JP2014191995A - Fuel cell module - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fuel cell module capable of reducing a temperature difference in a plurality of cell stacks.SOLUTION: A plurality of cell stacks 5 created by disposing a plurality of fuel battery cells 3 upright in one row are juxtaposed so that cell arrangement directions x of the fuel battery cells 3 are parallel, and a heat insulation member 13 is disposed on both sides in arrangement direction y of the cell stacks 5 and between the cell stacks 5 so as to be parallel with the cell arrangement direction y and along the upright direction of the fuel battery cells 3. A lid member 14 is disposed at top ends of a plurality of heat insulation members 13 so as to bridge over the top ends, the lid member 14 being provided with an exhaust gas lead-out port 14a for leading an exhaust gas out of the fuel battery cells 3.

Description

  The present invention relates to a fuel cell module, and more particularly to a fuel cell module in which a plurality of cell stacks are arranged in parallel.

  In recent years, fuel cells that can obtain electric power using hydrogen-containing gas and oxygen-containing gas (air) as next-generation energy have been developed. Furthermore, a cell stack device in which a plurality of fuel cells are arranged in a row and electrically connected in series is provided in parallel in a gas tank so as to form a plurality of rows, and the cell stack device is Various fuel cell modules housed in storage containers have been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  In Patent Document 1, an oxygen-containing gas supply plate is arranged between cell stacks, and oxygen-containing gas is supplied to fuel cells constituting the cell stacks on both sides. Moreover, the heat insulation member was arrange | positioned so that two rows of cell stacks may be pinched | interposed, and the heat dissipation from the cell stack was suppressed.

JP 2010-231919 A

  In recent years, the use of fuel cells has been studied in addition to home use. For example, fuel cells for business use in hospitals, hotels, stores, etc. are required to generate electricity of several kW or more.

  When the amount of power generated by the fuel cell increases in this way, a plurality of cell stacks formed by electrically connecting a plurality of fuel battery cells are stored in the storage container. Therefore, the temperature difference depends on the position of the cell stack in the storage container. There was a problem that the power generation performance of each cell stack was different.

  And even if it is a case where a heat insulation member is arranged so that a plurality of, for example, three or more cell stacks may be sandwiched as in Patent Document 1, a temperature difference occurs depending on the arrangement position of the cell stack, and power generation in each cell stack There was a problem that the performance was different.

  An object of this invention is to provide the fuel cell module which can reduce the temperature difference in a some cell stack.

  In the fuel cell module of the present invention, a plurality of cell stacks in which a plurality of fuel cells are erected in a row are arranged in parallel so that the cell arrangement directions of the fuel cells are parallel, A heat insulating member is arranged on both sides of the cell stack in the arrangement direction and between the cell stacks so as to be parallel to the cell arrangement direction and along the standing direction of the fuel cell, and the upper ends of the plurality of heat insulation members A lid member is arranged so as to span the part, and an exhaust gas outlet for deriving exhaust gas from the fuel cell is provided in the lid member.

In the fuel cell module according to the present invention, the heat insulating members are respectively disposed on both sides of the cell stack in the arrangement direction and between the cell stacks, and the lid members are disposed so as to span the upper ends of the plurality of heat insulating members. The group consisting of a plurality of cell stacks is divided into a plurality of parts by the member, temperature interference between the divided groups is reduced, and a temperature difference between the plurality of cell stacks can be reduced.

1 shows a fuel cell module, where (a) is a schematic plan view seen from above a cell stack, and (b) is a schematic cross-sectional view. It is a schematic sectional drawing which shows the fuel cell module which has three cell stack apparatuses which provided the cell stack of 2 rows in the gas tank. 1 shows a fuel cell module having two cell stack devices in which three rows of cell stacks are provided in a gas tank, wherein (a) is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state in which an oxygen-containing gas supply plate is arranged between the cell stacks; ) Is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a state in which oxygen-containing gas supply plates are arranged on both sides of the cell stack in the arrangement direction. 1 shows a fuel cell module in which two rows of cell stacks are surrounded by a heat insulating member and a lid member, where (a) is a schematic cross-sectional view, and (b) is a schematic plan view viewed from above the cell stack.

