The Boeing Company

Marianne E Mata

David Arthur Whelan

Chellappa Balan

Martin Edward Lozano

Tyler Charles Staudinger

Shailesh Atreya

Mark W Henley

John H Blumer

Tina Stoia

Ali Yousefiani

Bruno Zamorano Senderos

Adam J Lang

Gregory R Day

Tina R Stoia

David Gill

In one or more embodiments, a disclosed method for cooling a vehicle involves routing, by a bypass line, boil-off of a cryogenic fuel of the vehicle past a cold plate to cool a subsystem mounted proximate the cold plate. The method further involves purging the boil-off in a direction away from the vehicle, after the boil-off passes the cold plate. In one or more embodiments, the cryogenic fuel involves liquid hydrogen (LH2), liquid oxygen (LO2), and/or liquid methane (LCH4). In at least one embodiment, the boil-off of the cryogenic fuel involves gaseous hydrogen (GH2), gaseous oxygen (GO2), and/or gaseous methane (GCH4). The vehicle is a space vehicle, an airborne vehicle, a terrestrial vehicle, or a marine vehicle. In at least one embodiment, the vehicle is a fuel cell vehicle (FCV).

Advanced cooling for cryogenic powered vehicles

A fuel cell-based power system comprises a fuel cell configured for continuously receiving a first reactant and a second reactant to produce chemical reactions that generate electrical power, water, and heat, a coolant subsystem configured for circulating a primary coolant in association with the fuel cell, thereby absorbing the generated heat, a tank configured for storing a reactant, and a reactant distribution subsystem configured for conveying the reactant from the tank to an independent system, the fuel cell as the first reactant, and the coolant subsystem as a secondary coolant to remove the absorbed heat from the primary coolant and/or a water accumulator. The secondary coolant may be conveyed to a gas thruster as a gas after the absorbed heat has been removed from the secondary coolant. The reactant may boil off of a cryogenic liquid or vapor or gas transformed from a cryogenic liquid via a heater.

Integration of fuel cell with cryogenic source for cooling and reactant

A fuel cell stack is described. The fuel cell stack comprises an interconnect assembly comprising a cathode-side interface coupled to an interconnect via a first joint, and an anode-side interface coupled to the interconnect via a second joint, the interconnect assembly having a first coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) at an interface side of the interconnect assembly. The fuel cell stack further comprises a fuel cell element coupled to the interconnect assembly at the interface side via a hermetic seal, the fuel cell element having a second CTE at the interface side, the first CTE and the second CTE satisfying a predetermined CTE matching condition.

Fuel cell interconnect assembly

A fuel cell-based power system comprises a fuel cell configured for continuously receiving a first reactant and a second reactant to produce chemical reactions that generate electrical power, water, and heat, a coolant subsystem configured for circulating a primary coolant in association with the fuel cell, thereby absorbing the generated heat, a tank configured for storing a reactant, and a reactant distribution subsystem configured for conveying the reactant from the tank to an independent system, the fuel cell as the first reactant, and the coolant subsystem as a secondary coolant to remove the absorbed heat from the primary coolant and/or a water accumulator. The secondary coolant may be conveyed to a gas thruster as a gas after the absorbed heat has been removed from the secondary coolant. The reactant may be boil off of a cryogenic liquid or vapor or gas transformed from a cryogenic liquid via a heater.

Systems and methods provide for the thermal management of a high temperature fuel cell. According to embodiments described herein, a non-reactant coolant is routed into a fuel cell from a compressor or a ram air source. The non-reactant coolant absorbs waste heat from the electrochemical reaction within the fuel cell. The heated coolant is discharged from the fuel cell and is vented to the surrounding environment or directed through a turbine. The energy recouped from the heated coolant by the turbine may be used to drive the compressor or a generator to create additional electricity and increase the efficiency of the fuel cell system. A portion of the heated coolant may be recycled into the non-reactant coolant entering the fuel cell to prevent thermal shock of the fuel cell.

Alternative path cooling of a high temperature fuel cell

A method for assembling an electrochemical cell stack may include arranging a plurality of electrochemical cells into an electrochemical cell stack, the electrochemical cell stack including at least a first substack and a second substack; connecting the first substack and second substack such that reactant fluid flows in series from the first substack to the second substack; and coupling the first substack to a first electrical control device such that the first electrical control device selectively electrically reconfigures the first substack to operate in series and in parallel with the second substack.

Modularized electrochemical cell system

An electrochemical cell system including a plurality of electrochemical cells arranged in an electrochemical cell stack, the stack including a plurality of substacks configured such that fluid flows in series from substack to substack, a first electrical control device coupled to a first substack and a second electrical control device coupled to a second substack, wherein the first electrical control device is controllable independently of the second control device to selectively electrically configure the first and second substacks.

Apparatus, systems, and methods provide for the management of a high temperature electrolysis process. According to embodiments described herein, a fuel cell electrolyzer stack is utilized in an electrolysis process. One implementation includes the use of a solid oxide electrolyzer. Input voltage is cycled around a thermal neutral voltage such that the fuel cell electrolyzer stack cycles between operation in an exothermic mode and an endothermic mode. The waste heat generated by operation in the exothermic mode is used to support the endothermic operation. By cycling between operation modes, the temperature of the fuel cell electrolyzer stack may be controlled without the use of a cooling loop or recirculated reactant flow, and the efficiency of the electrolysis process is maximized.

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Dana Point, CA, United States of America

Marianne E Mata