CN215680726U

CN215680726U - Compact fuel cell unit module and fuel cell

Info

Publication number: CN215680726U
Application number: CN202121640303.1U
Authority: CN
Inventors: 徐一凡; 程旌德
Original assignee: Shanghai H Rise New Energy Technology Co Ltd
Current assignee: Shanghai H Rise New Energy Technology Co Ltd
Priority date: 2021-07-19
Filing date: 2021-07-19
Publication date: 2022-01-28
Anticipated expiration: 2031-07-19

Abstract

The utility model relates to a compact fuel cell unit module and a fuel cell, wherein the cell unit comprises a cathode plate, a membrane electrode assembly and an anode plate which are sequentially stacked; the coolant inlet and the coolant outlet are distributed in the center of the left side or the right side of the unit module, and the coolant flow channel is a serpentine flow channel; the anode gas inlet and the anode gas outlet are distributed on two corners of the unit module, which are on the same side as the coolant inlet and the coolant outlet, and the anode gas flow channel and the coolant flow channel are distributed in the same way and are serpentine flow channels; the cathode gas inlet and the cathode gas outlet respectively comprise a plurality of through holes, the through holes are symmetrically distributed on the upper side edge and the lower side edge of the unit module, the cathode gas flow channels are multi-row linear sub-flow channels, and the two ends of each linear sub-flow channel are respectively connected with the through holes of the cathode gas inlet and the cathode gas outlet. Compared with the prior art, the utility model has the advantages of good battery performance, small and compact integral structure and the like.

Description

Compact fuel cell unit module and fuel cell

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of fuel cell technology, and more particularly, to a compact fuel cell unit module and a fuel cell.

Background

The fuel cell is a power generation device with the characteristics of environmental friendliness, high working efficiency, long service life and the like. Taking a hydrogen fuel cell (proton exchange membrane fuel cell) as an example, hydrogen enters the inside of the cell from the anode side of the cell, hydrogen atoms become protons after the anode loses electrons, the protons pass through the proton exchange membrane inside the cell to reach the cathode of the cell, and meanwhile, the electrons also reach the cathode of the cell through an external loop. At the cathode side of the cell, the protons, electrons, and oxygen combine to produce water, thereby producing an electric current. The traditional fuel cell reactor core structure is a membrane electrode and a bipolar plate which are simply and alternately stacked, a cathode gas flow channel and an anode gas flow channel are respectively arranged on the top surface and the bottom surface of the bipolar plate, and a coolant flow channel is arranged in the middle of the bipolar plate. Such conventional structures generally have the following problems: 1. the cathode gas flow path, the anode gas flow path and the coolant flow path are not uniformly and reasonably planned and arranged, so that a large area of gas reaction space is required, and the fuel cell has a large volume and low energy density on the whole. 2. When the fuel cell is assembled, a layer of bipolar plate and a layer of membrane electrode are required to be overlapped and assembled in sequence in a low position and then fixed through installation parts such as a pull rod, so that the assembly precision requirement is high, the membrane electrode and the bipolar plate which are directly overlapped are not attached to each other easily, the fragile membrane electrode is damaged easily, and the stable work of a stack is influenced.

SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

It is an object of the present invention to overcome the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art and to provide a compact fuel cell unit module and a fuel cell.

The purpose of the utility model can be realized by the following technical scheme:

a compact fuel cell unit module comprises a cathode plate, a membrane electrode assembly and an anode plate which are sequentially stacked, wherein a cathode gas flow channel is arranged on one surface of the cathode plate facing the membrane electrode assembly, an anode gas flow channel is arranged on one surface of the anode plate facing the membrane electrode assembly, a plurality of unit modules are stacked, and a coolant flow channel is formed between the cathode plate and the anode plate of two adjacent unit modules;

