JPS61126775A - Fuel cell - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To facilitate the works of movement, installation in a plant, dismantlement and exchange of a fuel cell stack and at the same time to enable the shortening of workhours by making a configuration of the fuel cell stack and a base which has wheels as a driving device in front and in rear of itself and besides on the upper part of which the fuel cell stack is mounted, and setting the wheels on rails. CONSTITUTION:The configuration is made so that a pressurized container 29 in the lower part of a cell stack 40 is mounted on a base 41 with a pair of wheels 43 as a driving device in front and in rear of the base respectively and besides these two pairs of wheels 43 are set on rails 44 and thus, the base 41 is movable on the rails 44. A fuel gas supply tube 30, fuel gas exhaust tube 30a, oxidizer gas supply tube 31, oxidizer gas exhaust tube 31a, nitrogen gas supply tube 31, nitrogen gas exhaust tube 32a, cooling water supply tube 33, cooling water exhaust tube 33a and various kinds of signal wires outlets 42 are provided on one side face of the base 41 orthogonally crossing the rails 44.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Technical Field of the Invention] The present invention provides a fuel cell that facilitates the movement, installation, removal, and replacement of a fuel cell star in a plant and shortens the working time. Regarding batteries.

[Technical background of the invention and its problems]

A fuel cell (hereinafter abbreviated as battery) is a device that directly converts the chemical energy contained in fuel into electrical energy. Batteries usually have a pair of porous electrodes with an electrolyte sandwiched between them, and a fuel gas such as hydrogen is brought into contact with the back of one electrode, and an oxidizing gas such as oxygen is brought into contact with the back of the other electrode. . The structure is such that electrical energy is extracted from between the two electrodes by utilizing the electrochemical reaction that occurs between the two electrodes at this time.

Although there are molten salts, alkaline solutions, acid solutions, etc. as electrolytes, the principle of a battery using a typical 9-acid as an electrolyte will be explained. In FIG. 5, the electrolyte layer 1 is a fibrous sheet or mineral powder impregnated with citric acid. On both sides of this electrolyte layer 1, an anode electrode 2 and a cathode electrode 2at-
Arrange. Both electrodes 2.2a are formed from porous members made of carbonaceous material. Also, these two electrodes 2, 2
A platinum catalyst is usually coated on the electrolyte layer l side of each of a. The anode electrode 2 and the cathode electrode 21 are provided with a fuel gas chamber 3 through which the fuel gas flows and an oxidant gas chamber 3a through which the oxidant gas flows, respectively, on the side opposite to the electrolyte layer l side. Generally, in a phosphoric acid fuel cell, the fuel gas is hydrogen gas, and the oxidant gas is air.

The operation of such a phosphoric acid battery will be explained. Hydrogen gas in the gas that has flowed into the fuel gas chamber 3 diffuses into the cavity of the porous anode electrode 2 and reaches the catalyst. Then, the hydrogen gas is dissociated into hydrogen ions and electrons by the action of the catalyst.

That is, the reaction formula is H2→2H"+2e.

Next, this hydrogen ion H+ enters the electrolyte layer 1) and migrates toward the cathode electrode 2a due to concentration diffusion. On the other hand, the electrons e flow into the anode electrode 2, and this anode electrode 2 is negatively charged.

Further, in the cathode electrode 2IL, hydrogen ions H+ migrating from the anode electrode 2 and #R element o2 in the living air flowing into the oxidant gas chamber 3a are transferred to the porous cathode electrode 2IL.
Diffusion into the empty space of 1. . This diffused oxygen 02 and
The following reaction occurs on the catalyst surface between the electrons e and the hydrogen ions H+ that have returned to the battery from the anode electrode 2 through an external electrical load.

That is, 4 H" + 4 e + 02 → 2 H
20 Thus completing the loop as an electrical circuit, hydrogen and oxygen provide electrical energy to an external electrical load and become water on the cathode electrode 2a. In other words, the energy used when hydrogen and oxygen react to create water is given to the electrical load.

