CN-122003562-A - Storage system for gaseous fuel

Abstract

Disclosed herein is a work machine having a gas engine and a gas storage system with at least one gas storage tank. The controller is provided with a controller configured to determine a leak condition within the gas storage system and/or the gas engine.

Inventors

• T. Frisi
• J. Sproston

Assignees

• J.C.班福德挖掘机有限公司

Dates

Publication Date

20260508

Application Date

20240920

Priority Date

20231012

Claims (20)

1. 1. A work machine, comprising: a ground engaging structure for providing propulsion on the ground; A chassis mounted to the ground engaging structure; a gas engine configured to provide power to the ground engaging structure; A gas storage system comprising at least one storage tank comprising a tank valve and configured to store gaseous fuel for the gas engine, a fuel line fluidly connecting the tank valve to the gas engine, and a shut-off valve disposed on the fuel line for fluidly isolating the at least one storage tank from the gas engine; At least one pressure sensor configured to monitor a pressure in the gas storage system and/or the gas engine, and A controller configured to control the gas storage system and activate a valve diagnostic mode of the gas storage system, Wherein, in the valve diagnostic mode, the controller is configured to close the tank valve or the shut-off valve and monitor the pressure of the at least one pressure sensor to determine a leak condition of the respective valve.
2. 2. The work machine of claim 1, comprising a tank pressure sensor configured to monitor tank pressure in the at least one storage tank, wherein the controller is configured to close the tank valve in the valve diagnostic mode, monitor the tank pressure for a predetermined period of time, and determine a leak condition of the tank valve in response to a decrease in the tank pressure being above a predetermined threshold.
3. 3. The work machine of claim 1 or 2, comprising a tank pressure sensor and a tank temperature sensor configured to monitor a tank pressure and a tank temperature in the at least one storage tank, respectively, wherein the controller is configured to determine a mass of gaseous fuel in the at least one storage tank based on the tank pressure and the tank temperature, and to determine a leak condition of the tank valve in response to a decrease in the mass of gaseous fuel in the at least one storage tank being above a predetermined threshold.
4. 4. The work machine of any of the preceding claims, comprising a fuel line pressure sensor configured to monitor fuel line pressure in the fuel line, wherein the controller is configured to, in the valve diagnostic mode, close the tank valve, monitor fuel line pressure for the predetermined period of time, and determine a leak condition of the tank valve in response to the fuel line pressure not decreasing, in response to the fuel line pressure decreasing below a predetermined threshold, and/or in response to the rate of fuel line pressure decreasing below a predetermined threshold rate.
5. 5. A work machine according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the controller is configured to activate the valve diagnostic mode and close the tank valve only when the gas engine is in an operating state, optionally when the gas engine is in an idle state.
6. 6. The work machine of claim 5, wherein the controller is configured to activate the valve diagnostic mode and close the tank valve only when the gas engine is in an idle state, and wherein the controller is configured to deactivate the valve diagnostic mode in response to a demand for the gas engine.
7. 7. The work machine of claim 6, wherein said controller is configured to deactivate said valve diagnostic mode in response to an increase in RPM of said gas engine.
8. 8. A work machine according to any of claims 2 to 7, comprising a plurality of storage tanks, each storage tank comprising a tank valve and a tank pressure sensor, wherein the controller is configured to close each tank valve independently, for example sequentially.
9. 9. A work machine according to any preceding claim, wherein the controller is configured to activate the valve diagnostic mode only when the fuel level of gaseous fuel in the at least one storage tank is above a predetermined threshold.
10. 10. The work machine of any of the preceding claims, wherein the gas engine includes a fuel rail and a gas engine pressure sensor configured to monitor pressure within the fuel rail, and wherein the controller is configured to close the shut-off valve, purge the fuel rail of the gas fuel, monitor pressure in the fuel rail for the predetermined period of time, and determine a leak condition of the shut-off valve in response to an increase in pressure in the fuel rail above a predetermined threshold.
11. 11. The work machine of any of the preceding claims, wherein the controller is configured to, in the valve diagnostic mode, close the shut-off valve, monitor pressures upstream and downstream of the shut-off valve for the predetermined period of time to determine a differential pressure, and determine a leak condition of the shut-off valve in response to the differential pressure being below a predetermined threshold and/or in response to a rate of increase of the differential pressure being below a predetermined threshold rate.
12. 12. The work machine of claim 11, comprising a fuel line pressure sensor configured and arranged to monitor fuel line pressure upstream of said shut-off valve, and a gas engine pressure sensor configured and arranged to monitor pressure within said gas engine downstream of said shut-off valve.
13. 13. The work machine of claim 12, wherein said gas engine includes a fuel rail, and said gas engine pressure sensor is configured and arranged to monitor pressure within said fuel rail.
14. 14. The work machine of any of claims 10 to 13, wherein the controller is configured to activate the valve diagnostic mode and close the shut-off valve only when the gas engine is in a shut-down state.
15. 15. A work machine according to any preceding claim, wherein the controller is configured to generate an output in response to a determined leakage condition of the tank valve and/or the shut-off valve.
16. 16. The work machine of claim 15, wherein the output includes one or more of an audible alarm, a visual alarm or warning, and controlling or limiting operation of the work machine.
17. 17. A work machine according to any preceding claim, wherein the controller is configured to generate an alarm or warning in response to the valve diagnostic mode not being activated for the predetermined period of time.
18. 18. A method of detecting a leak condition of a valve of a gas storage system, the gas storage system including at least one storage tank including a tank valve and configured to store gaseous fuel for the gas engine, a gas engine configured to provide power, a fuel line fluidly connecting the tank valve to the gas engine, and a shut-off valve disposed on the fuel line for fluidly isolating the at least one storage tank from the gas engine, the method comprising: initiating a valve diagnostic mode; Closing the tank valve or the shut-off valve, and The pressure within the gas storage system and/or the gas engine is monitored to determine a leak condition of the respective valve.
19. 19. A work machine, comprising: a ground engaging structure for providing propulsion on the ground; A chassis mounted to the ground engaging structure; a gas engine configured to provide power to the ground engaging structure; A gas storage system comprising at least one storage tank comprising a tank valve and configured to store gaseous fuel for the gas engine, a fuel line fluidly connecting the tank valve to the gas engine, and a shut-off valve disposed on the fuel line for fluidly isolating the at least one storage tank from the gas engine; a tank sensor assembly includes a tank temperature sensor configured to monitor a tank temperature of the at least one storage tank, and a tank pressure sensor configured to monitor a tank pressure in the at least one storage tank, and A controller configured to determine a mass of gaseous fuel in the at least one storage tank based on the tank temperature and the tank pressure, and to determine an actual decrease in the mass of gaseous fuel in the at least one storage tank over the predetermined period of time, Wherein the controller is configured to determine an expected decrease in the mass of gaseous fuel in the at least one storage tank over the predetermined period of time based on one or more parameters associated with the engine, and Wherein the controller is configured to compare an actual decrease in mass of gaseous fuel in the at least one storage tank to an expected decrease over the predetermined period of time and to determine a leakage condition of the gas engine and/or the gas storage system in response to the difference being above the predetermined threshold.
20. 20. The work machine of claim 20, wherein said gas engine includes at least one fuel injector, and wherein said one or more parameters associated with said engine include an opening time of said at least one fuel injector over said predetermined period of time.

