Panasonic Corporation

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.

Matsushita Refrigeration Company

Masataka Ozeki

Akinari Nakamura

Hideo Ohara

Shinji Miyauchi

Yoshikazu Tanaka

Tomonori Asou

Kunihiro Ukai

Tetsuya Ueda

Kiyoshi Taguchi

Akira Maenishi

Takashi Nishikawa

Yoshiaki Doyama

Akinori Yukimasa

Yoshio Tamura

Yuji Yoshida

Yoichiro Tsuji

Makoto Uchida

Yasushi Sugawara

Junji Morita

Masao Yamamoto

Soichi Shibata

Masami Funakura

Koichi Nishimura

Shinya Kosako

Shigeki Yasuda

Takayuki Urata

Shigeaki Matsubayashi

Takahiro Umeda

Keizo Matsui

Yoshiteru Ito

Terumaru Harada

Koji Ebisu

Takeshi Tomizawa

Yuji Mukai

Yoshiaki Yamamoto

Toshiyuki Shono

Kiichi Koike

Kanji Haneda

Yutaka Yoshida

Hiroaki Kaneko

Tsuneko Imagawa

Youji Kawaguchi

Koichiro Kitagawa

Hiroyuki Zimbo

Hisanori Ishino

Mitsuharu Matsuo

Tatsuo Nakayama

Masaru Owa

Takaji Akiya

Masanori Suehiro

Akiko Taniyama

Akiko Nakamura

Yoshikazu Ip Development Center Tanaka

Yoshikazu c/o Matsushita Electric Industrial Co Ltd Tanaka

A fuel cell system () comprising: a fuel cell () for generating electric power using a fuel gas; a fuel gas generator section () for generating the fuel gas using a raw material gas; a combustor section () for generating heat energy to be used for generating the fuel gas; an air feeder section () for feeding aft when the heat energy is generated; and a controller section (); wherein the fuel cell is filled with the raw material gas before the fuel gas is fed, and wherein the controller section () performs a control operation such that the feed rate of air supplied from the air feeder section () to the combustor section () increases when the fuel gas generated in the fuel gas generator section () is supplied to the fuel cell ().

Fuel cell system

A hydrogen generation apparatusincludes: an evaporating part; a reforming reaction partA connected to the downstream side of the evaporating part; a carbon monoxide reducing partprovided downstream from the reforming reaction part; and a gas guiding partdisposed between the reforming reaction part and the carbon monoxide reducing part and configured to guide a gas that has passed through the reforming reaction part to the carbon monoxide reducing part. The evaporating part and the carbon monoxide reducing part are arranged to be adjacent to each other such that, at least, a part of the evaporating part and a part of the carbon monoxide reducing part are heat exchangeable with each other. The evaporating part is configured such that a heat exchange amount at a portion of the evaporating part, the portion corresponding to the carbon monoxide reducing part, is less than a heat exchange amount at a portion of the evaporating part, the portion not corresponding to the carbon monoxide reducing part.

Hydrogen generation apparatus and fuel cell power generation system

An energy supply system includes: an energy supply device configured to supply electric power and/or heat; and a controller configured to set a first maximum operation time of a first specified period including a plurality of second specified periods, the first maximum operation time being an upper limit of an operation time of the energy supply device in the first specified period; calculate and set a second target maximum operation time of each of the second specified periods of the first specified period such that the operation time of the energy supply device in the first specified period does not exceed the first maximum operation time, the second target maximum operation time being a target value of an upper limit of the operation time of the energy supply device in the second specified period; and reconfigure the second target maximum operation time of a future second specified period of a certain first specified period based on a time in which the energy supply device has been actually operated in a past second specified period of the certain first specified period.

