Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd.

Jx Nippon Oil Energy Corporation

Yasunori Yoshimoto

Akira Hamada

Mitsuo Karakane

Takaaki Matsubayashi

Takashi Yasuo

Yasuo Miyake

Koji Nishio

Ikuo Yonezu

Nobuyoshi Nishizawa

Osamu Tajima

Kunihiro Nakato

Masaru Tsutsumi

Hirokazu Izaki

Keigo Miyai

Takashi Kawanabe

Shigeru Sakamoto

Toru Nakaoka

Kiyoshi Hori

Junji Tanaka, Deceased

Tomotoshi Ikenaga

Yugo Fukami

A fuel cell, a method for operating a fuel cell and a fuel cell system, which ensure no dew condensation for a wet reaction gas in the inlet area of gas channels in plates in a fuel cell stack, are provided. Gas channelsand heat medium channels are disposed on one surface and the other surface of one plate, respectively. Gas channels are disposed on the other plate such that they face the gas channelsin the plate. A gas inlet headeris disposed at the upper part of the gas channelin the plateand a heat medium inlet header is disposed at the upper part of the heat medium channels such that they face the gas inlet header on the other side. Cooling water such as heat medium is supplied from the heat medium supply manifold holeto the heat medium inlet header, thereby warming up the same. The water vapor in the reaction gas (wet fuel gas) is prevented from being condensed in the inlet area of the gas channelsby heating up the gas inlet header by the heat conduction.

Fuel cell, method for operating fuel cell and fuel cell system

A fuel cell system comprising a fuel cell having plural membrane-electrode assemblies and plates, fuel and oxidant humidifiers and heater exchanger. Heat exchange between a supply inlet and discharge outlet is carried out between first and second heat exchange mediums. Fuel gas and oxidant gas are directed to flow parallel to each other in the fuel cell. A circulation path is established through the fuel and oxidant humidifiers and the heat exchanger by interconnection among discharge outlet, heat exchanger, fuel and oxidant humidifiers, and inlet.

In a fuel cell stack, gas channels and heat medium channels are disposed on one surface and the other surface of one plate, respectively. Gas channels are disposed on the other plate such that they face the gas channels in the one plate. A gas inlet header is disposed at the upper part of the gas channel in the plate and a heat medium inlet header is disposed at the upper part of the heat medium channels such that they face the gas inlet header on the other side. Cooling water as a heat medium is supplied from a heat medium supply manifold hole to a heat medium inlet header. Water vapor in the reaction gas (wet fuel gas) is prevented from being condensed in the inlet area of the gas channels by heating the gas inlet header by heat conduction.

A fuel cell, a method for operating a fuel cell and a fuel cell system, which ensure no dew condensation for a wet reaction gas in the inlet area of gas channels in plates in a fuel cell stack. Gas channels and heat medium channels are disposed on one surface and the other surface of one plate, respectively. Gas channels are disposed on the other plate such that they face the gas channels in the plate. A gas inlet header is disposed at the upper part of the gas channel in the plate and a heat medium inlet header is disposed at the upper part of the heat medium channels such that they face the gas inlet header on the other side. Cooling water such as heat medium is supplied from the heat medium supply manifold hole to the heat medium inlet header, thereby warming up the same.

Fuel cell, method for operating full cell and fuel cell system

An objective of this invention is to provide a separator for a fuel cell whereby a fuel, air or cooling water can be evenly and efficiently fed. In a separator for a fuel cell comprising fuel channelsin one side and cooling water channelsin the other side, the regions where the fuel channelsand the cooling water channelsare formed rectangular. The fuel gas is fed from a first fuel-feeding manifoldand discharged from a first fuel-discharging manifoldto the outside of the cell. The cooling water is fed from a first cooling-water-feeding manifoldand discharged from a first cooling-water-discharging manifoldto the outside of the cell.

Separator for fuel cell and fuel cell therewith

The present invention relates to a fuel cell devised to uniformly distribute and supply a reformed gas (or an oxidant or a coolant) while minimizing the increase in parts number, without making the construction complicated. The present invention has a gist of providing a fuel cellpiling up, by way of separators, multiple cellsand providing, in the stackinner manifolds for distributing (or supplying or discharging) to these cellsa fuel, an oxidant or a coolant, wherein: a cylindrical/tubular piercing memberis provided in at least one inner manifoldand a proper gap is provided between the piercing memberand an inner wall of the inner manifoldThe reformed gas supplied to the inner manifoldbefore being distributed to each cellis flow-regulated by the piercing memberThus, the reformed gas is distributed uniformly to each cella stable power generation is done, and performance of the fuel cell can be improved.

Fuel cell

In a fuel cell provided with a pair of separators sandwiching a cell that includes an electrolyte and a fuel electrode and an air electrode provided on respective sides of the electrolyte, gas passages in a separator adjacent to the fuel electrode are opposite to flat surfaces of a separator adjacent to the air electrode. Also, gas passages in the separator adjacent to the air electrode are opposite to flat surfaces of the separator adjacent to the fuel electrode.

