Fuji Electric Review
Vol.71-No.3,2025
Advanced and Fundamental Technologies to Support Future Business
Advanced and Fundamental Technologies to Support Future Business
In recent years, the demand for environmental measures related to decarbonization has increased, making it essential to transition to fuels like hydrogen and ammonia, capture CO2, and implement a circular economy. In response, Fuji Electric is promoting the development of advanced technologies essential for realizing future businesses that will lead to green transformation (GX). In addition, drastic reforms to improve development and production efficiency through the use of AI, machine learning and IoT technologies have become crucial.
Therefore, we are actively engaged in the research and development of such digital technologies.
This special issue explains the research and development of advanced technologies aimed at building Fuji Electric’s future businesses, as well as the common fundamental technologies that underpin them.
IIYAMA, Akihiro
TAMATE, Michio; MATSUI, Tetsuro
Fuji Electric is engaged in the research and development of advanced and fundamental technologies to achieve a sustainable society. We are developing technologies that contribute to the reduction of environmental burdens as advanced and fundamental technologies to create new products and businesses with a view to market expansion in FY2027 and beyond. Examples include energy conversion technologies, including control technologies for hydrogen production systems, anion exchange membrane water electrolysis technologies, storage battery control technologies for DC bus systems and ammonia leak detection technologies; technologies for using recycled resins and plant-based resins to products; and accelerated testing methods to materials. To launch new products and expand businesses for FY2026, we have been developing price prediction and trading plan optimization technologies that contribute to electricity trading using grid storage batteries, which are the core of GX promotion, and acoustic noise simulation and work recognition technologies that support DX initiatives.
TAKEDA, Naoki; TERAOKA, Yusuke; KOIZUMI, Kazuhiro
To promote the wider adoption of ammonia-fueled ships, which do not emit greenhouse gases, safe bunkering techniques are required. One such technique is the detection of ammonia leakage at fuel pipe connections. Fuji Electric is working with other companies to develop this technique in a project supported by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO). The goal is to detect leaking ammonia gas with concentrations of 25ppm or higher from distances of up to 10m using an infrared camera with improved detection sensitivity. Currently, we are evaluating the detection sensitivity with respect to gas concentration.
OKANDA, Takaharu; SATO, Kei; TORAI, Soichiro
Fuji Electric is working to develop a technology for low-cost, high-efficiency anion exchange membrane (AEM) water electrolyzer to generate hydrogen, which is attracting attention as a next-generation energy source. This method features the availability of nonprecious metal catalysts and the disuse of fluoroplastic, offering low cost and high output. A prototype cell, which is 1/30-scale of the production, improved the electrolytic efficiency with equalized water distribution in the electrolysis cells and achieved an electrolysis voltage of 1.71V at a current density of 2.0A/cm2. In addition, even after 40,000cycles of simulated start-stop testing, the increase in electrolysis voltage at a water electrolytic reaction, a degradation index, remained at approximately 4.5%, demonstrating its excellent durability.
TSUNAWAKI, Tomonori; KOFUJI, Kentaro; JINTSUGAWA, Toru
Hydrogen is seen as a promising next-generation fuel in efforts to decarbonize society, but to achieve widespread adoption, production costs need to be lowered. To address this challenge, Fuji Electric has developed a control technology for hydrogen production systems in which an electrolyzer is linked to battery storage. This control technology not only procures inexpensive electric power for subsequent hydrogen production but also leverages the functions of the electrolyzer and batteries to enable transactions in the electricity market, generating profits from the difference between sale and purchase prices. We verified that compensating for hydrogen production costs using the profit from electric power trading had the potential to reduce costs, enabling the establishment of a business model in which hydrogen is supplied at low cost while maintaining profitability.
SATO, Tomoki; JINTSUGAWA, Toru
A DC bus system is attracting attention, which connects devices such as photovoltaics, storage batteries, and DC loads and transfers electricity between them in the form of DC. The challenge in this system is to maintain a stable DC bus voltage. To achieve this, Fuji Electric is developing a technology to control DC bus voltage by coordinating multiple storage batteries using the droop characteristics (the characteristics of the relationship between output current and voltage) of them. To apply this voltage coordination control continuously, each storage battery needs to prevent overcharging and over-discharging. We are thus developing a control technology that keeps the state of charge of each battery as even as possible by changing the droop characteristics of each battery according to its state of charge.
ISHIBASHI, Naoto; HAYASHI, Naoki; ARAI, Kiyo
In recent years, demand for electric power trading using grid-scale batteries has been increasing. To address this demand, Fuji Electric has developed an electric power trading support technology involving the use of two techniques: market price forecasting and trading plan optimization. An ensemble forecasting model involving multiple machine learning methods can be applied to enable stable and highly accurate predictions of market prices for Japan Electric Power eXchange (JEPX), Electric Power Reserve eXchange (EPRX), and other such electric power exchanges. Trading plan optimization involves modeling storage battery characteristics and electric power systems using mathematical programming, enabling the development of rigorous trading plans. This electric power trading support technology can contribute to enhanced profitability in electric power trading using grid-scale batteries.
