JP2020087505A - Inspection equipment of fuel cell - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide inspection equipment capable of exhausting fuel cell gas, stagnant in the anode side gas flow path and in the fuel cell, well.SOLUTION: Inspection equipment of fuel cell includes an anode side gas flow path and a cathode side gas flow path where a processing part, e.g., a heater, is installed, an inspection part for inspecting electricity generation state of the fuel cell, an inert gas introduction path, and a control section. The inert gas introduction path has a first introduction path connected to a fuel gas supply part side farther than the processing part in the anode side gas flow path, a second introduction path connected to the fuel cell side farther than the processing part in the anode side gas flow path, and a third introduction path connected to an oxidizer gas supply part side farther than the processing part in the cathode side gas flow path. After inspection by the inspection part, the control section supplies inert gas to the fuel cell via the first and third introduction paths, at first, and after a prescribed time, supplies inert gas to the fuel cell via the second and third introduction paths.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

The present invention relates to a fuel cell inspection device.

A fuel cell is known which includes a membrane electrode assembly in which both anode and cathode electrode catalyst layers are joined to the membrane surface of an electrolyte membrane. In Patent Document 1, before the fuel cell is shipped, a fuel gas/oxidant gas is supplied to the fuel cell to inspect the power generation state, and then an inert gas is supplied to the fuel gas passage and the oxidant gas passage. Techniques for supplying and purging both gas channels and the fuel cell are described.

JP, 2013-134872, A

However, in the technique described in Patent Document 1, even after the inert gas is supplied to the fuel gas flow path and the oxidant gas flow path and both gas flow paths and the fuel cell are purged, the fuel gas remains in the fuel cell. There was a case where it stayed.

The present invention has been made in view of the above background, and an inspection device capable of satisfactorily exhausting the fuel cell gas accumulated in the anode gas passage and the fuel cell after the inspection of the power generation state of the fuel cell is performed. The purpose is to provide.

The present invention is an inspection device for a fuel cell including a membrane electrode assembly in which an anode side electrode catalyst layer and a cathode side electrode catalyst layer are joined to the membrane surface of an electrolyte membrane having proton conductivity, and at least a heater and a humidifier are provided. An anode side gas flow path for introducing a gas into the anode side electrode catalyst layer, and a cathode side gas flow path for introducing a gas into the cathode side electrode catalyst layer, in which a processing part including one of them is installed And a fuel gas is supplied from the fuel gas supply unit to the anode side electrode catalyst layer via the anode side gas flow path, and the cathode side is supplied from the oxidant gas supply unit via the cathode side gas flow path. An oxidant gas is supplied to the electrode catalyst layer to inspect the power generation state of the fuel cell, and the fuel cell is supplied with an inert gas from an inert gas supply section, and an inert gas introduction path, A control unit that controls the flow of the inert gas in the inert gas introduction passage, the inert gas introduction passage being connected to the fuel gas supply unit side of the processing unit in the anode gas passage. A first introduction path, a second introduction path connected to the fuel cell side of the anode side gas flow path to the fuel cell side, and an oxidation of the cathode side gas flow path to the fuel cell side of the cathode side gas flow path. A third introduction path connected to the agent gas supply unit side; and the control unit, after the inspection by the inspection unit, first passes through the first introduction path and the third introduction path. And supplying an inert gas to the fuel cell, and after a predetermined time has passed, supplying the inert gas to the fuel cell via the second introduction path and the third introduction path. Is.

After the inspection of the power generation state of the fuel cell, an inert gas is supplied to the anode gas passage and the cathode gas passage. Then, after a lapse of a predetermined time, a fuel cell purging step of further supplying an inert gas to the fuel cell without passing through the anode gas flow path is performed. By doing so, the fuel cell gas accumulated in the anode gas flow channel and the fuel cell can be satisfactorily exhausted.

According to the present invention, the fuel cell gas accumulated in the anode gas flow channel and the fuel cell can be satisfactorily exhausted.

It is a schematic diagram which shows an example of a structure of the inspection apparatus of the fuel cell which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a schematic diagram explaining control of the flow of the inert gas in an inert gas introduction path by the control part of the inspection device of the fuel cell which concerns on this Embodiment (equipment purge process). It is a schematic diagram explaining the control of the flow of the inert gas in the inert gas introduction path by the control part of the inspection device of the fuel cell which concerns on this Embodiment (fuel cell purge process).

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described through embodiments of the invention, but the invention according to the claims is not limited to the following embodiments. In addition, not all of the configurations described in the embodiments are essential as means for solving the problem. For clarity of explanation, the following description and drawings are appropriately omitted and simplified. In each drawing, the same reference numerals are given to the same elements, and duplicated explanations are omitted as necessary.

