Search

EP-4740700-A1 - HEATING SYSTEM, A FIRST METHOD FOR PRODUCING THE HEATING SYSTEM, A SECOND METHOD FOR PRODUCING THE HEATING SYSTEM, AND AN ELECTROCHEMICAL ENERGY CONVERTER

EP4740700A1EP 4740700 A1EP4740700 A1EP 4740700A1EP-4740700-A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a heating system (10) for indirectly heating a medium (12), in particular water, in at least one medium channel (14), the heating system comprising: a medium container (16) for accommodating the medium (12) to be heated, wherein the medium container (16) comprises the at least one medium channel (14) for discharging and/or supplying the medium (12) and a cavity (18), and wherein the cavity (18) extends at least in portions in parallel with the medium channel (14) and/or at least in part around the medium channel (14); and a heating element (20) for heating the medium (12), having a heating portion (22) and a fastening portion (24), wherein the heating portion (22) is located in the cavity (18) and the fastening portion (24) is provided for fastening the heating element (20) to the medium container (16), so that the cavity (18) is closed. According to the invention, the heating element (20) comprises at least two electrical contacts (26), wherein the at least two electrical contacts (26) are located in the heating portion (22) and can be contacted at the fastening portion (24) by means of an external power source (28), and wherein, in the heating portion (22), the at least two electrical contacts (26) are surrounded by an electrically conductive elastomer (30).

Inventors

  • ENGELHARDT, JOERG
  • FINNAH, GUIDO BERND

Assignees

  • Robert Bosch GmbH

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20240612

Claims (14)

  1. 1. Heating system (10) for indirectly heating a medium (12), in particular water, in at least one media channel (14) or in a media container (16), comprising the media container (16) for receiving the medium to be heated (12) with a cavity (18) running at least partially around the media container (16), and/or the media container (16) for receiving the medium to be heated (12) with the at least one media channel (14) for discharging and/or supplying the medium (12) and a cavity (18) running at least partially parallel to the media channel (14) and/or at least partially around the media channel (14), and a heating element (20) for heating the medium (12), with a heating section (22) and a fastening section (24), wherein the heating section (22) is arranged in the cavity (18) of the media container (16) and/or the at least one media channel (14) of the media container (16) and the fastening section (24) is provided for fastening the heating element (20) to the media container (16) so that the cavity (18) is closed, characterized in that the Heating element (20) has at least two electrical contacts (26), wherein the at least two electrical contacts (26) are arranged in the heating section (22) and can be contacted at the fastening section (24) by an external power source (28), and wherein in the heating section (22) the at least two electrical contacts (26) are surrounded by an electrically conductive elastomer (30).
  2. 2. Heating system (10) according to claim 1, characterized in that the media container (16) is a water separator (32) of an electrochemical energy converter (34), in particular a fuel cell system (36), and that the medium (12) supplied and/or discharged via the media channel (14) is water.
  3. 3. Heating system (10) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that an outer contour (38) of the heating section (22) of the heating element (20) corresponds to an inner contour (40) of the cavity (18) of the media container (16) and/or the cavity (18) of the at least one media channel (14) of the media container (16).
  4. 4. Heating system (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the media container (16) and/or the fastening section (24) has at least one injection channel (42), wherein the injection channel (42) runs from an outer side (44) into the cavity (18), wherein the at least one injection channel (42) is designed for injecting the electrically conductive elastomer (30).
  5. 5. Heating system (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the electrically conductive elastomer (30) has a proportion of 5% to 50%, preferably 7% to 40%, more preferably 10% to 35%, of an electrically conductive filler.
  6. 6. Heating system (10) according to claim 5, characterized in that the electrically conductive filler is at least one of the following substances: carbon black and/or graphite and/or metallic powders and/or metallic fibers and/or carbon nanotubes.
  7. 7. Heating system (10) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the fastening section (24) is connected to the media container (16) in a media-tight manner, in particular in a form-fitting or material-fitting manner.
  8. 8. Method (100) for producing a heating system (10) according to one of the preceding claims, comprising the following steps: Providing (110) the media container (16) and/or the at least one media channel (14) of the media container (16) with the cavity (18), Fastening (120) the fastening section (24) of the heating element (20) to the media container (16) for closing (130) the cavity (18) of the media container (16) and/or the cavity (18) of the at least one media channel (14) of the media container (16), Inserting (140) the at least two electrical contacts (26) into the cavity (18) of the media container (16) and/or the at least one media channel (14) of the media container (16) via the fastening section (24) so that the at least two electrical contacts (26) can be contacted with an external power source (28), introducing (150) the electrically conductive elastomer (30) into the cavity (18) of the media container (16) and/or the at least one media channel (14) of the media container (16).
  9. 9. Method (100) according to claim 8, characterized in that the electrically conductive elastomer (30) is introduced (150), in particular injected, via the at least one injection channel (42) of the media container (16) and/or the fastening section (24) or directly into the cavity (18) of the media container (16) and/or into the cavity (18) of the at least one media channel (14) of the media container (16).
  10. 10. Method (200) for producing a heating system (10) according to one of the Claims 1 to 7, comprising the following steps: Providing (210) the media container (16) with the cavity (18) and/or the media container (16) with the at least one media channel (14) with the cavity (18), Providing (210) an injection mold with a cavity for producing the heating element (20), wherein the cavity corresponds to the cavity (18) of the media container (16) and/or the cavity (18) of the at least one media channel (14) of the media container (16), closing (220) the cavity of the injection mold with the fastening section (24) of the heating element (20), Inserting (230) the at least two electrical contacts (26) into the cavity via the fastening section (24) so that the at least two electrical contacts (26) can be contacted with an external power source (28), introducing (240) the electrically conductive elastomer (30) into the cavity, Curing (280) the elastomer (30) in the injection mold, demolding (250) the heating element (20) from the injection mold, inserting (260) the heating element (20) into the cavity (18) so that the heating section (22) of the heating element (20) fills the cavity (18), fastening (270) the fastening section (24) to the media housing.
  11. 11. Method (200) according to claim 10, characterized in that the electrically conductive elastomer (30) is introduced (240), in particular injected, via the at least one injection channel (42) of the fastening section (24) or directly into the injection mold.
  12. 12. Method (100, 200) according to one of claims 8 or 11, characterized in that the introduced (150, 240) electrically conductive elastomer (30) is cured (160, 280) by supplying heat, in particular that the heat is supplied by energizing the electrical contacts with an external electrical source.
  13. 13. Method (100, 200) according to one of claims 8 to 12, characterized in that that the fastening section (24) of the heating element (20) is fastened (120, 270) to the media container (16) in a media-tight manner in a form-fitting and/or material-fitting manner, in particular by being welded or glued or plugged or clipped.
  14. 14. Electrochemical energy converter (34), in particular a fuel cell or a fuel cell system (36), with a heating system (10) according to one of claims 1 to 7.