A polymer electrolyte fuel cell shall be provided such that degradation of the fuel cell due to condensed water can be prevented. A polymer electrolyte fuel cell of the present invention is provided wherein a plate A, a plate B, and a plate C are used; a passage is formed on each of the front and rear sides of each of the above-mentioned plates; a cell D or a permeable film E is interposed between two of the above-mentioned plates; a cell unit is thus formed; a plurality of such cell units are integrally laminated to form a polymer electrolyte fuel cell. Fuel gas and cooling water are caused to flow into a humidifying chamber F to humidify fuel gas. The resulting humidified fuel gas is supplied to a fuel chamber G, and moreover, oxidant gas is supplied to an oxidant chamber, thereby generating electricity. It is so arranged that the flow of fuel gas moving inside the above-mentioned humidifying chamber F is a counter flow with respect to the flow of cooling water moving inside the above-mentioned humidifying chamber F; and the flow of fuel gas moving inside the above-mentioned fuel chamber G is a co-flow with respect to the flow of cooling water moving inside the above-mentioned fuel chamber G.

Polymer electrolyte fuel cell

A water-retaining layer is formed to coat the top of ribs of a ribbed plate which is to be disposed, as a component of a polymer electrolyte fuel cell, on at least one surface of a cell which includes an electrolyte membrane and two electrodes disposed on two surfaces of the electrolyte membrane. The water-retaining layer is formed by: generating a mixture by dissolving a resin-carbon mixture into a solvent; applying the mixture using a spray to a surface of the ribbed plate having the ribs; and drying the applied mixture at a certain temperature. The ability to retain water in the water-retaining layer per unit active area of the electrodes is desirably in the range of 0.002 to 0.035 g/cm , and more desirably, in the range of 0.01 to 0.03 g/cm .

Polymer electrolyte fuel cell including a water-retaining layer on a ribbed plate

A solid polymer fuel cell which can stably generate electric power for long, because the cell is enabled to uniformly supply a fuel gas to all anodes by means of extended flow passages which are extended from anode-side flow passages and formed on a anode-side plate on the downstream side of the ends of the anodes in the direction of fuel gas flow, a water absorbing means for nearly uniformly performing water absorption, water retention, and drainage on all channels provided at the ends of the extended flow passages, and a selective gas discharging means for discharging a gas more selectively than water on the upstream side of the water absorbing means. In addition, the power generation characteristics and service life of the fuel cell can be improved further, because the cell can maintain a solid polymer film in a moist state as a whole and can efficiently supply the fuel gas to all anodes by a means for distributing the fuel gas to the inlet sections of the anode-side flow passages and a means for distributing water from a water source to the inlet sections of the anode-side flow passages through holes having a prescribed form and leading to the inlet sections of the anode-side flow passages.

Polymer electrolyte fuel cell showing stable and outstanding electric-power generating characteristics

A cell unit for use in fuel cells of the type using an electrode portion having an anode formed of a plate or film on one surface of an electrolyte and a cathode formed of a plate or film on the other surface. An anode side plate of the invention has stepped portions to form recesses which accommodate the electrode and provide an anode side chamber facing the anode. A cathode side plate having a cathode side chamber facing the cathode is also accommodated in the recessed portions of the anode side plate. A fuel supply manifold and a fuel discharge manifold can extend through the stepped portions. Use of such cell units reduces the number of seal members required between fuel or oxidant manifolds when cell units are stacked to form a fuel cell stack. Such reduction in seal members simplifies fabrication of the units and renders the cell unit easier to maintain and repair.

Cell unit for fuel cells

A fuel cell comprising a stack including a stack including a plurality of cell units and a plurality of gas separators and at least one cooling plate, one of the gas separator and the cooling plate being interposed between adjacent cell units, the fuel cell being characterized in that; each gas separator and the cooling plate, respectively, have oxidant gas channels on one of surfaces that opposes to have contact with one of electrode surfaces of the cell unit to as to flow an oxidant gas in a direction vertical to a direction of a cooling air flowing through the cooling plate; each gas separator and the cooling plate, respectively, have fuel gas channels, a fuel-gas-supply inner manifold for taking in a fuel gas, and a fuel-gas-exhaust inner manifold for releasing the fuel gas having passed through the fuel gas channels on the other surface that opposes to have contact with the other electrode surface of the cell unit so as to flow the fuel gas in a direction parallel to the direction of the cooling air flowing through the cooling plates; and an inlet of the fuel-gas-supply inner manifold and an outlet of the fuel-gas-exhaust inner manifold are formed so as to supply and release the fuel gas in a same direction of the oxidant gas flowing through the oxidant gas channels.

Growing community of inventors

Osaka, Japan

Yasunori Yoshimoto