Daido Metal Company Ltd.

Shoji Nawa

Yasuo Ido

Eiji Kato

Yukio Naruse

Takayuki Shibayama

Akira Ono

Hideyumi Matsumura

Masayuki Niwa

Takehisa Takagi

Katsumi Kanematsu

Noboru Owaki

Noboru Ohwaki

An airbreathing fuel cell, in which oxygen can be adequately supply to oxygen passage plates to obtain a power generating capacity conformed to a demand, comprises a cell stack formed in the form of a rectangle by stacking a plurality of those unit cells, which comprise a solid polymer electrolyte membrane, an oxygen electrode and a fuel electrode, which are provided on both sides of the solid polymer electrolyte membrane to be opposed to each other, an oxygen passage plate provided adjacent and toward the oxygen electrode, and separator plates provided adjacent and outside the oxygen passage plate and the fuel electrode, and the oxygen passage plate comprises a plurality of opened grooves on a surface thereof opposed to the oxygen electrode, the grooves being opened outside at both ends thereof.

Airbreathing fuel cell

The present invention provides a bonded membrane-electrode assembly for electrolysis of water, which enables the generation of hydrogen capable of being used as a fuel for a fuel cell by electrolyzing water, and a water electrolyzer constructed using the bonded membrane-electrode assembly, so that hydrogen can be produced safely. The bonded membrane-electrode assembly includes a solid polymer electrolyte membrane, an oxygen electrode bonded to one of sides of the solid polymer electrolyte membrane, a hydrogen electrode bonded to the other side of the solid polymer electrolyte membrane. The oxygen electrode includes a porous sheet-shaped carbon element plated with iridium and coated with a mixture containing carbon and a resin for a solid polymer membrane. The hydrogen electrode includes a porous sheet-shaped carbon element which is coated with a mixture containing carbon and a resin for a solid polymer membrane and further coated with a mixture containing Pt (alloy) and/or Pt (alloy)-carried carbon and a resin for a solid polymer membrane.

Bonded membrane-electrode assembly for electrolysis of water and water electrolyzer using the same

An airbreathing fuel cell comprising a power generating cell stack constituted by laminating a plurality of cell parts together, which cell part comprises a polymer electrolyte membrane, an oxygen electrode and a fuel electrode, which are provided on both sides of the polymer electrolyte membrane to be opposed to each other, an oxygen passage plate provided adjacent to the oxygen electrode, and separator plates provided adjacent to an outside of the oxygen passage plate and an outside of the fuel electrode, and a cell stack for removal of moisture, connected to the power generating cell stack and comprising at least one cell, which is constructed in the same manner as the cell part, and to which resistances are connected to be capable of power generation, and wherein moisture generated in the power generating cell stack due to an operation over a long period of time is conducted to the cell stack for removal of moisture together with a fuel, and removed through natural evaporation to outside and around the fuel cell, thus suppressing a decrease in power generating capacity.

A bonded membrane-electrode assembly is provided which enables the electrolysis of water, which has water-electrolyzing and power-generating functions enabling the generation of hydrogen, and which is capable of being utilized for a fuel cell; and a fuel cell system with a water electrolyzer is provided using a plurality of such bonded membrane-electrode assemblies. The bonded membrane-electrode assembly includes a solid polymer electrolyte membrane, an oxygen electrode bonded to one of sides of the solid polymer electrolyte membrane, and a hydrogen electrode bonded to the other side of the solid polymer electrolyte membrane. The oxygen electrode includes a porous sheet-shaped carbon element plated with iridium, a first coated layer formed on a surface of the sheet-shaped carbon element, which is in contact with the solid polymer electrolyte membrane, by applying a mixture containing carbon and a resin for the solid polymer electrolyte membrane on that surface, and a second coated layer formed on the first coated layer by applying a mixture containing Pt (alloy) and/or Pt (alloy)-carried carbon and a resin for the solid polymer electrolyte membrane thereon. The hydrogen electrode includes a porous sheet-shaped carbon element, a first coated layer formed on the sheet-shaped carbon element by applying a mixture containing carbon and a resin for the solid polymer electrolyte membrane on the surface thereof, and a second coated layer formed on the first coated layer by applying a mixture containing Pt (alloy) and/or Pt (alloy)-carried carbon and a resin for the solid polymer electrolyte membrane thereon.