Description

Storage system for gaseous fuel Technical Field The present disclosure relates to a gas storage system, a work machine, and in particular, but not exclusively, to a backhoe loader (backhoe loader) including a gas storage system, and to a method of monitoring a gas storage system. Background Off-highway vehicles/work machines are commonly used in the construction industry (e.g., backhoe loaders, swing excavators, telescopic boom forks, fork lifts, skid steer loaders, dump trucks, bulldozers, graders), agriculture (e.g., tractors, combine harvesters, wheel loaders, telescopic boom forks, self-propelled harvesters, and sprayers), quarrying industry (e.g., excavators, wheel loaders, aggregate crushing plants), and forestry (e.g., lumber harvesters, felling and piling machines). The primary function of many work machines is to move material using a lift arm (e.g., a pivot arm) or a work arm (e.g., an excavator arm), and may be referred to as a material handler. Conventionally, work machines of the type described above are typically powered by a diesel internal combustion engine. However, in the face of global warming, there is a general need to reduce vehicle emissions, which has led work machine original equipment manufacturers to consider alternative prime movers. Alternatives that have been proposed include batteries, hydrogen fuel cells, hydrogen internal combustion engines, and various hybrid schemes, among others. The present disclosure is directed to an improved work machine or gas storage system. Disclosure of Invention The present disclosure provides a work machine according to the appended claims. According to a first aspect, there is provided a work machine comprising a ground engaging structure for providing propulsion on the ground, a chassis mounted to the ground engaging structure, a gas engine configured to provide power (motive power, driving force) to the ground engaging structure, a gas storage system comprising at least one storage tank comprising a tank valve and configured to store gaseous fuel for the gas engine, a fuel line fluidly connecting the tank valve to the gas engine, and a shut-off valve arranged on the fuel line for fluidly isolating the at least one storage tank from the gas engine, at least one pressure sensor configured to monitor pressure in the gas storage system and/or the gas engine, and a controller configured to control the gas storage system and to activate a valve diagnostic mode of the gas storage system, wherein in the valve diagnostic mode the controller is configured to close the tank valve or the shut-off valve and monitor pressure from the at least one pressure sensor to determine a leak condition of the respective valve. The work machine may include a tank pressure sensor configured to monitor tank pressure in the at least one storage tank, wherein in the valve diagnostic mode, the controller is configured to close the tank valve, monitor the tank pressure for a predetermined period of time, and determine a leak condition of the tank valve in response to a decrease in the tank pressure being above a predetermined threshold. The work machine may include a tank pressure sensor and a tank temperature sensor configured to monitor tank pressure and tank temperature, respectively, in the at least one storage tank. The controller may be configured to determine a mass of gaseous fuel in the at least one storage tank based on the tank pressure and the tank temperature, and determine a leak condition of the tank valve in response to a decrease in the mass of gaseous fuel in the at least one storage tank being above a predetermined threshold. The work machine may include a fuel line pressure sensor configured to monitor a fuel line pressure in the fuel line. In the valve diagnostic mode, the controller is configured to close the tank valve, monitor fuel rail pressure for a predetermined period of time, and determine a leak condition of the tank valve in response to the fuel rail pressure not decreasing, in response to the fuel rail pressure decreasing below a predetermined threshold, and/or in response to the rate of fuel rail pressure decreasing below a predetermined threshold rate. The controller may be configured to initiate the valve diagnostic mode and close the tank valve only when the gas engine is in an operating state, optionally when the gas engine is in an idle state. The controller may be configured to activate the valve diagnostic mode and close the tank valve only when the gas engine is in an idle state, and wherein the controller is configured to deactivate the valve diagnostic mode in response to a demand for the gas engine. The controller may be configured to deactivate the valve diagnostic mode in response to an increase in RPM of the gas engine. The work machine may include a plurality of storage tanks, each storage tank including a tank valve and a tank pressure sensor, wherein the controller is configured to independently, e.g., sequentially, close ea