Control systems and methods for monitoring electrolyzer cell stack conditions and extending operational life

Abstract

A method of optimizing operating lifespan of an electrolysis system includes measuring an operating parameter of a component of the system at a first location of the electrolysis system with a first sensor to obtain a raw measurement, the raw measurement including a value and/or a rate of change of the parameter, receiving the raw measurement at a controller, comparing the value to a nominal measurement and/or the rate of change to a nominal rate of change. The method further includes diagnosing an abnormality of the component based on the value and/or rate of change differing from nominal values. The method further includes, in response to the diagnosis of the abnormality, outputting a message to an operator of the electrolysis system indicative of the abnormality.

1 . A method of monitoring at least one operating parameter in an electrolysis system for optimizing the operating lifespan of at least one component of the electrolysis system, the method comprising:
 measuring the at least one operating parameter at a first location of the electrolysis system with a first sensor to obtain a first raw measurement of the at least one operating parameter, the first raw measurement including at least one of a first value of the at least one operating parameter or a first rate of change of the at least one operating parameter;   receiving, at a controller, the first raw measurement, the controller including at least one computer-readable storage medium;   comparing, via the controller, at least one of (i) the first value of the first raw measurement to a predetermined nominal measurement or (ii) the first rate of change of the first raw measurement to a predetermined nominal rate of change;   diagnosing, via the controller, at least one abnormality of the at least one component of the system based on at least one of (i) the first value of the first raw measurement differing from the predetermined nominal measurement by a first amount or (ii) the first rate of change of the first raw measurement differing from the predetermined nominal rate of change by a first rate amount; and   in response to the diagnosis of the at least one abnormality, outputting a first message, via the controller, to an operator of the electrolysis system indicative of the at least one abnormality.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 determining, via the controller, a predicted lifespan of the at least one component including a predicted length of lifespan based on the first raw measurement; 
 comparing, via the controller, the predicted length of lifespan with a predetermined length of lifespan of the at least one component; and 
 in response to the predetermined length of lifespan being different than the predicted length of lifespan by a first amount of time, outputting a second message, via the controller, to the operator of the electrolysis system indicative of the predicted lifespan. 
 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , further comprising:
 calculating, via the controller, a first calculated measurement of the at least one operating parameter at a second location of the electrolysis system different than the first location, the first calculated measurement including at least one of a first calculated value of the at least one operating parameter or a first calculated rate of change of the at least one operating parameter,   wherein the diagnosis of the at least one abnormality is further based on at least one of (i) the first calculated value of the first calculated measurement differing from a predetermined nominal calculated measurement by a first calculated amount or (ii) the first calculated rate of change of the first calculated measurement differing by a first calculated rate amount, and   wherein the determining, via the controller, of the predicted lifespan of the at least one component including the predicted length of lifespan is based on at least one of the first raw measurement and the first calculated measurement.   
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 3 , further comprising:
 shutting down the electrolysis system in response to the predetermined length of time differing from the predicted length of lifespan by a second amount of time that is greater than the first amount of time.   
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the diagnosis of the at least one abnormality is further based on the at least one of a total age of the electrolysis system, a total amount of hydrogen already produced by the electrolysis system, or a present operating condition of the electrolysis system. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the at least one operating parameter includes at least one of voltage, current, temperature, pressure, fluid flow rate, fluid conductivity, or gas humidity, and wherein the at least one component includes at least one of an electrolyzer cell stack, a pump, a heat exchanger, a tank, or a valve of the electrolysis system. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 3 , further comprising:
 receiving, at the controller, at least one historical measurement of the at least one operating parameter at the first location of the electrolysis system that was measured by the first sensor prior to the first raw measurement; and   calculating, via the controller, a second calculated measurement of the at least one operating parameter at the second location based at least in part on the first raw measurement and the at least one historical measurement.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein the diagnosis of the at least one abnormality is further based on the at least one historical measurement differing from the predetermined nominal measurement by a third amount, and wherein the determining of the predicted lifespan is further based on the first raw measurement, the first calculated measurement, the at least one historical measurement, and the second calculated measurement. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , further comprising:
 measuring the at least one operating parameter at a plurality of additional first locations of the electrolysis system different than the first location with a plurality of additional sensors to obtain an additional raw measurement of the at least one operating parameter at each additional location of the plurality of additional locations to establish a plurality of additional raw measurements;   receiving, at the controller, the plurality of additional raw measurements;   calculating, via the controller, a plurality of additional calculated measurements of the at least one operating parameter at respective additional second locations of the electrolysis system different than the first location, the plurality of additional first locations, and the additional second locations based at least in part on the plurality of additional raw measurements; and   determining, via the controller, the predicted lifespan of the electrolyzer cell stack based on the first raw measurement, the first calculated measurement, the at least one historical measurement, the second calculated measurement, the plurality of additional raw measurements, and the plurality of additional calculated measurements.   
     