Bonded membrane-electrode assembly having water-electrolyzing and power-generating functions, and fuel cell system provided with water electrolyzer using the same

An airbreathing fuel cell, in which a fuel can be adequately supplied to a cell part from outside even at low fuel pressures and air replacement can be easily performed to provide a stable power generating capacity, comprises a cell stack formed by stacking a plurality of those unit cells, which comprise a solid polymer electrolyte membrane, an oxygen passage plate and a fuel electrode, which are provided on both sides of the solid polymer electrolyte membrane to be opposed to each other, the oxygen passage plate provided adjacent and toward the oxygen electrode, and separator plates provided adjacent and outside the oxygen passage plate and the fuel electrode, the fuel distribution manifold being formed into a rod-shaped body having a polygonal-shaped cross section, a fuel supply passage formed in the tie bolt, and a plurality of fuel distribution passages provided to be communicated to the fuel supply passage and formed between central holes of the unit cells and an outer peripheral surface of the fuel distribution manifold.

There is provided a split cell type fuel cell stacks having a thin design and high-voltage and low-current output characteristics, in which a cell portion is divided into a plurality of sections electrically insulated from one another at both sides of a polymer electrolyte membrane. This fuel cell stack includes end plates, a unit cell provided between the end plates, a fuel distribution manifold provided in a central portion of the unit cell for supplying fuel thereto, a single tie bolt passing through a central portion of the fuel distribution manifold and the central portion of the unit cell so as to clamp the fuel cell components together into a unitary construction, and fixing nuts threaded respectively on both end portions of the tie bolt through washers, O-rings or the like to clamp the unit cell between the end plates. The cell portion includes a polymer electrolyte membrane, an oxygen electrode and a fuel electrode disposed oppositely on both sides of the polymer electrolyte membrane, a flow field plate disposed adjacent to the oxygen electrode, and a pair of separator plates contacting an outer side of the flow field plate and an outer side of the fuel electrode, respectively. Each of the fuel electrode and the separator plates, disposed on one side of the polymer electrolyte membrane, and each of the oxygen electrode, the oxygen flow field plate and the separator plate disposed on the other side thereof are divided into sections electrically insulated from one another.

Split cell type fuel cell stack

There are provided a plain bearing which is excellent in oil retaining property and wear-resistant property. The plain bearing has a number of fine grooves which are parallely formed with one another and extending in the circumferential direction on the inner surface of the bearing, the fine grooves comprising deep grooves and shallow grooves. When this bearing is used as a plain bearing, a large amount of lubricating oil can be retained in the deep grooves and the shallow grooves so that a plain bearing which is excellent in anti-seizure property and wear-resistant property can be obtained. Further, even if the shallow grooves will have been worn out by wear and tear during use of extended period of time, the anti-seizure property and the wear-resistant property can be stably maintained by the lubricating oil retained in the deep grooves.

Plain bearing

A sliding bearing of a cylindrical shape which bearing is adapted to support a rotation shaft through a lubricant film, comprising a plurality of fine grooves juxtaposed on an inner peripheral face of said sliding bearing in a circumferential direction of the bearing, each of said grooves extending from a backward position of a minimum lubricant film thickness portion at which the lubricant film becomes minimum in thickness on the rotation of said shaft, to a forward position of said minimum lubricant film thickness portion.

Sliding bearing

There are provided a plain bearing which is excellent in oil retaining property and wear-resistant property. The plain bearing has a number of fine grooves which are formed in the circumferential direction on each of the inner surfaces of semi-cylindrical bearing metals. Lands are defined as portions of the plain bearing which are left between the fine grooves. The lands comprise higher projecting lands and lower projecting lands. With this arrangement, a rotating shaft is supported by the higher projecting lands and a large amount of lubricating oil can be retained between the higher projecting land and the next higher projecting land thereto. Consequently, the bearing and its associated rotating parts can be prevented from the possible seizure in the running-in period at the early stage when using the bearing, which is liable to cause the seizure in particular. Even when frictional wear of the higher projecting lands is in progress, because of a large amount of lubricating oil retained in the fine grooves between the adjacent lower projecting lands, the plain bearing is excellent in anti-seizure property and wear-resistant property.

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Inuyama, Japan

Shoji Nawa