the unit module is provided with a cathode gas inlet, a cathode gas outlet, an anode gas inlet, an anode gas outlet, a coolant inlet and a coolant outlet, the cathode gas inlet and the cathode gas outlet are connected with a cathode gas flow channel, the anode gas inlet and the anode gas outlet are communicated with an anode gas flow channel, and the coolant inlet and the coolant outlet are connected with a coolant flow channel;

the coolant inlet and the coolant outlet are distributed at the center of the left side or the right side of the unit module, and the coolant flow channel is a serpentine flow channel; the anode gas inlet and the anode gas outlet are distributed on two corners of the unit module, which are on the same side as the coolant inlet and the coolant outlet, and the anode gas flow channel and the coolant flow channel are distributed in the same way and are serpentine flow channels; the cathode gas inlet and the cathode gas outlet respectively comprise a plurality of through holes, the through holes are symmetrically distributed on the upper side edge and the lower side edge of the unit module, the cathode gas flow channels are multi-row linear sub-flow channels, and the two ends of each linear sub-flow channel are respectively connected with the through holes of the cathode gas inlet and the cathode gas outlet.

Further, the membrane electrode assembly comprises a proton membrane reaction area and a membrane electrode frame, the membrane electrode frame is directly injected outside the proton membrane reaction area, and the cathode plate and the anode plate are adhered to the lower surface and the upper surface of the membrane electrode frame through adhesive.

Furthermore, the frame of the membrane electrode adopts a silica gel frame or a rubber frame.

Further, the adhesive glue is pressure-sensitive glue or hot-pressing glue.

Furthermore, one corner of each of the cathode plate and the anode plate is provided with a positioning mechanism, and when the cathode plate and the anode plate of two adjacent unit modules are attached, the positioning mechanisms are mutually embedded and locked.

Furthermore, the positioning mechanism on the anode plate is a convex block, the positioning mechanism on the cathode plate is a groove, and the convex block of the anode plate on one unit module is embedded into the groove of the cathode plate on the adjacent unit module.

Further, the coolant inlet and the coolant outlet are identical in shape and each include two right-angled sides and a diagonal side, wherein one of the right-angled sides is parallel to the left or right side of the unit module, and the diagonal side faces the upper or lower side of the unit module.

Further, a sealing ring is arranged on the outer side face of the cathode plate, a sealing groove is arranged on the outer side face of the anode plate, and when two adjacent unit modules are stacked, the sealing ring is embedded into the sealing groove to form a sealing structure to surround the coolant flow channel.

A fuel cell includes a stack core formed by stacking a plurality of fuel cell unit modules as described above, and end plates fixed to upper and lower sides of the stack core.

Compared with the prior art, the utility model has the following beneficial effects:

the utility model replans the flow channel on the battery unit module and the inlet and outlet layout of the gas and the cooling liquid, which not only can balance and match the reaction concentration of the anode gas and the cathode gas to ensure that the whole flow field carries out more uniform reaction, but also can fully utilize the temperature gradient of the coolant to balance the water evaporation and condensation of the cathode, ensure that the reaction maintains proper temperature and humidity range in the whole section, and is beneficial to enhancing mass transfer and improving the battery performance. Meanwhile, the size and the area are considered in the layout, so that the whole area of the unit module is small and compact, and the structure development of a miniaturized battery is facilitated.

2-in the membrane electrode assembly of the utility model, the frame of the membrane electrode is directly injected on the proton membrane reaction area (including the proton membrane and the cathode and anode GDL at two sides), thus improving the strength of the membrane electrode assembly and avoiding the direct pressure on the membrane electrode in the installation process; meanwhile, the cathode plate and the anode plate can be directly assembled with the membrane electrode assembly through the membrane electrode frame, so that the structure and the installation process are simplified, and the production efficiency is improved.

3-the utility model improves the assembly convenience between the battery unit modules and is beneficial to the installation operation by arranging the positioning mechanisms on the cathode plate and the anode plate.

