International Fuel Cells, LLC

United Technologies Corporation

William A Taylor

Albert P Grasso

Wolfgang M Vogel

Warren L Luoma

Roger C Emanuelson

Bryan F Dufner

Gregory J Sandelli

Martin L Abrams

James Palatine

An apparatus 124 using an aqueous solution consisting essentially of water for forming a compound which retards the deposition of iron-based compounds is disclosed. The apparatus includes a chamber 138 for forming steam which is injected through a nozzle 148 into a chamber 136. The pH of the aqueous solution, which is acidic, is raised in the presence of oxygen to cause Fe++ to come out of solution as a precipitate and the oxygen level is lowered to limit the growth in size of the precipitate.

Apparatus and process for forming an aqueous solution

A fuel cell powerplant 10 having a flow path 20 for an aqueous solution includes a device 18 for disposing in the solution ferric hydrous oxide of a character that retards the deposition of iron based compounds. The device is disposed within the powerplant and receives water from a conduit 42 which communicates with a component of the fuel cell powerplant, such as a fuel cell stack 12.

Fuel cell powerplant employing an aqueous solution

Coolant water is delivered to a fuel cell stack through a manifold which extends up the side of the stack and which communicates with the cooling plates in the stack by means of a plurality of outlet pipes or snivvies. The coolant exhausted from the stack is handled with a similar outlet manifold with corresponding outlet snivvies. The water is ducted into the inlet manifold via a conduit which opens into the inlet manifold at the top thereof and a bleed conduit extends from the inlet manifold at the bottom thereof, to an ion exchange bed polisher and then back to the cooling system bypassing the stack. In this manner, constriction of the snivvies by iron oxide and copper corrosion product is more uniformly distributed on the inlet side, and the corrosion products in the coolant water which settle to the bottom of the inlet manifold are carried around the stack to the polisher or ion exchange bed where particles are removed from the water, whereupon the water is returned to the coolant loop.

Fuel cell coolant inlet manifold and system

A ferric hydrous oxide of a character that retards the deposition of iron based compounds on the walls of a conduit is prepared by flowing an aqueous solution containing iron-based compounds including magnetite into a vented chamber, and boiling the solution at atmospheric pressure.

An electrochemical cell separator plate formed from a mixture of carbonizable resin and coke particles, wherein the plate is molded from the resin and coke particles, carbonized, and graphitized. The particle size distribution of the coke is selected so that expansion occurring during graphitization minimizes the rupture of carbonized bonds within the separator plate. The separator plates have improved properties over separator plates formed from graphite particles including increased density, decreased porosity and increased corrosion resistance. The coke particle plates are more energy efficient to manufacture than graphite particle plates.

Coke filled separator plate for electrochemical cells

An electrochemical cell separator plate formed from a composition of carbonizable resin, coke, and graphite particles, and methods of making and using the same. The separator plate has an improved balance of properties such as flexural modulus. The plates are formed by molding a composition of carbonizable resin, coke, and graphite particles, surface grinding the plate and then carbonizing and graphitizing the plate. The composition comprises about 40% to about 60% of carbonizable resin and about 60% to about 40% of a coke-graphite mixture. The coke-graphite mixture comprises about 30% to about 90% of coke particles and about 70% to about 10% of graphite particles. These separator plates may be used in, for example, fuel cells.

Coke and graphite filled separator plate for electrochemical cells

Insulated pouch for beer kegs

A thin electrochemical cell separator plate with greatly improved properties is made by molding and then graphitizing a mixture of preferably 50 percent high purity graphite powder and 50 percent carbonizable thermosetting phenolic resin, the graphite molding powder particles having a specified preferred shape and a size distribution requiring 31 to 62 weight percent of the particles to be less than 45 microns in size.

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Glastonbury, CT, United States of America

William A Taylor