Energy supply system

There is provided a combustion apparatus including a gas supply pathfor supplying a combustible gas, a burner main bodyfor combusting the combustible gas supplied from the gas supply path, a cabinetprovided to cover the burner main body, and a gas cutoff valveprovided on the gas supply pathon an upstream side of the burner main bodyand arranged at the outside of the cabinet, wherein the burner main bodyis spacially isolated from the gas cutoff valve

Combustion apparatus, combustion processor, and fuel cell generating system

A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell; a fuel gas supplying unit supplying the fuel gas into the fuel cell on the anode side thereof; an oxidizing agent gas supplying unit supplying the oxidizing agent gas into the fuel cell on the cathode side thereof; a raw material gas supplying unit supplying the raw material gas into the fuel cell; and a controlling unit controlling the supply of the fuel gas, the oxidizing agent gas and the raw material gas. After switching the output of electric power or the fuel cell off, the fuel gas supplying unit suspends the supply of the fuel gas, the oxidizing agent gas supplying unit suspends the supply of the oxidizing agent gas and the raw material gas supplying unit supplies the raw material gas into the fuel cell to purge the fuel cell on the cathode side.

Fuel cell system and method for stopping operation of fuel cell system

A control unit operates a fuel-cell power generation apparatus efficiently according to power consumption and supplied hot-water heat consumption which are different in each home. A generated-power command-pattern creation section creates a plurality of generated-power command patterns which are obtained from a combination of a start time and a stop time of the fuel-cell power generation apparatus, based on a power-consumption prediction value. A hot-water storage-tank heat-quantity calculation section calculates a stored hot-water heat quantity for a predetermined period in a hot-water storage tank, based on a supplied hot-water heat-consumption prediction. A fuel-cell system-energy calculation section calculates fuel-cell system energy which indicates the energy of a fuel required in hot-water supply equipment and electricity required in electric equipment when the fuel-cell power generation apparatus is operated in each generated-power command pattern. Additionally, an optimum command-pattern selection section operates the fuel-cell power generation apparatus in a generated-power command pattern which minimizes the fuel-cell system energy.

Control unit for fuel-cell power generation apparatus, and control method, control program and computer-readable record medium with control program for the same

A fuel cell system is disclosed in which the oxidative degradation of an anode of a fuel cell during an operation stop period is restrained. The fuel cell system () of the invention comprises a fuel cell () configured to generate electric power by use of hydrogen contained in a fuel gas supplied to an anode () and oxygen contained in an oxidizing gas supplied to a cathode (); and a combustor () configured to combust flammable gas, and is formed such that after stopping the power generation, the flammable gas is introduced into and kept in the cathode () and when discharging the flammable gas from the cathode (), the flammable gas is combusted by the combustor ().

An energy supply system includes: an energy supply device () configured to supply electric power and/or heat; and a controller () configured to set a first maximum operation time of a first specified period including a plurality of second specified periods, the first maximum operation time being an upper limit of an operation time of the energy supply device in the first specified period; calculate and set a second target maximum operation time of each of the second specified periods of the first specified period such that the operation time of the energy supply device in the first specified period does not exceed the first maximum operation time, the second target maximum operation time being a target value of an upper limit of the operation time of the energy supply device in the second specified period; and reconfigure the second target maximum operation time of a future second specified period of a certain first specified period based on a time in which the energy supply device has been actually operated in a past second specified period of the certain first specified period.

An energy supply system comprises an energy supply device () for supplying at least one of electric power and heat, and a controller () configured to set first maximum operation time which is an upper limit value of operation time of the energy supply device in a first specified period shorter than a guaranteed operation period of the energy supply device such that operation time of the energy supply device does not reach operation time life before the guaranteed operation period lapses, and calculate and set second maximum operation time which is an upper limit value of the operation time of the energy supply device in a second specified period shorter than the first specified period based on the set first maximum operation time such that the operation time of the energy supply device within the first specified period does not exceed the first maximum operation time.

A method of operating a fuel cell system including stopping power generation of a fuel cell which generates electric power using a fuel gas and an oxidizing gas, filling and keeping a combustible gas in a cathode of the fuel cell after said step, supplying the oxidizing gas to the cathode, supplying the combustible gas discharged from the cathode in response to the previous step to a combustor capable of heating a fuel generator for generating the fuel gas or an exhaust pipe connected to the combustor via a branch passage branching from an oxidizing gas passage located downstream of the cathode, diluting the combustible gas supplied to the combustor or the exhaust pipe with air supplied to the combustor or exhaust gas supplied to the exhaust pipe such that the combustible gas has a concentration lower than a combustion lower limit, and discharging the diluted combustible gas to atmosphere.

