Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd.

Panasonic Corporation

Panasonic Intellectual Property Management Co., Ltd.

Asahi Glass Company, Limited

Yasuo Takebe

Norihisa Mino

Makoto Uchida

Yasushi Sugawara

Kazuhito Hatoh

Kazufumi Ogawa

Eiichi Yasumoto

Teruhisa Kanbara

Junji Morita

Osamu Sakai

Tohru Nakagawa

Akihiko Yoshida

Hisaaki Gyoten

Tadashi Otake

Hideo Ohara

Yoichiro Tsuji

Junji Niikura

Hiroaki Takezawa

Yoshihiro Hori

Takeshi Yonamine

Mamoru Soga

Hiroki Kusakabe

Takaiki Nomura

Masato Hosaka

Shinya Kosako

Yukiyoshi Ono

Kazufumi Nishida

Tadashi Ootake

Shinichi Arisaka

Kunihiro Ukai

Toshihiro Matsumoto

Shoichi Toya

Masaki Yamauchi

Shinsuke Takeguchi

Hiroshi Onishi

Koichi Kugimiya

Hiroshi Shimoda

Masao Yamamoto

Norihiko Kawabata

Soichi Shibata

Aoi Muta

Tsutomu Kawashima

Shinji Kinoshita

Masaki Nobuoka

Takeou Okanishi

Yoshiki Nagao

Miho Gemba

Haruhiko Shintani

Shigeyuki Unoki

Toru Sukawa

Atsushi Mukoyama

Toru Shiino

Atsushi Nogi

Yasuhiro Seki

Tatsuo Nagasaki

Masatoshi Teranishi

Atsushi c/o Asahi Glass Company Ltd Mukoyama

Shinji c/o Asahi Glass Company Ltd Kinoshita

Hiroshi c/o Asahi Glass Company Ltd Shimoda

A fuel cell activation apparatus including: a storage battery; a first current sensor detecting a current outputted by the storage battery; a first switch switching between supplying the current outputted by the storage battery and supplying a current provided from the system power supply; a second switch switching between transmitting a result of detecting by the first current sensor and transmitting a result of detecting by a second current sensor which detects the current provided from the system power supply; and a control unit switching between a normal mode for activating, based on the result of detection performed by the second current sensor, the fuel cell using the current provided from the system power supply and a self-sustained mode for activating, based on the result of detection performed by the first current sensor, the fuel cell using the current outputted by the storage battery.

Fuel cell activation apparatus, fuel cell activation method, and fuel cell activation system

In a fuel cell system of the present invention, a reformed gas generated in a reformer (R) being activated is supplied to a fuel cell stack (F), and an off-gas discharged from the fuel cell stack (F) is supplied to a heat supply device (B) provided for a reformer (R) being deactivated. By activating at least one reformer (Rn), all of a plurality of reformers (Rn) can be warmed-up. Therefore, energy consumption in a standby state can be suppressed, and the fuel cell system can be started-up quickly in emergencies. The reformed gas may be supplied to the heat supply device (B) instead of the off-gas.

Fuel cell system and operation method thereof

Even when a reaction gas flows into a gap formed between a gasket and a membrane electrode assembly, the flowing of the reaction gas to the outside without flowing through an electrode is prevented and thus a decrease in power generation efficiency is prevented. In order to allow the water vapor contained in the reaction gas that flows into an anode-side gapformed between an anode-side gasketand a membrane electrode assemblyto condense in at least a part of the gap, and to allow the condensed water to fill the gap, the upstream portion of a cooling fluid channelof an anode-side separatoris formed such that it includes a region corresponding to the gap, and the upstream portion is formed such that it includes a region corresponding to a middle stream portion and subsequent portion of a fuel gas channel

Fuel cell and fuel cell stack comprising the same

A fuel cell separator and a fuel cell are provided that can improve uniformity in reaction gas flow rate and can prevent flooding due to excessive condensed water in passage grooves appropriately. A reaction gas passage region () of a separator () has a flow splitting region () having a passage groove group where the reaction gas is split, and one or more flow merge regions () having a recessed portion in which the reaction gas is mixed and connecting a plurality of flow splitting regions so that the passage groove group of the adjacent flow splitting regions () are connected to the recessed portion, and protrusions () vertically extend from a bottom face of the recessed portion and arranged in an island form. A pair of passage groove groups connected to the recessed portion of the flow merge region () is formed so as to have a greater number of grooves in the upstream passage groove group than the number of grooves of grooves in the downstream passage groove group. The recessed portion of the flow merge region () is defined, in a turn portion of a serpentine shaped reaction gas passage region (), by oblique boundaries between the recessed portion and a pair of passage groove groups which are connected to the recessed portion and by the outer end of the turn portion.

