US 4,539,086 AGranted

Oxygen concentration controlling method and system

AssigneeJapan Storage Battery Co., Ltd.

InventorsYuko Fujita, Hisashi Kudo

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Abstract

In the invention, an electrochemical cell including an oxygen reducing cathode, an oxygen generating anode and an electrolyte, and having both a deoxygenating function and an oxygen generating function is coupled to a chamber in such a manner that, when the oxygen concentration in the chamber is much higher than a predetermined value, the deoxygenating function is utilized to decrease the oxygen concentration and when the oxygen concentration in the chamber is much lower than the predetermined value, the oxygen generating function is utilized to increase the oxygen concentration so that the oxygen concentration in the chamber is maintained at the predetermined value.

Claims16

Dependent claims

An oxygen concentration controlling method, comprising:

providing an electrochemical cell having a cathode comprising a gas diffusion electrode, an anode comprising an oxygen generating electrode, an electrolyte, a cathode gas chamber and an oxygen lead-out section, and having both a deoxygenating function and an oxygen generating function and coupling said cell to a chamber, the oxygen concentration in which is to be controlled, in such a manner that a deoxygenating path including said cathode gas chamber and an oxygen supplying path including said oxygen lead-out section are formed,
attaching a deoxygenated residual gas purge valve to said deoxygenating path, and disposing an oxygen purge valve in said oxygen supplying path,
detecting the oxygen concentration in one of said chamber and said deoxygenating path by means of an oxygen sensor, and
when the oxygen concentration is much higher than a predetermined value:
opening a deoxygenating path valve in said deoxygenating path and said oxygen purge valve, closing an oxygen supplying path valve in said oxygen supplying path and said deoxygenated residual gas purge valve, applying a DC voltage between said cathode and said anode in said electrochemical cell to cause a deoxygenation reaction at said cathode, supplying a deoxygenated gas produced by said deoxygenation reaction through said deoxygenating path into said chamber, and purging oxygen generated from said anode through said oxygen purge valve, so that the oxygen concentration in said chamber is decreased to said predetermined valve, and
when the oxygen concentration is much lower than said predetermined value:
opening said oxygen supplying path valve in said oxygen supplying path and said deoxygenated residual gas purge valve, closing said deoxygenating path valve in said deoxygenating path and said oxygen purge valve, supplying ambient air into said cathode gas chamber while applying a DC voltage between said cathode and said anode in said electrochemical cell to cause an oxygen generating reaction at said anode, supplying the oxygen generated thereby through said oxygen supplying path into said chamber, and purging deoxygenated residual gas produced at said cathode through said deoxygenated residual gas purge valve, so that the oxygen concentration in said chamber is increased to said predetermined value.

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Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

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Abstract

An oxygen concentration controlling method, comprising:

providing an electrochemical cell having a cathode comprising a gas diffusion electrode, an anode comprising an oxygen generating electrode, an electrolyte, a cathode gas chamber and an oxygen lead-out section, and having both a deoxygenating function and an oxygen generating function and coupling said cell to a chamber, the oxygen concentration in which is to be controlled, in such a manner that a deoxygenating path including said cathode gas chamber and an oxygen supplying path including said oxygen lead-out section are formed,
attaching a deoxygenated residual gas purge valve to said deoxygenating path, and disposing an oxygen purge valve in said oxygen supplying path,
detecting the oxygen concentration in one of said chamber and said deoxygenating path by means of an oxygen sensor, and
when the oxygen concentration is much higher than a predetermined value:
opening a deoxygenating path valve in said deoxygenating path and said oxygen purge valve, closing an oxygen supplying path valve in said oxygen supplying path and said deoxygenated residual gas purge valve, applying a DC voltage between said cathode and said anode in said electrochemical cell to cause a deoxygenation reaction at said cathode, supplying a deoxygenated gas produced by said deoxygenation reaction through said deoxygenating path into said chamber, and purging oxygen generated from said anode through said oxygen purge valve, so that the oxygen concentration in said chamber is decreased to said predetermined valve, and
when the oxygen concentration is much lower than said predetermined value:
opening said oxygen supplying path valve in said oxygen supplying path and said deoxygenated residual gas purge valve, closing said deoxygenating path valve in said deoxygenating path and said oxygen purge valve, supplying ambient air into said cathode gas chamber while applying a DC voltage between said cathode and said anode in said electrochemical cell to cause an oxygen generating reaction at said anode, supplying the oxygen generated thereby through said oxygen supplying path into said chamber, and purging deoxygenated residual gas produced at said cathode through said deoxygenated residual gas purge valve, so that the oxygen concentration in said chamber is increased to said predetermined value.

4 more elements