First, a configuration of a fuel cell inspection apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the configuration of a fuel cell inspection device 100 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 1, the inspection device 100 includes a fuel gas supply unit 111, an oxidant gas supply unit 112, an inert gas supply unit 113, an inspection unit 120, an inert gas introduction passage 130, and an anode side. The gas flow path 134, the cathode gas flow path 135, and the control unit 200 are provided.

The fuel cell 150 to be inspected by the inspection apparatus 100 includes a membrane electrode assembly 151 in which an anode side electrode catalyst layer 152 and a cathode side electrode catalyst layer 153 are joined to the membrane surface of an electrolyte membrane 154 having proton conductivity. The electrolyte membrane 154 is a proton-conducting ion exchange membrane formed of a solid polymer material such as a fluororesin, and exhibits good proton conductivity in a wet state. The anode side electrode catalyst layer 152 and the cathode side electrode catalyst layer 153 are provided with catalysts such as platinum and platinum alloys, and are formed by supporting these catalysts on a carrier having conductivity such as carbon particles. ing. Hydrogen is supplied as fuel gas to the anode electrode catalyst layer 152, and oxygen-containing air is supplied as an oxidant gas to the cathode electrode catalyst layer 153 to generate electricity.

The inspection unit 120 is for inspecting the power generation state of the fuel cell 150. When inspecting the power generation state, fuel gas is supplied from the fuel gas supply unit 111 to the anode electrode catalyst layer 152 via the anode gas flow path 134, and the cathode gas flow path 135 is supplied from the oxidant gas supply unit 112. The oxidant gas is supplied to the cathode-side electrode catalyst layer 153 via. The inspection unit 120 inspects the power generation state when the fuel gas is supplied to the anode electrode catalyst layer 152 and the oxidant gas is supplied to the cathode electrode catalyst layer 153.

The fuel gas supply unit 111 supplies hydrogen as a fuel gas. The oxidant gas supply unit 112 supplies air as an oxidant gas. The anode gas flow path 134 aims to introduce the fuel gas into the anode electrode catalyst layer 152. The cathode side gas flow path 135 aims to introduce the oxidant gas into the cathode side electrode catalyst layer 153.

A gas flow controller 148 is arranged near the fuel gas supply unit 111 in the anode gas flow path 134. A gas flow rate controller 148 is arranged near the oxidant gas supply unit 112 in the cathode gas flow path 135. A processing unit 147 including at least one of a heater 147a and a humidifier 147b is installed in each of the anode gas flow path 134 and the cathode gas flow path 135.

The heater 147a heats and dries the passing gas to pass the dried gas to the downstream side. Regarding the gas temperature at that time, a temperature (about 20 to 30° C.) that does not inadvertently cause the electrolyte membrane 154 to be dried. Room temperature). The humidifier 147b is configured to humidify the passing gas. The degree of humidification of the humidifier 147b can be adjusted by a control signal from the control unit 200 described later.

The inert gas introduction passage 130 supplies the inert gas from the inert gas supply unit 113 to the fuel cell 150 after the inspection of the power generation state by the inspection unit 120. The inert gas supply unit 113 supplies nitrogen as an inert gas.

The inert gas introducing passage 130 further has a first introducing passage 131, a second introducing passage 132, and a third introducing passage 133. The first introduction path 131 is connected to the fuel gas supply section 111 side of the processing section 147 in the anode gas flow path 134. The second introduction path 132 is connected to the fuel cell 150 side of the processing section 147 in the anode gas flow path 134. The third introduction passage 133 is connected to the oxidant gas supply portion 112 side of the processing portion 147 in the cathode side gas passage 135. Further, the inspection device 100 includes an anode exhaust gas pipe 136 for discharging the fuel gas together with the inert gas on the anode side of the fuel cell 150, and a cathode exhaust gas pipe for discharging the oxidant gas together with the inert gas on the cathode side of the fuel cell 150. 137 is provided. A back pressure valve 145 is installed near the outlet of each of the anode exhaust gas pipe 136 and the cathode exhaust gas pipe 137.

The control unit 200 is configured as a microcomputer including a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM, for example. The control unit 200 considers sensor signals from the pressure sensor 146 and the like, and controls the valves 149, the processing unit 147, and the like installed in the anode gas flow path 134, the cathode gas flow path 135, and the inert gas introduction path 130. Drives and controls control equipment. In the inspection of the power generation state of the fuel cell 150, the control unit 200 supplies the fuel gas to the anode electrode catalyst layer 152 via the anode gas flow path 134 and the oxidant gas to the cathode gas flow path 135. To the cathode side electrode catalyst layer 153.