The voltage of one battery is 0.6 V to 0.8 V, which is too small to be used as a power supply device, so a large number of unit batteries are stacked. Layering in this way has two functions: a groove for supplying fuel or oxidant gas to the entire surface of the electrode, and conductivity with low resistance so as to serve as a connection body to create an electrical series circuit. Intermediate connecting members, so-called interconnectors, made of, for example, grooved graphite plates are alternately stacked with the unit batteries.

The structure of the stacked battery is shown in Figure 2. A so-called unit cell or unit battery has an electrolyte layer or matrix 11 impregnated with an electrolyte, and electrodes 12, 12& corresponding to an anode electrode and four cathode electrodes are disposed on both sides of the matrix 11, respectively.

Both electrodes 12, 12* are formed from a porous material, for example a carbonaceous material, and a catalyst is coated on the side in contact with the matrix 1no. Further, on the opposite side of the matrix 11 of both electrodes 12 and 12*, plate-shaped interconnector grooves having respective ribs 15 and 15m are provided. and each electrode 12.1 of the interconnector groove.
Lips 15 and 15* are formed perpendicularly to each other on the side in contact with 2*. These replies 15.15. Grooves 17 and 17h are formed between each of the grooves 17 and 17h. These grooves17.
Lines 17h are passages for supplying fuel gas and oxidizers j and s, respectively. Then, the required number of unit batteries 10 are stacked, current collector plates 19 are placed at the top and bottom to serve as terminals for extracting power, and these are further tightened to an appropriate pressure with a tightening plate (not shown) to stack the batteries. A body 20 is formed. Note that only the lips 15 and the grooves 11 are formed on the interconnector 16 that is in contact with the current collector plate 19.

As shown in FIG. 6, this battery stack 20 includes a manifold 21 for supplying fuel gas, a manifold 21E for collecting fuel exhaust gas, a manifold 23 for supplying oxidizing gas, and a manifold 23 for collecting and discharging oxidizing gas. manifold z
Each sEf is attached via a gasket (not shown). This gasket serves the dual role of electrical insulation and airtightness. Further, the manifold Y21 is provided with a supply pipe 22 for supplying fuel gas, and the manifold 21E is provided with an exhaust pipe 22E for discharging fuel gas. Similarly, the manifolds 23 and 23E are provided with supply and discharge pipes 24 and 24E for supplying and discharging the oxidant gas, respectively. Also,
Cooling water supply pipe 2 for supplying cooling water to cool the battery
5, and a cooling water discharge pipe 25a for discharging cooling water.
will be established.

The battery stack 26 formed in this way has an f-ib 22.
Fuel gas flows from the manifold for 21km. Next, the fuel gas divided into a large number of fljs 17 is supplied to each unit cell 10.
is supplied to the electrode 12 of.

Components other than fuel flowing in with the fuel and unreacted fuel, that is, surplus fuel, become fuel exhaust gas and are discharged through the manifolds 21E and 22Et-fi. The same applies to the oxidizing gas. The fuel gas and oxidant gas supplied in this way pass through the porous electrode 12.1.
2*diffuses inside and reaches matrix 11. Then, it is converted into electrical energy according to the principle described above.

The voltage of this battery 25 is the sum of the voltages of the unit batteries 10.

Further, the current flows through each unit battery 10 in series and is taken out from the current collector plate 19. Further, the battery stack 26 is surrounded by an upper pressure vessel 28 and a lower pressure vessel 29 as shown in FIG. , oxidant gas supply pipe 31, oxidant gas discharge pipe 31h, nitrogen gas supply pipe 32, nitrogen gas discharge pipe 32h, cooling water supply pipe 3
3. A cooling water discharge pipe 33&, an output terminal 34, and various signal line outlets 35 are provided to constitute the battery star 227.

By the way, in order to assemble the battery stack 27, the battery stack 26 is first attached to the lower pressure vessel 29, then the upper pressure vessel 28 is lifted by a crane or the like by hooking a wire to the transportation fitting 37 provided at the upper part. This is done by placing the upper pressure vessel 28 over the battery and the laminate 26, and then tightening the upper pressure vessel 28'fe and the lower pressure vessel 29 with a male sheet 36 with a shimel. When such a battery stack 27 is moved, a wire is connected to a transportation fitting 37 provided on the upper part of the upper pressure vessel 28, and the battery stack 27 is lifted by a crane or the like. However, in a fuel cell power generation plant, a plurality of battery stacks 27 are
In series arrangement as shown in Fig. 9(a) or in parallel arrangement as shown in Fig. 9(b), various f-s and cooling water supply pipes 38 on the plant side and each 'sjfs and cooling water on the plant side are connected. Since the battery stack 27 is connected to the supply pipe 39, moving the battery stack 27 using the 1f AK crane, which installs, removes, and replaces the battery stack 27 in the fuel cell power generation plant, does not require the movement and removal of the battery stack 27. There are problems in that the installation, removal, and replacement work in the plant is not only complicated but also takes a very long time.

