3D Real Time Monitoring of H2 in FCV Applications

In order to monitor a trace amount of Hydrogen in millisecond, portable H2 sensor (Sx) was made by using mass spectrometer. The method of monitoring the hydrogen pulse of millisecond in exhaust gas is the increasing needed. Determining H2 concentration both inside and outside of the Fuel Cell Vehicle (FCV) for the optimized operations is becoming a critical issue. The exhaust gas of Fuel Cell Vehicle, H2 consumption, flushing and disposal around Fuel cell, the real time monitoring of H2 in highly humid conditions is the problematic. To solve this issue, the system volume of the sampling route was minimized with the heater and the dehumidifier to avoid condensation of water droplets. And also for an automatic calibration of H2 concentration, the small cylinder of specific H2 concentration was mounted into the system.
Our basic experiment started from a flow pattern analysis by monitoring H2 concentration in narrow tube. The flow patter analysis was carried out. When H2 gas was introduced in the N2 flow or air in the tube, the highly concentrated H2 front phases were observed. This H2 sensor can provide the real time information of the hydrogen molecules and the clouds. The basic characterization of this sensor showed 0-100% H2 concentrations within milliseconds. Our observations showed the size of the high concentration phase of H2 and the low concentration phase after mixing process. The mixed and unmixed H2, unintended concentration of H2 cloud, the high speed small cluster of H2 molecules in purged gas were explored by this system.