  FIG. 1 shows a part of a fuel cell module. As shown in FIG. 1 (b), the fuel cell module includes two cell stack devices 8 each having two cell stacks 5 in a storage container 2. In FIG. 1A, the storage container is omitted.

  The cell stack 5 is arranged in a row with columnar fuel cells 3 having gas flow paths through which gas flows, and a current collecting member (not shown) between adjacent fuel cells 3. ) Through an electrical connection in series. The cell stack device 8 includes a gas tank 4 for supplying fuel gas to the fuel cells 3 at the lower ends of the two rows of cell stacks 5 arranged in parallel so that the cell arrangement direction x of the fuel cells 3 is parallel. It is configured to be fixed to.

  End current collecting members having current drawing portions for drawing current generated by power generation of the fuel cell 3 so as to sandwich the cell stack 5 at both ends in the cell arrangement direction x of the fuel cell 3 of the cell stack 5 9 is arranged.

  Note that the lower ends of the fuel cells 3 and the end current collecting members 9 constituting the cell stack 5 are fixed to the gas tank 4 by an insulating bonding material (not shown) such as a glass sealing material.

  Further, in FIG. 1, the fuel battery cell 3 is a hollow flat plate type having a gas flow path through which a hydrogen-containing gas (fuel gas) flows in the longitudinal direction. A fuel-side electrode layer, a solid electrolyte is formed on the surface of the support. A solid oxide fuel cell 3 in which a layer and an oxygen electrode layer are sequentially provided is illustrated. The fuel cell 3 has a power generation element portion in which a fuel side electrode layer, a solid electrolyte layer, and an oxygen side electrode layer are superimposed on substantially the entire length direction (standing direction) in FIG.

  In addition to the above, as the fuel cell 3, for example, a cylindrical or flat fuel cell can be used. In this case, the shape of the end current collecting member 9 can be changed as appropriate.

Further, in FIG. 1, in order to obtain a fuel gas used for power generation of the fuel cell 3, a reformer 10 for reforming raw fuel such as natural gas or kerosene to generate a fuel gas includes a cell stack 5. It is disposed above (fuel cell 3). The fuel gas generated in the reformer 10 is supplied to the gas tank 4 through the gas circulation pipe, and is supplied to the gas flow path provided inside the fuel battery cell 3 through the gas tank 4.

  FIG. 1 shows a fuel cell module having two cell stack devices 8 in which two cell stacks 5 are juxtaposed on one gas tank 4. The cell stacks 5 are arranged in parallel so that the cell arrangement directions x of the fuel cells 3 are parallel to each other, and the current drawing portions 12 on the same side of the cell stack 5 are connected by the conductive connecting member 11. Thus, the two cell stacks 5 are connected in series. Similarly, when three or more cell stacks 5 are arranged in parallel, the current drawing portions 12 on the same side of the cell stack 5 can be connected by the connecting member 11. Note that the cell stacks 5 may be connected in parallel, or series and parallel may be mixed.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 1A, the cell stack devices 8 are connected to each other by connecting the current drawing portions 12 adjacent to each other by the connecting member 11, so that the four cell stacks 5 are connected in series. ing.

  A current collecting member is disposed between each fuel cell 3 and between the end portion in the arrangement direction of the fuel cell 3 and the end current collecting member 9, whereby each fuel cell 3 is electrically connected. Connected in series. The current (voltage) obtained by the power generation of the fuel cell 3 is connected by the end current collecting member via the current collecting member arranged at the end of the fuel cell 3 in the cell arrangement direction x.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the fuel cell module according to the present embodiment is arranged in parallel with the cell arrangement direction x and between the cell stack 5 on both sides of the cell stack 5 and between the cell stacks 5. The heat insulating member 13 is disposed along the installation direction, and the lid member 14 is disposed so as to span the upper end portions of the three heat insulating members 13. In other words, the heat insulating member 13 disposed between the cell stacks 5 is disposed between the two cell stack devices 8.

  The heat insulating member 13 is disposed on the upper surface of the gas tank 4. The heat insulating member 13 is plate-shaped, and a commonly used heat insulating material can be used.

  The lid member 14 is provided with an exhaust gas outlet 14a for exhausting the exhaust gas from the fuel cell 3. The lid member 14 can be made of a heat-resistant metal. In this case, there is an effect that it is easy to form openings such as the exhaust gas outlet 14a and the openings are not easily deteriorated. The lid member 14 can be formed of a heat insulating member. In this case, heat dissipation from the lid member 14 can be suppressed.