ONO, Kazuhiko; NAOJIMA, Hayato
Power-generation and substation equipment, motors, and many other products need reducing acoustic noise to suit certain operating environments. Fuji Electric is working to develop an acoustic noise simulation technology to reduce noise generated by such products. This technology consists of sound source simulation, which simulates noise generated from a sound source, and operational transfer path analysis, which estimates the operational transfer path of the generated noise until it reaches a target person. By simulating the sound source of a motor, we estimated the noise with high precision. In addition, for freezer showcases, estimating the operational transfer paths with the largest effect on noise based on the analysis results has enabled the implementation of noise reduction measures.
ISHIKAWA, Noriaki; NOMA, Takuya; SUZUKI, Takahiro
At manufacturing sites facing worsening labor shortages, there is an increasing demand to enhance quality control and improve work efficiency. To address these challenges, AI-based initiatives are rapidly being adopted. In response to this trend, Fuji Electric is developing a task recognition technology that utilizes pose estimation AI to improve yield rates and optimize production processes. This technology automatically detects workers’ joint positions from video footage captured by cameras and analyzes the positions and movements of these joint points over time to identify workers’ motions and tasks being performed. Furthermore, work errors can be detected and notified in real time, preventing defective products from occurring.
HASEGAWA, Tomoki; NISHIZAWA, Yuri; YAMASHIRO, Keisuke
To realize carbon neutrality and a circular economy, recycled resins and plant-based resins must also be adopted for industrial electric equipment. However, in terms of their physical properties and long-term reliability, these eco-friendly resins are inferior to petroleum-based resins. To address this problem, Fuji Electric identified the degradation factors in recycled resin and added hydrolysis stabilizers and radical scavengers to inhibit degradation, resulting in a product lifetime of approximately 15 years, surpassing the target of 10 years. As for plant-based resins, we confirmed that using compatibilizers to improve compatibility with virgin materials enables mechanical strength equivalent to that of virgin materials to be maintained.
YANASE, Hironori; NISHIZAWA, Yuri; YAMASHIRO, Keisuke
Since resin parts used in outdoor equipment degrade due to factors such as ultraviolet rays, temperature and humidity, it is important to evaluate their weather resistance to ensure their reliability. To solve the problems associated with conventional accelerated weathering tests (SWOM, XWOM), Fuji Electric has developed a temperature-humidity-controlled ultraviolet-ray irradiation equipment capable of controlling ultraviolet rays, temperature and humidity separately. By comparing changes in the yellow index, Fourier transform infrared absorption spectroscopy and flexural strength in polycarbonate, we verified that testing times can be drastically reduced for SWOM tests and XWOM tests. We also confirmed the reproducibility of the same structural changes, such as yellowing, reductions in molecular weight and changes in the strength retention rate.
New Products
WATANABE, Toru; YAMADA, Shigeto; TAKEDA, Naoki
Fluids discharged from geothermal wells (production wells) are generally a two-phase flow consisting of steam and geothermal water, and power generation uses geothermal steam. To ensure stability in power generation operations, the conditions of each production well must be monitored by continuously measuring the production volume of the two-phase flow of each well to comprehend the conditions of each production well predict the future decline in pressure and production volume. In the past, there was no suitable method to continuously monitor the two-phase flow (steam flow and geothermal water flow) of each production well, and the flow could only be measured by conducting manual analysis several times a year. In light of this, Fuji Electric has developed a monitoring system with external sensors attached to the pipes to enable continuous monitoring of the two-phase flow for each production well. This allows operators to track changes in the conditions of the production wells in detail, helping them optimize operations by implementing early measures in response to signs of decline in pressure and production volume and developing appropriate maintenance plans.
YABUZAKI, Jun; YAGUCHI, Yukihiro; KAMAKURA, Ryoma
As part of efforts to realize a decarbonized society, there is a growing demand for improvements in the utilization efficiency and quality of power, as well as smaller power supply equipment. One of the indices indicating the utilization efficiency and quality of AC power is the power factor, which indicates the ratio of effective power to apparent power, which is the total amount. The power factor correction (PFC) circuit has the function of increasing the power factor by controlling the input current waveform to approximate a sine wave in phase with the input voltage waveform, and demand for such circuits has been increasing in recent years. Fuji Electric has developed critical mode PFC control ICs with low switching noise for switching power supplies with low load power of less than 200W. We recently developed the “FA1C20N,” a critical mode interleaved PFC control IC that is compatible with interleaved circuits. The benefits include high output power for switching power supplies with a relatively high load power of 200W or more.
