Gm Global Technolgoy Operations, Inc.

Kim R Griffith

Jeffrey Allan Rock

Harald Schlag

Pinkhas A Rapaport

An electro-conductive plate assembly for a fuel cell has a pair of stamped plates joined together to define a coolant volume therein. Each of the pair of stamped plates has a flow field on a major outer surface arranged to maximize the contact area between major inner surfaces of the plates while allowing coolant to distribute and flow readily within the coolant volume. The flow fields formed on the major outer surfaces provide corresponding sets of lands on the major inner surfaces that contact to form a third flow field of the coolant volume. The third flow field formed by the lands includes a plurality of longitudinal channels and an array of flow disruptors. The bipolar plate assembly further includes a seal arrangement and integral manifolds to direct reactant gas and coolant flow through the fuel cell.

Stamped fuel cell bipolar plate

A bipolar plate assembly for a fuel cell having a pair of stamped plates joined together to define a coolant volume therein. Each of the pair of stamped plates have a flow field arranged to maximize the contact area between the plates while allowing coolant to distribute and flow readily within the coolant volume. The bipolar plate assembly further includes a seal arrangement and integral manifold to direct gaseous reactant flow through the fuel cell.

A bipolar plate assembly for use in a PEM fuel cell having an anode plate and a cathode plate together to define flow fields on the exposed faces thereof and a coolant volume therebetween. Each of the flow fields have a transverse inlet leg in fluid communication with the inlet header, a serpentine flow field extending from the transverse inlet leg and a transverse exhaust leg in fluid communication with the exhaust header. The plates further define a tortuous coolant flow path in the coolant volume.

Bipolar plate assembly having transverse legs

A PEM fuel cell having serpentine flow field channels wherein each channel has an inlet leg, an exit leg, at least one medial leg therebetween and hairpin curves connecting the legs to each other. The legs all extend in the same general direction between a gas supply and gas exhaust manifold. One of the inlet and exit legs is longer than the other while the medial leg is shorter than the shortest of the inlet/exit leg. The land(s) defining the medial leg(s) of adjacent channels are generally aligned lengthwise.

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Honeoye Falls, NY, United States of America

Kim R Griffith