4-the coolant inlet and the coolant outlet adopt the shape similar to a right triangle, thereby facilitating the arrangement of other gas inlets and outlets, increasing the flow passage area in a limited space, leading the arrangement of the unit module to be more compact and improving the energy density.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of an explosive structure of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a schematic top view of the present invention.

Figure 3 is a schematic bottom view of the anode plate.

Fig. 4 is a schematic top view of the cathode plate.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line C-C in fig. 2.

Fig. 6 is a schematic structural view of the positioning mechanism.

Reference numerals: 1-a cathode plate; 2-a membrane electrode assembly; 21-proton membrane reaction zone; 22-membrane electrode frame; 3-an anode plate; 4-a positioning mechanism; 41-raised blocks; 42-a groove; 51-a sealing ring; 52-sealing groove; 101-cathode gas flow channel; 102-anode gas flow channel; 103-coolant flow channels; 201-cathode gas inlet; 202-cathode gas outlet; 203-anode gas inlet; 204-anode gas outlet; 205-coolant inlet; 206-coolant outlet.

Detailed Description

The utility model is described in detail below with reference to the figures and specific embodiments. The present embodiment is implemented on the premise of the technical solution of the present invention, and a detailed implementation manner and a specific operation process are given, but the scope of the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

Example 1

As shown in fig. 1 to 5, the present embodiment provides a compact fuel cell unit module including a cathode plate 1, a membrane electrode assembly 2, and an anode plate 3, which are sequentially stacked. A cathode gas flow channel 101 is arranged on one surface of the cathode plate 1 facing the membrane electrode assembly 2; an anode gas flow channel 102 is arranged on one surface of the anode plate 3 facing the membrane electrode assembly 2; a plurality of unit modules are stacked, and a coolant flow channel 103 is formed between the cathode plate 1 and the anode plate 3 of two adjacent unit modules, specifically: the outer side surface of the cathode plate 1 is provided with a sealing ring 51, the outer side surface of the anode plate 3 is provided with a sealing groove 52, and when two adjacent unit modules are stacked, the sealing ring 51 is embedded in the sealing groove 52 to form a sealing structure surrounding the coolant flow passage 103.

The unit modules are provided with a cathode gas inlet 201, a cathode gas outlet 202, an anode gas inlet 203, an anode gas outlet 204, a coolant inlet 205, and a coolant outlet 206. The cathode gas inlet 201 and the cathode gas outlet 202 are connected to the cathode gas flow path 101, the anode gas inlet 203 and the anode gas outlet 204 are communicated with the anode gas flow path 102, and the coolant inlet 205 and the coolant outlet 206 are connected to the coolant flow path 103. The concrete distribution is as follows: the coolant inlet 205 and the coolant outlet 206 are distributed at the center of the left side of the unit module, and the coolant flow channel 103 is a transverse serpentine flow channel having both ends respectively connected to the coolant inlet 205 and the coolant outlet 206. The anode gas inlet 203 and the anode gas outlet 204 are distributed at two corners of the left side of the unit module, the anode gas flow channel 102 and the coolant flow channel 103 are distributed in the same manner and are transverse serpentine flow channels, and two ends of the anode gas flow channel are respectively communicated with the anode gas inlet 203 and the anode gas outlet 204. The cathode gas inlet 201 and the cathode gas outlet 202 are distributed on the upper side and the lower side of the unit module, the cathode gas inlet 201 and the cathode gas outlet 202 both comprise a plurality of through holes, the upper side and the lower side are symmetrically distributed, the cathode gas flow channel 101 is a plurality of rows of linear sub-flow channels, and two ends of each linear sub-flow channel are respectively connected with the through holes of the cathode gas inlet 201 and the cathode gas outlet 202.