Serpentine fuel cell separator with protrusions and fuel cell including the same

A membrane-membrane reinforcing member assembly includes: a polymer electrolyte membrane () having a substantially square shape; a pair of membrane-like first membrane reinforcing members () disposed on one main surface of the polymer electrolyte membrane () so as to extend along a pair of opposed sides, respectively, of four sides of said one main surface; and a pair of membrane-like second membrane reinforcing members () disposed on another main surface of the polymer electrolyte membrane () so as to extend along a pair of opposed sides, respectively, of four sides of said another main surface, wherein: portions of the polymer electrolyte membrane () at which portions the first membrane reinforcing members () and the second membrane reinforcing members () are disposed are concave; and the first membrane reinforcing members () and the second membrane reinforcing members () are disposed such that main surfaces thereof are exposed, and the first membrane reinforcing members () and the second membrane reinforcing members () surround a peripheral portion of the polymer electrolyte membrane () as a whole.

Membrane-membrane reinforcing membrane assembly, membrane-catalyst layer assembly, membrane-electrode assembly, and polymer electrolyte fuel cell

A method of operating a fuel cell capable of suppressing degradation of a fuel cell caused by starting and stopping of the fuel cell, including carrying out a restoring operation by decreasing a voltage of the cathode following termination of the fuel cell.

Method of operating fuel cell system and fuel cell system

The present invention is intended to enable efficient assembly of a fuel cell stack without causing any damage to the conductive separator. In a fuel cell including an anode, a cathode, an electrolyte membrane interposed between the anode and the cathode, and conductive separators each having manifold aperturesand a flow channelfor supplying a gas to the anode or the cathode, manifold aperture connecting portionsare formed at an inlet-side end and an outlet-side end of the flow channel, respectively. Each of the manifold aperture connecting portionsis recessed below the upper surface of the conductive separator. Cover plates are fitted and fixed to the recessed portions, respectively.

Fuel cell having manifold apertures and cover plates

The present invention provides an organic ultra-thin film firmly fixed to a substrate with the film thickness ranging from tens of nm to hundreds of nm. The organic ultra-thin film comprises polymers fixed on a substrate by M&#x2014;O&#x2014;A&#x2014; bond in which A represents an Si, Ge, Ti, Sn or Zr atom in the polymer, and Mrepresents an atom in the substrate) or by a coordinate bond, the polymers are combined with each other by &#x2014;A&#x2014;O&#x2014;A'&#x2014; bond in which Aand A&#x2032; are Si, Ge, Ti, Sn, Zr or S or by a coordinate bond.

Organic ultra-thin film

The present invention provides ink for forming a catalyst layer containing at least a cation conductive polymer electrolyte, catalyst-supporting particles including conductive carbon particles and an electrode catalyst supported thereon, and a dispersion medium, wherein the polymer electrolyte has a mean inertia radius of 150 to 300 nm. A catalyst layer made of the catalyst layer ink improves in gas diffusion property and increases cell voltage, which allows providing a proton conductive polymer electrolyte fuel cell capable of maintaining the high cell voltage for a long time.

Ink for forming catalyst layer, and electrode and membrane-electrode assembly using the same

In a polymer electrolyte fuel cell including a hydrogen ion conductive polymer electrolyte membrane; a pair of electrodes composed of catalyst layers sandwiching the hydrogen ion conductive polymer electrolyte membrane between them and gas diffusion layers in contact with the catalyst layers; a conductive separator plate having a gas flow channel for supplying a fuel gas to one of the electrodes; and a conductive separator plate having a gas flow channel for supplying an oxidant gas to the other electrode, in order to bring a hydrogen ion conductive polymer electrolyte and a catalyst metal of the catalyst layers containing the hydrogen ion conductive polymer electrolyte and conductive carbon particles carrying the catalyst metal sufficiently and uniformly into contact with each other, the polymer electrolyte is provided in pores of an agglomerate structure of the conductive carbon particles. Consequently, the reaction area inside the electrodes is increased, and higher performance is exhibited.

