Honda Motor Co., Ltd.

Honda Giken Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha

Gm Global Technolgoy Operations, Inc.

Hiromichi Yoshida

Ryo Jinba

Shigeru Inai

Masahiro Mohri

Katsumi Hayashi

Seiji Sugiura

Junji Uehara

Hideo Kato

Naoki Mitsuta

Yosuke Fujii

Yoshikazu Murakami

Daisuke Wachi

Narutoshi Sugita

Shuhei Goto

Kenichiro Ueda

Masanori Hayashi

Shinya Watanabe

Takaki Nakagawa

Hiroshi Morikawa

Akiji Ando

Ryugo Suzuki

Minoru Koshinuma

Shohei Toyota

Nobuyuki Matsumoto

Ken Takahashi

Masahiko Sato

Yeh-Hung Lai

Chihiro Wake

Masaharu Suzuki

Hiroyuki Tanaka

Hideaki Kikuchi

Manish Sinha

Toshifumi Suzuki

Yoshinori Wariishi

Yoichi Asano

Minoru Uoshima

Tomoki Kobayashi

Pinkhas A Rapaport

Masao Utsunomiya

Yasunori Kotani

Ichiro Baba

Ryoichiro Takahashi

Mikihiko Kimura

Takashi Komura

Kaoru Yamazaki

Jun Kondo

Takahiro Takai

Masahiro Ise

Hayato Kaji

Takeshi Matsubara

Masataka Furuyama

Keiko Yamazaki

Takao Fukumizu

Kiyohide Hibino

Fusao Nakagawa

Takeo Abe

Ryo Jimba

Masahiro Egami

A voltage is applied between an anode and a cathode in a fuel cell. The voltage is increased to a predetermined upper limit, and then decreased to a predetermined lower limit. The voltage increase and decrease are repeated a predetermined number of times. The voltage is applied to the fuel cell while supplying a hydrogen-containing gas to an anode and supplying an inert gas to a cathode.

Fuel cell activation method

A fuel cell stack includes a plurality of cell groups and a controller wherein each cell group comprises a plurality of fuel cells and a group sensor which measures one or more electrical characteristics of the respective cell group. The controller comprises one or more processors and memory and is communicatively coupled to each group sensor. The one or more processors execute machine readable instructions to compare a measured electrical characteristic of each cell group to one or more thresholds stored in memory, and indicate the need for diagnostics of the fuel cell stack when the comparison indicates a non-systemic event.

Fuel cell stack health monitoring using groups of fuel cells

A method of operating a fuel cell includes the steps of detecting hydrogen peroxide concentration during power generation by a hydrogen peroxide concentration sensor provided directly on a membrane electrode assembly and determining an operating condition of the fuel cell based on the detected hydrogen peroxide concentration.

Fuel cell and method of operating the fuel cell

A humidification control method includes the steps of detecting a direct current resistance component by measuring impedance during power generation of a fuel cell stack, calculating a reaction resistance component based on the detected direct current resistance component and a stack voltage, detecting a humidified state of the fuel cell stack based on the detected direct current resistance component and the calculated reaction resistance component, and adjusting a quantity of humidification of a reaction gas supplied to the fuel cell stack based on the detected humidified state of the fuel cell stack.

Humidification control method for fuel cell

In a method of operating a fuel cell, a voltage difference between voltages of a first unit cell and a second unit cell is detected. Whether the voltage difference is out of a predetermined range is determined. If the voltage difference is determined to be out of the predetermined range, humidity of a first reactant gas before being supplied to a first reactant gas passage is adjusted or humidity of a second reactant gas before being supplied to a second reactant gas passage is adjusted. The first reactant gas passage is provided in a first separator. The first reactant gas is to be supplied to one of first electrodes through the first reactant gas passage. The second reactant gas is to be supplied to another of the first electrodes through the second reactant gas passage.

Fuel cell and method of operating fuel cell

Provided are a sequential impedance measurement device and a method for sequentially measuring impedance. While applying a signal having a power output fluctuation similar to that of normal operation, it is possible to carry out a quick measurement with relatively high precision and in a broad frequency range. Also, the device and the method can simultaneously determine phenomena which occur in different frequency ranges. Disclosed is a sequential impedance measurement device in which impedance of a fuel cell is sequentially measured in a control system, the control system controlling the fuel cell by using a power indication value of a control processor, the device including: an M-sequence-signal-generating section; a superimposed-signal-generating section; a signal-processing section; a signal-adding unit; a current and voltage measuring unit; and an impedance calculator, wherein a method for controlling the fuel cell by the control processor is modified according to a calculation result of the impedance calculator.

Method for sequentially measuring impedance, measurement device, and fuel cell system

When a fuel-cell electric vehicle is running at idle, and a predetermined period of time has elapsed since the vehicle comes into the idle state, forthcoming stopping of an operation of the vehicle is predicted, and the operation mode of a fuel cell is shifted to a residual water reduction mode in which residual water remaining inside the fuel cell is reduced. In the residual water reduction mode, for example, the amount of humidification for air to be supplied to the fuel cell is reduced, so that the air with reduced humidity passes through the fuel cell, to thereby increase the amount of residual water removed by the air. Accordingly, the residual water inside the fuel cell can be reduced before the actual stopping of the operation of the vehicle.

