detection parts based on at least one of difference property value groups obtained by finding a difference between the corresponding property values in a first property value group, which is calculated based on the output of the fluid detection circuit given at the time of selecting electrical conduction to the first heating element and selecting a liquid temperature detection signal of the second temperature detector, and a second property value group, which is calculated based on the output of the fluid detection circuit given at the time of selecting electrical conduction to the second heating element and selecting a liquid temperature detection signal of the first temperature detector.

21. A fluid identification device having the identification sensor module of claim 1.

22. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 21, wherein:

the identification sensor module is set up in a waterproof case, and

the container is disposed in such a manner that the fluid detection part side of the container is exposed from the waterproof case on the identification target fluid side.

23. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 22, wherein the container is disposed in such a manner that the fluid detection part side of the container protrudes from the waterproof case on the identification target fluid side.

24. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 22, wherein:

the container comprises a container main body located on the identification target fluid side and a cap located on the opposite side to the identification target fluid side, and

a joint between the container main body and the cap is disposed inside the waterproof case.

25. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 22, wherein:

the waterproof case has a cover member that covers the container on the identification target fluid side, and

inside the cover member, a passage of the identification target fluid is formed.

26. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 22, wherein the waterproof case is equipped with a fluid level sensor module for detecting a fluid level of the identification target fluid.

27. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 22, wherein a power circuit part is encased in the waterproof case.

28. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 22, wherein a waterproof wiring is extended from the waterproof case.

29. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 21, wherein the identification of the identification target fluid is at least one of fluid type identification, concentration identification, identification of presence of fluid, fluid temperature identification, flow rate identification, fluid leak identification and fluid level identification.

30. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 21, wherein the identification target fluid is any one of a hydrocarbon type liquid, an alcohol type liquid and a urea aqueous solution.

31. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 29, which is constructed so as to perform detection of a flow rate of the fluid based on electrical property values of the temperature detectors installed in the at least two fluid detection parts and so as to perform identification of a fluid type by measuring conductivity between the at least two fluid detection parts.

32. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 29, which is constructed so as to perform identification of a fluid type of the identification target fluid by:

disposing the fluid identification device in a fluid type identification chamber,

applying a pulse voltage to the heating element of the fluid detection part for a given period of time to heat the identification target fluid, which is temporarily staying in the fluid type identification chamber, by means of the heating element of the fluid detection part, and

identifying the fluid type of the identification target fluid by a voltage output difference corresponding to the temperature difference between the initial temperature of the temperature detector of the fluid detection part and the peak temperature thereof.

33. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 29, which has:

a main passage through which the identification target fluid flows,

a sub-passage diverged from the main passage,

the fluid identification device installed in the sub-passage,

a sub-passage on-off valve which is installed in the sub-passage and controls flow of the identification target fluid to the fluid identification device, and

a control device to control the fluid identification device and the sub-passage on-off valve,

wherein the control device is constructed so as to perform control in such a manner that;

in the identification of the identification target fluid, the control device closes the sub-passage on-off valve to allow the identification target fluid to temporarily stay in the fluid identification chamber and identifies the identification target fluid, and

in the detection of a flow rate of the identification target fluid, the control device opens the sub-passage on-off valve to allow the identification target fluid to flow to the fluid identification device and detects the flow rate of the identification target fluid.

34. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 29, which has:

a fluid identification detection chamber in which the identification target fluid is allowed to temporarily stay,

the identification sensor module of the fluid identification device, which is placed in the fluid identification detection chamber, and

a flow control plate which is placed in the fluid identification detection chamber and surrounds the identification sensor module.

35. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 29, which is constructed so as to perform identification of a concentration of the identification target fluid by:

disposing the fluid identification device in a fluid type identification chamber,

applying a pulse voltage to the heating element of the fluid detection part for a given period of time to heat the identification target fluid, which is temporarily staying in the fluid type identification chamber, by means of the heating element of the fluid detection part, and

identifying the concentration of the identification target fluid by a voltage output difference corresponding to the temperature difference between the initial temperature of the temperature detector of the fluid detection part and the peak temperature thereof.

36. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 29, which is placed in a measuring fine tube at the lower end of which the identification target fluid in a tank is introduced or discharged, and performs detection of leak of the identification target fluid from the tank by:

obtaining an output corresponding to a difference between temperatures detected by the temperature detectors of the at least two fluid detection parts,

detecting a specific gravity of the identification target fluid in the tank based on a flow rate-corresponding value corresponding to a flow rate of the identification target fluid that is calculated using the above-obtained output,

measuring a fluid level of the identification target fluid by the fluid level sensor module using the resulting specific gravity value, and detecting leak of the identification target fluid from the tank based on the magnitude of a time change rate of the fluid level.

37. The fluid identification device as claimed in claim 29, which is constructed so as to perform detection of a fluid level of the identification target fluid by:

detecting a fluid pressure of the identification target fluid by the fluid level sensor module and calculating a temporary fluid level value based on the fluid pressure on the assumption that the identification target fluid is a fluid of a given density,

applying a pulse voltage to the heating element of the fluid detection part for a given period of time to heat the identification target fluid by means of the heating element of the fluid detection part,

identifying a concentration of the identification target fluid by a voltage output difference corresponding to the temperature difference between the initial temperature of the temperature detector of the fluid detection part and the peak temperature thereof,

obtaining a density value of the identification target fluid based on the relationship between the identified concentration and the density of the identification target fluid, and

calculating the fluid level of the identification target fluid based on the temporary fluid level value and the density value.