Polymer electrolyte fuel cell

By using a gas diffusion layer for a fuel cell comprising a fabric comprising a warp thread and a weft thread which are made of carbon fiber, wherein the distance X between adjacent intersections where the warp and weft threads cross each other and the thickness Y of the fabric satisfy the equation: 1.4&#x2266;X/Y&#x2266;3.5, the present invention reduces the surface asperities of the substrate and prevents a micro short-circuit resulting from the piercing of the polymer electrolyte membrane of the fuel cell by the carbon fibers of the fabric so as to improve the characteristics of the fuel cell. In order to further prevent the piercing of the polymer electrolyte membrane by the carbon fibers of the gas diffusion layer substrate, the rough surface of the carbon fabric is smoothed by: (1) applying a clamping pressure of 1 to 20 kgf/cmto the contact area between each electrode and each conductive separator plate of the fuel cell; or (2) heating the gas diffusion layer surface before the gas diffusion layer is disposed onto the polymer electrolyte membrane.

Electrolyte film electrode union, fuel cell containing the same and process for producing them

Disclosed is a fuel cell comprising: a hydrogen-ion conductive polymer electrolyte membrane; a pair of electrodes sandwiching the hydrogen-ion conductive polymer electrolyte membrane; a first separator plate having a gas flow path for supplying a fuel gas to one of the electrodes; and a second separator plate having a gas flow path for supplying an oxidant gas to the other of the electrodes, wherein each of the electrodes has an electrode catalyst layer comprising at least a conductive carbon particle carrying an electrode catalyst particle and a hydrogen-ion conductive polymer electrolyte, the electrode catalyst layer being in contact with the hydrogen-ion conductive polymer electrolyte membrane, and at least one of the electrodes comprises a catalyst for trapping the fuel gas or the oxidant gas which has passed through the hydrogen-ion conductive polymer electrolyte membrane.

Polymer electrolyte fuel cell and production method thereof

A porous supporting carbon body of a gas diffusion layer is provided with a larger number of smaller pores at its catalyst layer side and a smaller number of larger pores at the other side, particularly with an appropriate distribution of finer mesh at its catalyst layer side and coarser mesh at the other side. As a result, a high performance polymer electrolyte fuel cell is obtained in which water generated at the catalyst layer is quickly sucked out to the gas diffusion layer, and is evaporated at the gas diffusion layer to be effectively exhausted to outside the fuel cell, so that excessive water can be prevented from retaining in the gas diffusion electrode, with the polymer electrolyte membrane being maintained at an appropriately wet condition.

A method for producing a membrane electrode assemblyfor solid polymer electrolyte fuel cell, the membrane electrode assemblyincluding a solid polymer electrolyte membranecomprising an ion exchange membrane, a first electrodehaving a first catalyst layer, and a second electrodehaving a second catalyst layer, the first electrodeand the second electrodebeing disposed so as to be opposed to each other via the ion exchange membrane, the method including: applying a coating solution containing a catalyst onto a base filmto form a first catalyst layer; applying a coating solution containing an ion exchange resin dissolved or dispersed in a liquid onto the first catalyst layerto form an ion exchange membrane; then applying a coating solution containing a catalyst onto the ion exchange membrane to form a second catalyst layer; and finally, peeling off the base filmfrom a resulting laminate. According to this method, it is possible to produce membrane electrode assemblyfor high-performance solid polymer electrolyte fuel cell having catalyst layers each having a uniform thickness efficiently and continuously.

Method for producing film electrode jointed product and method for producing solid polymer type fuel cell

The polymer electrolyte fuel cell of the present invention exhibits an excellent performance with an efficient electrode reaction; by providing a layer comprising an electroconductive fine particle between the catalytic reaction layer and the gas diffusion layer in the electrodes; by providing a hydrogen ion diffusion layer on at least either surface of the catalyst particle or the carrier, which carries the catalyst particle in the catalytic reaction layer; or by constituting the catalytic reaction layer with at least a catalyst comprising a hydrophilic carbon material with catalyst particles carried thereon and a water repellent carbon material.

Growing community of inventors

Uji, Japan

Yasuo Takebe