Description

Description des a second The invention relates to a heating system having the features of independent patent claim 1, a first method for producing a heating system having the features of independent patent claim 8, a second method for producing a heating system having the features of independent patent claim 10, and an electrochemical energy converter having the features of independent patent claim 14. When using electrochemical energy converters, especially in remote locations, the medium, in this case water, can freeze in a channel used to supply or discharge the medium if the water separator is not in use. Heating elements are currently provided for this purpose, which are made from electrically conductive plastics, for example. These are currently being molded and hardened in a pre-tempered mold. When using these heating elements, heat transfer is often impaired because the heating elements do not correspond to the shape intended in the water separator or shrink during the curing process. This creates a gap between the heating element and the housing, which means that the medium in the supply or discharge channel cannot be thawed efficiently, or that elements provided along the channel, for example valves, sensors or similar, are not preheated. This is particularly problematic when using a water separator, as it can destroy the elements installed along the channel or reduce their lifespan. In addition, the medium contained cannot be supplied or removed quickly enough, which impairs the process. The invention proposes a heating system with the features of independent patent claim 1, a first method for producing a heating system with the features of independent patent claim 8, a second method for producing a heating system with the features of independent patent claim 10 and an electrochemical energy converter with the features of independent patent claim 14. Further features and details of the invention emerge from the subclaims, the description and the drawings. Features and details that are described in connection with the heating system according to the invention naturally also apply in connection with the first method according to the invention and/or in connection with the second method according to the invention and/or in connection with the electrochemical energy converter according to the invention and vice versa, so that with regard to the disclosure of the individual aspects of the invention, reference is or can always be made mutually. A first aspect of the invention is a heating system for indirectly heating a medium, in particular water, in at least one media channel or in a media container, comprising the media container for receiving the medium to be heated. The media container has a cavity that runs at least partially around the media container. Additionally or alternatively, the media container has the at least one media channel for discharging and/or supplying the medium and a cavity that runs at least partially parallel to the media channel and/or at least partially around the media channel. In addition, the heating system has a heating element for heating the medium with a heating section and a fastening section, wherein the heating section is arranged in the cavity of the media container and/or the at least one media channel of the media container and the fastening section is for fastening of the heating element is provided on the media container so that the cavity is closed The heating element has at least two electrical contacts, wherein the at least two electrical contacts are arranged in the heating section and can be contacted at the fastening section by an external power source, and wherein in the heating section the at least two electrical contacts are surrounded by an electrically conductive elastomer. The cavity is understood here as a receptacle or a hollow space in the media container. It is advantageous for heating the medium if the wall thickness of the media container between the cavity and the medium to be heated is as small as possible in order to ensure improved heat transfer. Wall thicknesses in a range of 3mm to 20mm, preferably 4mm to 15mm, more preferably 5mm to 10mm, have proven to be particularly advantageous. The cavity can be a flat, concave or convex cavity. This cavity can have a horseshoe shape, a U-shape or an L-shape in cross-section, so that the channel is at least partially enclosed by the cavity. In use, this ensures that the medium located in this channel is heated over the circumference of the channel or in sections over the circumference of the channel and is thus or can be thawed. In general, the heating or thawing of the medium is ensured if the cavity surrounds the channel by at least 50%, preferably at least 60%, preferably at least 70%, in cross-section. Local heating of the medium in the channel is also conceivable. The at least two electrical contacts can also be accommodated in the cavity in such a way that the heat is quickly distribut