Praxair Technology, Inc.

Fuelcell Energy, Inc.

Alan Russell Barlow

Jaak Stefaan Van Den Sype

Mohammad Farooque

Ramakrishnan Venkataraman

Jaak S Van Den Sype

Zhiwen Ma

Michael Cramer

Edison Viotto

A modular fuel cell stack assembly comprising a plurality of fuel cell stacks, each of the stacks having a plurality of stack faces and a plurality of stack corners formed between the stack faces, wherein the plurality of stack faces include a cathode inlet face adapted to receive oxidant gas for use in a cathode side of the fuel cell stack, a cathode outlet face adapted to output cathode exhaust from the cathode side, an anode inlet face adapted to receive fuel for use in an anode side of the fuel cell stack and an anode outlet face adapted to output anode exhaust from the anode side, and wherein at least one of the cathode inlet face, cathode outlet face, anode inlet face and anode outlet face is an open face without a manifold, and a containment structure for housing the plurality of fuel cell stacks and for providing fuel and oxidant gas to said fuel cell stacks, the containment structure including at least one sealed chamber for sealingly enclosing and isolating at least one open face. Also provided is a modular fuel cell assembly comprising a plurality of fuel cell stacks, an oxidizer disposed centrally of the fuel cell stacks and adapted to receive anode exhaust from the fuel cell stacks, to generate oxidant gas using the anode exhaust and to distribute the oxidant gas to the fuel cell stacks, and a containment structure for housing the plurality of fuel cell stacks and the oxidizer and adapted to receive fuel and distribute the fuel to the fuel cell stacks.

Modular fuel cell stack assembly including anode gas oxidizer and integrated external manifolds for use in fuel cell stack modules

This invention is directed to a process and apparatus for producing high productivity carburizing. A process is introduced that uses a gas mixture made up of CO, H, CO, HO, CHand N, such that the product of the % CO and % His greater than about 1600; the ratio of CO/COis greater than 10; and the ratio of H/HO is greater than about 10. The gas mixture is controlled for a short time. A reactor for generating a gas mixture for carburizing steel is also introduced. This reactor is composed of a cylindrically symmetric body; a first central tube containing electrical heating elements for gas flow; a second central tube concentrically disposed around the first central tube; and a plurality of catalyst beds disposed in an annular space in a segmented fashion around the second central tube.

Process and apparatus for producing atmosphere for high productivity carburizing

An endogenerator is provided in which CO and H.sub.2 are generated as primary products of hydrocarbon oxidation. The reactor is a compact reactor and operates autothermally without auxiliary heating means.

Apparatus for producing heat treatment atmospheres

An endogenerator is provided in which CO and H.sub.2 are generated as primary products of hydrocarbon oxidation. Noble metal catalysts such as platinum (Pt) and particularly rhodium (Rh), are loaded on a porous ceramic support, of example, an alumina carrier. In the endogenerator reactor little or no CO and H.sub.2 are produced by the slow and energy-intensive reforming reactions and this allows for a compact reactor which operates autothermally without auxiliary heating means, and with high space velocities wherein space velocity is defined as the number of standard cubic feet per hour of output gas per cubic foot of the catalyst carrier. Preferred hydrocarbons are methane or propane, preferred oxidants are nitrogen/oxygen mixtures with from 5% oxygen up to 100% oxygen. The endogenerator of the present invention provides a process and apparatus that generates the required reducing gases CO and H.sub.2 for heat treating applications which require leaner atmospheres and lower carbon potentials. The present invention provides a reactor which operates autothermally and in which very high space velocities are achieved. The reactors of the present invention also provide inexpensively the reducing elements required to obtain buffered atmospheres in heat treating furnaces and thereby allow the introduction of inexpensive nitrogen produced by membranes or PSA into such furnaces.

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Ridgefield, CT, United States of America

Alan Russell Barlow