     
         10 . An electrolysis system, comprising:
 at least one component including at least one of a pump, a heat exchanger, a tank, or a valve;   an electrolyzer cell stack configured to separate input water into hydrogen and oxygen;   a controller including at least one computer-readable storage medium;   a first sensor operably connected to the controller and configured to measure at least one operating parameter at a first location of the electrolysis system to obtain a first raw measurement of the at least one operating parameter, the first raw measurement including at least one of a first value of the at least one operating parameter or a first rate of change of the at least one operating parameter,   wherein the controller is configured to:   compare at least one of (i) the first value of the first raw measurement to a predetermined nominal measurement or (ii) the first rate of change of the first raw measurement to a predetermined nominal rate of change;   diagnose at least one abnormality of the at least one component of the system based on at least one of (i) the first value of the first raw measurement differing from the predetermined nominal measurement by a first amount or (ii) the first rate of change of the first raw measurement differing from the predetermined nominal rate of change by a first rate amount; and   in response to the diagnosis of the at least one abnormality, output a first message indicative of the at least one abnormality via the controller to an operator of the electrolysis system.   
     
     
         11 . The electrolysis system of  claim 10 , wherein the controller is further configured to determine a predicted lifespan of the at least one component including a predicted length of lifespan based on the first raw measurement, compare, the predicted length of lifespan with a predetermined length of lifespan of the at least one component, and, in response to the predetermined length of lifespan being different than the predicted length of lifespan by a first amount of time, output a second message to the operator of the electrolysis system indicative of the predicted lifespan. 
     
     
         12 . The electrolysis system of  claim 11 , further comprising:
 a first soft sensor configured to calculate a first calculated measurement of the at least one operating parameter at a second location of the electrolysis system different than the first location, the first calculated measurement including at least one of a first calculated value of the at least one operating parameter or a first calculated rate of change of the at least one operating parameter,   wherein the diagnosis of the at least one abnormality via the controller is further based on at least one of (i) the first calculated value of the first calculated measurement differing from a predetermined nominal calculated measurement by a first calculated amount or (ii) the first calculated rate of change of the first calculated measurement differing by a first calculated rate amount, and   wherein the determining of the predicted lifespan of the at least one component via the controller including the predicted length of lifespan is based on at least one of the first raw measurement and the first calculated measurement.   
     
     
         13 . The electrolysis system of  claim 12 , wherein the at least one operating parameter includes an amount of conductivity of water flowing through the electrolysis system, and wherein the amount of conductivity of the water is inversely proportional to the predicted lifespan of the electrolyzer cell stack. 
     
     
         14 . The electrolysis system of  claim 13 , wherein the amount of conductivity of the water is determined based on an ion concentration of the water. 
     
     
         15 . The electrolysis system of  claim 14 , wherein the ion concentration of the water includes measurements of a concentration of at least one of fluorine, platinum, iron, calcium, chromium, and nickel. 
     
     
         16 . The electrolysis system of  claim 12 , wherein the first location of the electrolysis system is located downstream of the electrolyzer stack and the second location of the electrolysis system is located downstream of the first location in the electrolyzer system. 
     
     
         17 . The electrolysis system of  claim 16 , further comprising:
 a hydrogen separator located downstream of and fluidically connected to the electrolyzer stack of the electrolysis system;   a polishing loop fluidically connected to the hydrogen separator and configured to treat drain flow from the hydrogen separator for recirculation into an oxygen separator, the oxygen separator located downstream of and fluidically connected to the electrolyzer stack and downstream of and fluidically connected to the polishing loop; and   a water circulation pump located downstream of and fluidically connected to the oxygen separator and configured to direct water from the oxygen separator to an input of the electrolyzer stack.   
     
     
         18 . The electrolysis system of  claim 17 , wherein the first location of the electrolysis system is located along a first fluidic line that extends between and interconnects the polishing loop and the oxygen separator, and wherein the second location of the electrolysis system is located along a second fluidic line that extends between and interconnects the water circulation pump and the input of the electrolyzer. 
     
     
         19 . The electrolysis system of  claim 18 , further comprising:
 a second, third, and fourth sensor arranged within the polishing loop and each operably connected to the controller, each of the second, third, and fourth sensors being configured to measure the water conductivity at a third, fourth, and fifth location within the polishing loop, respectively, the second, third, and fourth sensors being configured to obtain second, third, and fourth raw measurements of the water conductivity, respectively, and send the second, third, and fourth raw measurements to the controller; and   a second soft sensor configured for calculations regarding a sixth location directly downstream of the hydrogen separator, a third soft sensor configured for calculations regarding a seventh location directly upstream of the oxygen separator, and a fourth soft sensor configured for calculations regarding an eighth location along a third fluidic line that extends from the water circulation pump to the polishing loop, each of the second, third, and fourth soft sensors being configured to calculate second, third, and fourth calculated measurements of the water conductivity at the sixth, seventh, and eighth locations, respectively, based at least in part on the first, second, third, and fourth raw measurements,   wherein the controller is further configured to determine the predicted lifespan of the at least one component including the predicted length of lifespan based on the first, second, third, and fourth raw measurements and the first, second, third, and fourth calculated measurements.   
     
     
         20 . The electrolysis system of  claim 12 , wherein the diagnosis of the at least one abnormality is further based on the at least one of a total age of the electrolysis system, a total amount of hydrogen already produced by the electrolysis system, or a present operating condition of the electrolysis system.