  The lid member 14 is in the form of a single plate, whereby a plurality of heat insulating members 13 are arranged on the upper end of the three heat insulating members 13 after arranging the plurality of heat insulating members 13. The lid member 14 can be disposed at the top of 13 at a stroke. At this time, a recess or opening into which the upper end of the heat insulating member 13 is fitted is formed in the lid member 14, and when the lid member 14 is disposed at the upper end of the heat insulating member 13, the upper end of the heat insulating member 13 is A strong structure can be formed by fitting into the opening. The lid member 14 may be divided into a plurality of pieces instead of a single plate.

  A reformer 10 is provided above the exhaust gas outlet 14a. Excess fuel gas that has not been used for power generation of the fuel cell 3 burns, and the reformer 10 is heated by the combustion gas. Excess fuel gas may be combusted in the space formed by the heat insulating member 13 and the lid member 14, but may be performed after being derived from the exhaust gas outlet 14 a of the lid member 14.

Between the cell stacks 5 of the cell stack device 8, there is provided an oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 arranged in parallel with the cell arrangement direction x and along the standing direction of the fuel cell 3, and this oxygen-containing gas The supply plate 17 is inserted through the opening formed in the lid member 14.

  That is, the oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 is disposed between the two cell stacks 5 provided in the cell stack device 8, extends upward between the reformers 10, and is formed by the inner wall and the outer wall of the storage container 2. The oxygen-containing gas flow path 19 is communicated.

  These oxygen-containing gas supply plates 17 are arranged in parallel with the cell rows. Further, the oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 is disposed along substantially the entire region of the fuel cell 3 in the length direction. That is, the oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 has a rectangular plate shape whose height is higher than that of the fuel cell 3 and whose length is longer than that of the stack 5. The oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 is not limited to this, and may be a cylindrical tube, for example.

  The oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 has a flow path (not shown) through which oxygen-containing gas flows, and the lower end of the oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 is positioned slightly above the upper surface of the gas tank 4. Yes.

  A plurality of oxygen-containing gas supply holes are provided on both side surfaces of the lower part of the oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 so as to correspond to the lower part of the cell stack 5, and the oxygen-containing gas is supplied in the direction indicated by the arrow in FIG. Gas is configured to be supplied.

  Since the oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 can be positioned between the cell stacks 5 by inserting the oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 into the opening formed in the lid member 14, the work process can be simplified. Further, the oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 can be inserted into the opening formed in the lid member 14 and can be assembled so that the oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 is positioned between the cell stacks 5. The work process can be simplified.

  In the fuel cell module configured as described above, the heat insulating member 13 is disposed on both sides of the cell stack 5 in the arrangement direction y and between the cell stacks 5, and the lid member is spanned over the upper ends of the three heat insulating members 13. 14 is arranged, two groups of two cell stacks 5 are divided by the heat insulating member 13 and the cover member 14, and temperature interference between the two divided groups is reduced, and a plurality of cells are formed. The temperature difference in the stack 5 can be reduced.

  The central heat insulating member 13 that divides the two groups only needs to have a heat insulating effect that can reduce the temperature interference between the groups. Therefore, the central heat insulating member 13 has a lower heat insulating property than the heat insulating members 13 on both sides. Or a heat insulating member having a small thickness can be used. On the contrary, the heat insulating members 13 on both sides are made of a material having a higher heat insulating property than that of the central heat insulating member 13 or a heat insulating member having a large thickness, so that even if there is no heat source on both sides in the cell stack arrangement direction, the cell The temperature drop of the cell stack 5 positioned on both sides of the stack arrangement direction can be further suppressed.

  In the above embodiment, the fuel cell module having two cell stack devices 8 provided with two cell stacks 5 in the gas tank 4 has been described. However, the cell stack device provided with four cell stacks in one gas tank. In addition, four cell stack apparatuses in which one cell stack is provided in one gas tank may be used.

  Moreover, although the form which provided the reformer 10 above each cell stack 5 was demonstrated, one reformer may be provided in one cell stack apparatus, and one fuel cell module is provided. A reformer may be provided.