Method of operating a fuel cell system

A fuel cell power generation system includes a fuel gas generating means for generating a hydrogen-rich fuel gas from a source material having, as a main ingredient, a compound containing carbon and hydrogen; a source material supply source for supplying a source material to the fuel gas generating means; a fuel gas supply means for supplying the fuel gas from the fuel gas generating means to a fuel gas flow channel of a fuel cell at which channel a fuel electrode is placed; and a bypass means for supplying the source material from the source material supply source to the fuel gas flow channel, bypassing the fuel gas generating means. At least at one of time periods before start of and after end of power generation, the source material, as a displacement gas, is injected into the fuel gas flow channel of the fuel cell via the bypass means.

System and method of fuel cell power generation

A fuel cell system and an operation method thereof are provided, which are capable of properly executing special shutdown of the fuel cell system in the event of a trouble in purge operation by use of material gas. In the fuel cell system (), if an abnormality occurs in a purge process by use of material gas during shutdown of the fuel cell system (), the controller () brings, according to the contents of the abnormality, the opening/closing state of fuel electrode opening/closing devices () for opening and closing the outlet/inlet of a fuel electrode (), oxidant electrode opening/closing devices () for opening and closing the outlet/inlet of an oxidant electrode () or hydrogen generator opening/closing devices () for opening and closing the outlet/inlet of a hydrogen generator () into a state that is different from their opening/closing state when the purge process by use of the material gas is performed.

Fuel cell system and operation method thereof

The fuel cell power generation system includes a fuel cell, a reformer, a carbon monoxide decreasing unit, a first raw material supply source, a first valve which is provided to a first raw material flow passage, a second valve which is provided downstream of the carbon monoxide decreasing unit, a second raw material supply source which supplies a raw material to the inside of a flow passage which is closed by the first valve and the second valve from downstream of the carbon monoxide decreasing unit, and a control unit which controls the first valve and the second valve, wherein the control unit, after the first valve and the second valve are closed, supplies the raw material fed from the second raw material supply source to the inside of the flow passage closed by the first valve and the second valve at the time of stopping the system.

Fuel cell power generation system with valve on raw material gas supply passage and valve downstream of carbon monoxide decreasing unit, and method for operating fuel cell power generation system

A hydrogen generating apparatus of the present invention includes a controller () configured to, during a stop period, control a material gas feeding device () to feed a material gas to a gas passage which is located between the material gas feeding device () and a valve () to perform a maintaining process for maintaining a pressure in an interior of the gas passage at value which is not smaller than a first threshold which is an atmospheric pressure or larger. When the controller () detects there is an abnormality in the maintaining process, the controller () controls the material gas feeding device () and an ignition device (A) to feed the material gas with an amount which is larger than an amount in a case where the controller detects there is no abnormality in the maintaining process, during a period which lapses from when the controller detects the abnormality until the ignition device starts an ignition operation in a start-up process.

Hydrogen generating apparatus, method of operating hydrogen generating apparatus, and fuel cell system

A fuel cell system () comprising: a fuel cell () configured to generate electric power using an oxidizing gas and a fuel gas; a recovered water tank () configured to store water recovered from an exhaust gas discharged from the fuel cell; a water storage tank () configured to store water used as cooling water for cooling the fuel cell; a water feed flow path (g) through which the water stored in the recovered water tank is supplied to the water storage tank; a pump () configured to force water to flow from the recovered water tank to the water storage tank within the water feed flow path; a water purifier () configured to purify the water forcibly flowed by said pump in the water feed flow path by means of a built-in TOC absorber () before the water is supplied to the water storage tank; and a controller (), wherein the controller controls the pump so as to operate in a stop period of the fuel cell system such that water moves in the water feed flow path.

Growing community of inventors

Osaka, Japan

Masataka Ozeki