After the inspection by the inspection unit, the control unit 200 controls the flow of the inert gas in the inert gas introduction passage 130. 2 and 3 are schematic diagrams illustrating control of the flow of the inert gas in the inert gas introduction passage 130 by the control unit 200. As shown in FIG. 2, after the inspection by the inspection unit, the control unit 200 first supplies an inert gas to the fuel cell 150 via the first introduction passage 131 and the third introduction passage 133 (equipment purge). Process). In the figure, the flow of the inert gas on the side of the anode electrode catalyst layer 152 and the flow of the inert gas on the side of the cathode electrode catalyst layer 153 in the equipment purging step are indicated by arrows P1 and P2, respectively. As a result, the fuel gas and the oxidant gas accumulated in the processing unit 147 and the like in the anode gas flow path 134 and the cathode gas flow path 135 can be discharged.

After the inert gas is supplied to the fuel cell 150 in the equipment purging step and a predetermined time has passed, as shown in FIG. 3, the inert gas is supplied to the fuel cell 150 via the second introduction path 132 and the third introduction path 133. An active gas is supplied (fuel cell purging step). In the figure, in the fuel cell purging step, the flow of the inert gas on the side of the anode electrode catalyst layer 152 is shown by an arrow P3, and the flow of the inert gas on the side of the cathode electrode catalyst layer 153 is shown by an arrow P4. .. When the fuel gas staying in the anode gas flow path 134 and the cathode gas flow path 135 is exhausted in the equipment purging step, the exhausted fuel gas and oxidant gas are eventually supplied to the fuel cell 150. The oxidant gas is easily replaced by nitrogen as an inert gas, but the fuel gas is difficult to be replaced by nitrogen as an inert gas. Therefore, after the facility purging process, the fuel cell stays in the fuel cell 150, and it takes time to lower the voltage of the fuel cell 150. Therefore, in the fuel cell purging step, the inert gas is supplied to the fuel cell 150 through the second introduction path 132 that does not pass through the anode gas flow path 134. As a result, the fuel gas remaining in the fuel cell 150 can be exhausted.

As described above, the inspection apparatus 100 according to the present embodiment performs the equipment purging step of supplying the inert gas to the anode gas passage 134 and the cathode gas passage 135 after the inspection by the inspection unit. Further, the inspection apparatus 100 performs the fuel cell purging step of supplying the inert gas to the fuel cell 150 without passing through the anode gas flow path 134 after the equipment purging step. By doing so, the fuel cell gas accumulated in the anode gas flow path 134 and the fuel cell 150 can be satisfactorily exhausted.

The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, but can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

100 inspection device 111 fuel gas supply unit 112 oxidant gas supply unit 113 inert gas supply unit 120 inspection unit 130 inert gas introduction path 131 first introduction path 132 second introduction path 133 third introduction path 134 anode side gas flow path 135 Cathode side gas flow path 136 Anode exhaust gas pipe 137 Cathode exhaust gas pipe 145 Back pressure valve 146 Pressure sensor 147 Processing part 147a Heater 147b Humidifier 148 Gas flow rate controller 149 Valve 150 Fuel cell 151 Membrane electrode assembly 152 Anode side electrode catalyst layer 153 Cathode Side electrode catalyst layer 154 Electrolyte membrane 200 Control unit

Claims (1)

A fuel cell inspection device comprising a membrane electrode assembly in which an anode side electrode catalyst layer and a cathode side electrode catalyst layer are joined to the membrane surface of an electrolyte membrane having proton conductivity,
A processing unit including at least one of a heater and a humidifier is installed, and an anode gas flow channel for introducing fuel gas into the anode electrode catalyst layer,
A cathode side gas flow path for introducing the oxidizing gas into the cathode side electrode catalyst layer, wherein the processing section is installed;
Fuel gas is supplied from the fuel gas supply unit to the anode electrode catalyst layer via the anode gas flow path, and the cathode electrode catalyst is supplied from the oxidant gas supply unit via the cathode gas flow path. An oxidant gas is supplied to the layer to inspect the power generation state of the fuel cell,
An inert gas introduction path for supplying an inert gas from the inert gas supply unit to the fuel cell,
A control unit for controlling the flow of the inert gas in the inert gas introduction path,
The inert gas introduction passage is a first introduction passage that is connected to the fuel gas supply unit side of the anode-side gas flow passage rather than the treatment portion, and the first introduction passage is connected to the anode-side gas passage than the treatment portion. A second introduction path connected to the fuel cell side, and a third introduction path connected to the oxidant gas supply section side of the processing section in the cathode side gas flow path,
After performing the inspection by the inspection unit, the control unit first supplies an inert gas to the fuel cell via the first introduction passage and the third introduction passage, and after a predetermined time elapses. An inspection apparatus for a fuel cell, wherein an inert gas is supplied to the fuel cell via the second introduction path and the third introduction path.

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