FIG. 2 shows a fuel cell module having three cell stack devices 8 in which two cell stacks 5 are provided in the gas tank 4, and this fuel cell module can achieve the same effect as the above embodiment.

  In this embodiment, among the three groups divided by the heat insulating member 13, the cell stack 5 of the group located in the center is more likely to accumulate heat than the cell stacks 5 of the groups on both sides. The cell stack 5 tends to be hot. For this reason, the supply amount of the relatively low temperature oxygen-containing gas supplied by the oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 located in each group can be controlled, and the oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 of the group located in the center can control the supply amount. The temperature of the cell stack 5 of the group located in the center is increased by making the supply amount of the oxygen-containing gas supplied larger than the supply amount of the oxygen-containing gas supplied by the oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 of the group located on both sides. The temperature difference in the cell stack 5 can be further reduced.

  Also in this embodiment, the heat insulating member 13 that divides the three groups only needs to have a heat insulating effect that can reduce the temperature interference between the groups. Therefore, a material having lower heat insulating properties than the heat insulating members 13 on both sides is used. Or a thin heat insulating member can be used. Conversely, by using a heat insulating material on both sides of the heat insulating member 13 that is higher than the heat insulating member 13 on the center side or using a thick heat insulating member, even when there is no heat source on both sides in the arrangement direction of the cell stack, It is possible to further suppress the temperature drop of the cell stack 5 located on both sides of the cell stack in the arrangement direction.

  FIG. 3 shows a fuel cell module having two cell stack devices 8 in which three cell stacks 5 are provided in the gas tank 4, and this embodiment can also achieve the same effect as the above embodiment.

  3A, the oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 is arranged between the cell stacks 5. However, as shown in FIG. 3B, the oxygen-containing gas supply plate 17 is arranged between the cell stacks 5. As shown in FIG. Instead, the oxygen-containing gas supply plates 17 may be arranged on both sides of the three cell stacks in the cell stack device 8, and the arrangement of the oxygen-containing gas supply plates 17 is not particularly limited.

  FIG. 4 shows a configuration in which the heat insulating member 13 is arranged along the arrangement direction y of the cell stack 5, unlike FIGS. 1 to 3 in which the heat insulating member 13 is arranged along the arrangement direction x of the fuel cells 3. In this embodiment, the heat insulating member 13a arranged along the arrangement direction x of the fuel cells 3, the heat insulating member 13b arranged along the arrangement direction y of the cell stack 5, and the heat insulating member 13a and the heat insulating member 13b. And the two cell stacks 5 are surrounded by the heat insulating member 13a, the heat insulating member 13b, and the cover member 14.

  In such a fuel cell module, since the two cell stacks 5 are surrounded by the heat insulating members 13a and 13b and the lid member 14, the temperature interference of the cell stacks 5 in each group can be further reduced, and each It is also possible to control the temperature of the cell stack 5 in the group.

  Although the present invention has been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and improvements can be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

2: storage container 3: fuel cell 4: gas tank 5: cell stack 8: cell stack device 10: reformers 13, 13a, 13b: heat insulating member 14: lid member 14a: exhaust gas outlet 17: oxygen-containing gas supply plate

Claims (4)

  A plurality of cell stacks in which a plurality of fuel cells are erected in a row are arranged in parallel so that the cell arrangement direction of the fuel cells is parallel, and both sides of the cell stack in the arrangement direction and A lid member is disposed between the cell stacks so as to be parallel to the cell arrangement direction and along the standing direction of the fuel cell, and spans the upper end portions of the plurality of the heat insulating members. The fuel cell module is characterized in that an exhaust gas outlet for extracting exhaust gas from the fuel cell is provided in the lid member.   Between the heat insulating members, there is an oxygen-containing gas supply plate arranged in parallel with the cell arrangement direction and along the standing direction of the fuel cell, and the oxygen-containing gas supply plate is the lid member The fuel cell module according to claim 1, wherein the opening formed in is inserted through the fuel cell module.   The fuel cell module according to claim 1, wherein a reformer that generates fuel gas supplied to the fuel cell is disposed above the exhaust gas outlet of the lid member.   The two rows of the cell stacks are arranged between the heat insulating members, and the oxygen-containing gas supply plate is arranged between the two rows of cell stacks. Fuel cell module.

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