In this embodiment, the anode gas inlet 203 and the cathode gas outlet 202 are located on the same side, and the anode gas outlet 204 and the cathode gas inlet 201 are located on the same side, so that the anode gas and the cathode gas are arranged in a counter flow, and the gas concentrations can be matched in a balanced manner, so that the reaction can be performed relatively uniformly on the whole cell. Meanwhile, the anode gas inlet 203 and the coolant inlet 205 are on the same side, and the anode gas outlet 204 and the coolant outlet 206 are on the same side. Because the coolant inlet temperature is lower, the outlet temperature is higher. The humidity of an anode gas inlet is smaller, and the humidity of an outlet is larger; the reaction performance of the anode gas is generally lower at the inlet and then is increased, and the performance is reduced due to the consumption of the anode gas as the anode gas is closer to the outlet, so that the coolant and the anode gas are arranged in the same direction, the water evaporation and condensation of the cathode can be balanced by utilizing the temperature gradient of the coolant, the reaction can be maintained in proper temperature and humidity ranges in the whole section, the mass transfer is favorably enhanced, and the battery performance is improved.

The membrane electrode assembly 2 comprises a proton membrane reaction area 21 and a membrane electrode frame 22, the membrane electrode frame 22 is directly injected outside the proton membrane reaction area 21, and the cathode plate 1 and the anode plate 3 are adhered to the upper surface and the lower surface of the membrane electrode frame 22 through adhesive. The frame 22 of the membrane electrode adopts a silica gel frame or a rubber frame, and the injection molding temperature is 60-130 ℃. The adhesive glue is pressure-sensitive glue or hot-pressing glue. Compared with the traditional process, the embodiment directly injects the membrane electrode frame 22 onto the proton membrane reaction area 21, improves the strength of the membrane electrode assembly 2, and avoids the direct pressure on the membrane electrode in the installation process; meanwhile, the cathode plate 1 and the anode plate 3 can be directly assembled with the membrane electrode assembly 2 through the membrane electrode frame 22, so that the structure and the installation process are simplified, and the production efficiency is improved.

As shown in fig. 1 and fig. 6, in this embodiment, when the cathode plate 1 and the anode plate 3 of two adjacent unit modules with positioning mechanisms 4 disposed at one corner of the cathode plate 1 and the anode plate 3 are attached, the positioning mechanisms 4 are mutually embedded and locked, specifically, the positioning mechanism 4 on the anode plate 3 is a protrusion 41, the positioning mechanism 4 on the cathode plate 1 is a groove 42, the protrusion 41 of the anode plate 3 on one unit module is embedded into the groove 42 of the cathode plate 1 on the adjacent unit module, the gap value is (H-H)/2, and the range is 0.1-0.15 mm.

In this embodiment, the coolant inlet 205 and the coolant outlet 206 are identical in shape, are each a right-angled triangle, and in this embodiment are right-angled trapezoids including two right-angled sides and a hypotenuse, where one of the right-angled sides is parallel to the left side of the unit module, and the hypotenuse faces the upper side or the lower side of the unit module. The structure is convenient for the arrangement of other gas inlets and outlets, increases the flow passage area in a limited space, makes the arrangement of the unit modules more compact, and improves the energy density.

Example 2

An embodiment provides a fuel cell including a stack core and an end plate. The stack core is formed by stacking a plurality of fuel cell unit modules described in example 1. The structure replans the minimum unit module of the reactor core, and realizes the direct encapsulation of the single cathode plate, the single anode plate and the membrane electrode assembly through the injection molding process. In the overall installation process of the fuel cell, the assembly can be completed only by re-stacking the unit modules.

The foregoing detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the utility model has been presented. It should be understood that numerous modifications and variations could be devised by those skilled in the art in light of the present teachings without departing from the inventive concepts. Therefore, the technical solutions available to those skilled in the art through logic analysis, reasoning and limited experiments based on the prior art according to the concept of the present invention should be within the scope of protection defined by the claims.