[Purpose of the invention]

The present invention was made to solve the above problems, and its purpose is to facilitate the work of moving the battery stack, installing it in a plant, removing it, and replacing it, and to shorten the work time. Our aim is to provide batteries that are of the highest quality.

[Summary of the invention]

In order to achieve the above object, in the present invention, a pair of porous electrodes are arranged with an electrolyte layer in between, and a fuel gas is brought into contact with the back surface of one electrode, and an oxidizing gas is brought into contact with the back surface of the other electrode. A fuel cell stack is constructed by stacking a plurality of nine-unit cells so that electrical energy is extracted from between the pair of electrodes by utilizing the electrochemical reaction caused by the electrochemical reaction, and the battery stack is surrounded by a pressure vessel. , which has wheels as a driving device at the front and rear, and a frame on which the fuel cell stack is attached to the top,
[Embodiment of the Invention] An embodiment of the present invention shown in the drawings will be described below.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an example of the structure of a battery according to the present invention, and the same parts as in FIG. 8 are denoted by the same reference numerals.

In FIG. 1, a pair of wheels 4 as a driving device are used to move the lower pressure vessel 29 of the battery stack 40, which is formed by covering the battery stack 26 with the upper pressure vessel 28 and the lower pressure vessel 29 described above, back and forth. .3, and the pair of wheels 43 are placed on rails 44 so that the mount 41 can move on the rails 44. Here, on one side of the pedestal 41 perpendicular to the rail 44, the above-mentioned fuel gas supply pipe 30, fuel gas discharge pipe 30, oxidant gas supply pipe 31, oxidant gas discharge pipe 31a1, nitrogen gas supply pipe 32, Nitrogen gas exhaust pipe 32 &
, a cooling water supply pipe 33, a cooling water discharge pipe 33a1, and various signal line extraction holes 42t.

In this configuration, installation, removal, and replacement of the battery stand 40 to the ground are performed as follows.

Tip 9: First, when installing the battery stacks 40, as shown in FIG. The battery stack 40 is placed on the rails 44, and by rotating the wheels 43 in the forward direction, the frame 41 is driven and the battery stack 40 is moved toward the plant. Thereafter, a fuel gas supply pipe 30 and a fuel gas discharge pipe 3 provided on one side orthogonal to the rails 44 of the pedestal 41 are connected to the various gas and cooling water supply pipes 38 and discharge pipes 39 on the plant side.
0a, oxidant gas supply pipe 3, oxidant gas discharge pipe 31 &
The installation work is completed by connecting and melt-tightening the nitrogen gas supply pipe 32, nitrogen gas discharge pipe 32a1, cooling water supply pipe 33, and cooling water discharge pipe 33a.

In addition, when installing, removing, or replacing the battery star 40, as shown in Fig.
3 in the backward direction to drive the mount 41, move the battery stack 40 away from the plant, and remove it by disconnecting it from the supply pipe 38 and discharge pipe 39 of various gases and cooling water on the plant side. , the replacement work is complete.

As described above, the battery according to this embodiment includes a fuel cell stack 40 that is formed by covering a battery stack 26 in which a plurality of unit cells 10 are stacked together with upper and lower pressure vessels 28 and 29, and a fuel cell stack 40 that is driven back and forth. A pair of wheels 43 as a device
The above-mentioned fuel cell stack 40 is attached to the upper part, and various gas and cooling water supply pipes 38 and discharge pipes 3 on the plant side are installed on one side perpendicular to the rail 44.
9, the fuel gas supply pipe 30, the fuel gas discharge pipe 30a1, the oxidant gas supply pipe 31, the oxidant gas discharge pipe 31a1, the nitrogen gas supply pipe 32, and the nitrogen gas discharge pipe 321.
, a cooling water supply pipe 33, a cooling water discharge pipe 33a1, and a pedestal 41 provided with various signal line outlets 42, respectively.The wheels 43 are placed on rails 44 and the pedestal 41
can be moved on rails 44.