38. A device for measuring a quantity of ammonia generated, which is a device equipped with the fluid identification device of claim 21 and for measuring a quantity of ammonia generated from an identification target liquid comprising urea water, ammonium formate water or mixed water thereof, wherein the quantity of ammonia generated is measured by:

using a sensor equipped with a heating element and a temperature detector disposed in the vicinity of the heating element,

applying a pulse voltage to the heating element for a given period of time to heat the measuring target liquid by means of the heating element,

then, by an electrical output corresponding to electrical resistance of the temperature detector, measuring a thermal conductivity-corresponding output value which is an electrical output of the temperature detector dependent on the thermal conductivity of the measuring target liquid,

measuring a density-corresponding output value which is an electrical output dependent on the density of the measuring target liquid, using a differential pressure sensor,

calculating a urea concentration X % by weight and an ammonium formate concentration Y % by weight of the measuring target liquid, from the relationship between the thermal conductivity-corresponding output value and the density-corresponding output value,

calculating a urea quantity A and an ammonium formate quantity B contained in the measuring target liquid, from the concentration and the quantity of the measuring target liquid, and

determining the quantity of ammonia generated, by the following formula;

Quantity of ammonia generated=X×

A+Y×

B

39. A device for measuring a quantity of ammonia generated, which is a device equipped with the fluid identification device of claim 21 and for measuring a quantity of ammonia generated from an identification target liquid comprising urea water, ammonium formate water or mixed water thereof, wherein the quantity of ammonia generated is measured by:

using a sensor equipped with a heating element and a temperature detector disposed in the vicinity of the heating element,

applying a pulse voltage to the heating element for a given period of time to heat the measuring target liquid by means of the heating element,

then, by an electrical output corresponding to electrical resistance of the temperature detector, measuring a thermal conductivity-corresponding output value which is an electrical output of the temperature detector dependent on the thermal conductivity of the measuring target liquid,

measuring a density-corresponding output value which is an electrical output dependent on the density of the measuring target liquid, using a differential pressure sensor,

calculating a urea concentration X % by weight and an ammonium formate concentration Y % by weight of the measuring target liquid, from the relationship between the thermal conductivity-corresponding output value and the density-corresponding output value,

calculating a urea quantity A and an ammonium formate quantity B contained in the measuring target liquid, from the concentration and the quantity of the measuring target liquid, and

determining the quantity of ammonia generated, by the following formula;

Quantity of ammonia generated=X×

A+Y×

B

40. A method for measuring a quantity of ammonia generated, which is a method for measuring a quantity of ammonia generated from an identification target liquid comprising urea water, ammonium formate water or mixed water thereof, using the fluid identification device of claim 21, and comprises:

using a sensor equipped with a heating element and a temperature detector disposed in the vicinity of the heating element,

applying a pulse voltage to the heating element for a given period of time to heat the measuring target liquid by means of the heating element,

then, by an electrical output corresponding to electrical resistance of the temperature detector, measuring a thermal conductivity-corresponding output value which is an electrical output of the temperature detector dependent on the thermal conductivity of the measuring target liquid, and measuring a kinematic viscosity-corresponding output value which is an electrical output of the temperature detector dependent on the kinematic viscosity of the measuring target liquid,

calculating a urea concentration X % by weight and an ammonium formate concentration Y % by weight of the measuring target liquid, from the relationship between the thermal conductivity-corresponding output value and the kinematic viscosity-corresponding output value,

calculating a urea quantity A and an ammonium formate quantity B contained in the measuring target liquid, from the concentration and the quantity of the measuring target liquid, and

determining the quantity of ammonia generated, by the following formula;

Quantity of ammonia generated=X×

A+Y×

B

41. A method for measuring a quantity of ammonia generated, which is a method for measuring a quantity of ammonia generated from a measuring target liquid comprising urea water, ammonium formate water or mixed water thereof, using the fluid identification device of claim 21, and comprises:

using a sensor equipped with a heating element and a temperature detector disposed in the vicinity of the heating element,

applying a pulse voltage to the heating element for a given period of time to heat the measuring target liquid by means of the heating element,

then, by an electrical output corresponding to electrical resistance of the temperature detector, measuring a thermal conductivity-corresponding output value which is an electrical output of the temperature detector dependent on the thermal conductivity of the measuring target liquid,

measuring a density-corresponding output value which is an electrical output dependent on the density of the measuring target liquid, using a differential pressure sensor,

calculating a urea concentration X % by weight and an ammonium formate concentration Y % by weight of the measuring target liquid, from the relationship between the thermal conductivity-corresponding output value and the density-corresponding output value,

calculating a urea quantity A and an ammonium formate quantity B contained in the measuring target liquid, from the concentration and the quantity of the measuring target liquid, and

determining the quantity of ammonia generated, by the following formula;

Quantity of ammonia generated=X×

A+Y×

B

42. A fluid identification method comprising performing identification of an identification target fluid using the fluid identification device of claim 21.