Claims

1. A compact fuel cell unit module comprises a cathode plate (1), a membrane electrode assembly (2) and an anode plate (3) which are sequentially stacked, wherein a cathode gas flow channel (101) is arranged on one surface of the cathode plate (1) facing the membrane electrode assembly (2), an anode gas flow channel (102) is arranged on one surface of the anode plate (3) facing the membrane electrode assembly (2), a plurality of unit modules are stacked, and a coolant flow channel (103) is formed between the cathode plate (1) and the anode plate (3) of two adjacent unit modules;

the unit module is provided with a cathode gas inlet (201), a cathode gas outlet (202), an anode gas inlet (203), an anode gas outlet (204), a coolant inlet (205) and a coolant outlet (206), the cathode gas inlet (201) and the cathode gas outlet (202) are connected with a cathode gas flow channel (101), the anode gas inlet (203) and the anode gas outlet (204) are communicated with an anode gas flow channel (102), and the coolant inlet (205) and the coolant outlet (206) are connected with a coolant flow channel (103);

the coolant inlet (205) and the coolant outlet (206) are distributed at the center of the left side or the right side of the unit module, and the coolant flow channel (103) is a serpentine flow channel; the anode gas inlet (203) and the anode gas outlet (204) are distributed on two corners of the unit module on the same side with the coolant inlet (205) and the coolant outlet (206), and the anode gas flow channel (102) and the coolant flow channel (103) are distributed in the same way and are serpentine flow channels; the cathode gas inlet (201) and the cathode gas outlet (202) respectively comprise a plurality of through holes which are symmetrically distributed on the upper side edge and the lower side edge of the unit module, the cathode gas flow channel (101) is a plurality of rows of linear sub-flow channels, and two ends of each linear sub-flow channel are respectively connected with the through holes of the cathode gas inlet (201) and the cathode gas outlet (202).

2. A compact fuel cell unit module according to claim 1, characterized in that the membrane electrode assembly (2) comprises a proton membrane reaction area (21) and a membrane electrode frame (22), the membrane electrode frame (22) is directly injection-molded on the outside of the proton membrane reaction area (21), and the cathode plate (1) and the anode plate (3) are adhered by adhesive on the lower surface and the upper surface of the membrane electrode frame (22).

3. A compact fuel cell module as claimed in claim 2, characterised in that the membrane electrode frame (22) is a silicone frame or a rubber frame.

4. The compact fuel cell module of claim 2, wherein said adhesive is a pressure sensitive adhesive or a hot press adhesive.

5. The compact fuel cell unit module as claimed in claim 1, wherein a positioning mechanism (4) is provided at one corner of each of the cathode plate (1) and the anode plate (3), and the positioning mechanisms (4) are engaged and locked with each other when the cathode plate (1) and the anode plate (3) of two adjacent unit modules are attached.

6. A compact fuel cell unit module according to claim 5, characterized in that the locating means (4) on the anode plate (3) are protrusions (41) and the locating means (4) on the cathode plate (1) are recesses (42), the protrusions (41) of the anode plate (3) on one unit module fitting into the recesses (42) of the cathode plate (1) on the adjacent unit module.

7. A compact fuel cell module as claimed in claim 1 wherein the coolant inlet (205) and coolant outlet (206) are of the same shape and each comprises two perpendicular sides and a sloping side, one of the perpendicular sides being parallel to the left or right side of the module and the sloping side being towards the upper or lower side of the module.

8. A compact fuel cell unit module as claimed in claim 1, wherein the cathode plate (1) is provided with a sealing ring (51) on the outer side thereof, the anode plate (3) is provided with a sealing groove (52) on the outer side thereof, and when two adjacent unit modules are stacked, the sealing ring (51) is fitted into the sealing groove (52) to constitute a sealing structure surrounding the coolant flow passage (103).

9. A fuel cell comprising a stack core and end plates, wherein the stack core is formed by stacking a plurality of fuel cell unit modules according to any one of claims 1 to 8, and the end plates are fixed to upper and lower sides of the stack core.