Therefore, unlike in the past, a crane is not used when moving the battery stack 40, installing it in the plant, removing it, and replacing it, making it possible to perform the work extremely easily and to significantly shorten the work time. becomes.

In addition, when moving the battery stack 40 and installing it in the plant, removing it, and replacing it, the work can be done from a low place without having to lift the battery stack 40 to a high place with a crane, which is the case in the past. It is also possible to improve sexual performance. Furthermore, if the battery stack 40 becomes very heavy, it becomes difficult to move it using a crane, but in this embodiment, the wheels 43 are used as a driving device to move the battery stack 40 on the rails 44 parallel to the ground. Even if the battery stack 40 is somewhat heavy, it is possible to easily move the battery stack 40.

It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, but can also be implemented as follows.

(1) As shown in FIG. 3, the rails 44 provided for each battery stack 40 are unified into one rail 44 at the center of the battery stack 40 installation location, and this common rail 44 is used for work. By extending the battery stack 40 to the work site 45, it becomes possible to move the battery stack 40 from the plant side to the work site 45 very easily.

(b) As shown in FIG. 4, the rails 44 provided for each battery stack 40 are made common to one rail 44 outside the installation location of the battery stack 40, and these two common rails are used. By extending the battery stack 44 to the work place 45, it becomes possible to move the battery stack 40 from the plant side to the work place 45 very easily, as described above.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, according to the present invention, there is provided a fuel cell stack including a pressure vessel surrounding a battery stack in which a plurality of unit cells are stacked, wheels as a drive device at the front and rear, and a fuel cell stack having the fuel cell stack at the top. The battery stack is constructed of a pedestal to which the stack is attached, and the wheels are placed on the rails so that the pedestal can move on the rails, making it easy to move the battery stack, install it on the ground, remove it, and replace it. It is possible to provide a highly safe and reliable battery that facilitates the process and shortens working time.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a plan view showing an example of the configuration when the battery stack of the present invention is installed in a plant, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining the operating principle of a phosphoric acid battery, and FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a state in which unit cells of the same battery are stacked. , FIG. 7 is a perspective view showing a state in which a manifold is attached to the battery stack shown in FIG. 6, FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing an example of the configuration of a conventional battery stack, and FIG.
) is a plan view showing a configuration example when a conventional battery stack is installed in a plant. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10... Unit battery, 11... Matrix, 12°12a... Electrode, 20.26... Battery laminate, 21
゜21*, 23.23h...Manifold, 22゜2
2h+24.24*, 25*25m, 30e30*, 3
1.31*, 32, 32*, 33°331...tube, 2
7.40... Battery stack, 28... Upper pressure vessel, 29... Lower pressure vessel, 34... Output terminal, 35
．． 42...Signal line outlet, 36...Melt, 37
...Transportation fittings, 38.39...Pipe on the plant side,
41... Frame, 43... Wheel, 44... Rail,
45...work place. Application agent Patent attorney Takehiko Suzue f: 41 mouth Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4 Figure 5 Figure 6 Figure 7 Figure 8 Figure 9 (a)

Claims (2)

[Claims] (1) Electrochemical reactions occur by arranging a pair of porous electrodes with an electrolyte layer in between, and bringing fuel gas into contact with the back surface of one electrode and contacting oxidant gas with the back surface of the other electrode. A fuel cell stack is constructed by stacking a plurality of unit fuel cells which are used to extract electrical energy from between the pair of electrodes, and the fuel cell stack is surrounded by a pressure vessel; and a pedestal having wheels on which the fuel cell stack is attached, the wheels being placed on rails so that the pedestal can move on the rails. . (2) Fuel gas,
The fuel according to claim 1, characterized in that supply pipes and discharge pipes for various gases such as oxidizing gas, supply pipes and discharge pipes for cooling water, and various signal line outlets are provided respectively. battery.