Fuel-cell electric vehicle

A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell which generates electric power using supplied reactive gases; a load control device for controlling a load applied to the fuel cell; a voltage measuring device for measuring a voltage generated by the fuel cell; a fuel cell driving control device for controlling at least a supply of the reactive gases to the fuel cell; and a voltage variation rate obtaining device for obtaining a rate of variation in the voltage generated by the fuel cell when the load is varied. The fuel cell driving control device is controlled based on the rate of variation in the generated voltage obtained by the voltage variation rate obtaining device. The voltage variation rate being obtained when the generated voltage increases. The load being varied by applying momentarily a load to the fuel cell when the voltage variation rate is obtained.

Fuel cell system and activation method of fuel cell

A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell stack, an oxygen-containing gas supply apparatus, a fuel gas supply apparatus, a pressure reduction apparatus, and a dilution apparatus. The oxygen-containing gas supply apparatus supplies an oxygen-containing gas to the fuel cell stack. The oxygen-containing gas supply apparatus is capable of supplying the air to the fuel gas flow field at the time of stopping operation of the fuel cell system. The fuel gas supply apparatus supplies a fuel gas to the fuel cell stack. The pressure reduction apparatus suctions gases in the oxygen-containing gas flow field and the fuel gas flow field. The dilution apparatus dilutes the fuel gas suctioned by the pressure reduction apparatus using the air.

Fuel cell system, method of stopping operation of the fuel cell system, and method of starting operation of the fuel cell system

A method of actuating a fuel cell system equipped with a fuel cell is disclosed. The fuel cell system is supplied with reaction gases for generating electricity. The method includes the steps of: a first step for actuating the fuel cell in a low-temperature actuation mode to thereby warm up the fuel cell, if a low-temperature actuation condition is satisfied at a start-up of the fuel cell; and a second step for drying a membrane electrode assembly of the fuel cell, if a power generation capacity of the fuel cell is lower than a predetermined power generation capacity.

Method of actuating fuel cell system and fuel cell system

A stop method for a fuel cell system including a fuel cell unit in which hydrogen is supplied to an anode, and air is supplied to a cathode so as to generate electrical power via an electrochemical reaction. The stop method includes the steps of stopping supply of hydrogen to the anode, electrically connecting the anode and the cathode via an electrical load, and supplying air to the anode.

Stop method for fuel cell system and fuel cell system

A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell and a supplying unit, which supplies reactive gases to the fuel cell. A control unit includes a power production effective area calculator calculates the areas of the electrodes available for power production as a power production effective area. A current density calculator which calculates a current density of the power production effective area calculated by the power production effective area calculator based on the total amount of power required by the fuel cell. A gas supply amount determiner determines the amount of reactive gas to be supplied to the fuel cell depending on the current density. A gas supply controller controls the supplying unit so as to supply the amount of reactive gas determined by the gas supply amount determiner to the fuel cell.

Fuel cell system and fuel control method

A fuel cell potential measuring apparatus includes a first sheet member which is arranged on an anode side, and a second sheet member which is arranged on a cathode side. On the first sheet member, an anode potential-applying electrode and an anode potential-measuring electrode are disposed on an end portion thereof, whereas on the second sheet member, a cathode potential-applying electrode and a cathode potential-measuring electrode are disposed on an end portion thereof. Another end portion of the first sheet member and another end portion of the second sheet member are joined together mutually.

Fuel cell potential measuring apparatus and manufacturing method therefor

An oxygen-containing gas flow field is formed on a surface of a first metal separator. The oxygen-containing gas flow field is connected between an oxygen-containing gas supply passage and an oxygen-containing gas discharge passage. The oxygen-containing gas flow field comprises oxygen-containing gas flow grooves, and ends of the oxygen-containing gas flow grooves are extended outwardly beyond ends of electrode catalyst layer of a membrane electrode assembly, and connected to an inlet buffer and an outlet buffer. When the purging process is performed at the time of stopping operation of the fuel cell, the purging air supplied to the oxygen-containing gas flow field discharges water retained in the electrode catalyst layers from the ends to the outlet buffer.

Fuel cell

A method of operating a fuel cell assembly and a fuel cell system use a simple construction to restrain deterioration of power generating performance of a fuel cell assembly at a startup in a subfreezing environment. If an ignition switch is turned off is STEP, a control unit determines in STEPwhether the temperature of a fuel cell assembly (the internal temperature of the fuel cell assembly) is lower than a predetermined temperature, which is higher than the temperature at which the water produced during power generation freezes. If the internal temperature of the fuel cell assembly is the predetermined temperature or higher, then the processing proceeds to STEPwherein a power generating condition is adjusted to cause the internal temperature of the fuel cell assembly to rise. In STEP, an alarm device is actuated. The power generation is continued until the internal temperature of the fuel cell assembly reaches the predetermined temperature or higher, and then the power generation is stopped in STEP

Fuel cell assembly operating method and fuel cell system

Growing community of inventors

Shioya-gun, Japan

Hiromichi Yoshida