KR101238975B1 - Gasket covering manifold for metal seperator of fuel cell and method for fabricating the same - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a gasket for a metal separator plate surrounding a manifold and a method of manufacturing the same, wherein the first gasket portion and the first gasket portion formed in the edge region of the channel of the metal body including the channel and the manifold are integrated. And a second gasket portion formed in a shape that surrounds the inner surface of the manifold, wherein the second gasket portion is formed on the upper and lower surfaces of the metal body, respectively, and is formed on the inner side of the manifold. And the lower gasket is coupled to each other, so as to surround the rim of the manifold in the '' 'shape, to prevent corrosion of the manifold and improve durability, and increase the process margin for gasket injection manufacturing cost The present invention relates to an invention capable of lowering and improving production yield.

Description

Gaskets for metal separators enveloping manifolds and methods for manufacturing them {GASKET COVERING MANIFOLD FOR METAL SEPERATOR OF FUEL CELL AND METHOD FOR FABRICATING THE SAME}

The present invention relates to a gasket surrounding the manifold and a method of manufacturing the same, by forming a gasket formed to completely cover the inner edge of the manifold to maintain the airtightness of the main body for the metal separator plate including the channel and the manifold. The present invention relates to a technique for improving the durability of a manifold.

A fuel cell is a power generation device which converts chemical energy into electrical energy generally by oxidizing and reducing hydrogen and oxygen. Hydrogen is oxidized at the anode and separated into hydrogen ions and electrons, and the hydrogen ions move through the electrolyte to the cathode. At this time, the electrons move to the anode through the circuit. At the anode, a reduction reaction occurs in which hydrogen ions, electrons, and oxygen react to form water.

First, a metal separator for a fuel cell according to the prior art will be described. A metal body provided in a rectangular shape is formed, a reaction gas channel and a coolant channel are formed in a central portion thereof, and a gasket surrounding the periphery thereof is formed.

Next, an oxygen (air) inlet manifold, a coolant inlet manifold, and a hydrogen inlet manifold are formed on both side plates of the channel part, and a reaction gas inlet hole is formed between the oxygen (air) inlet manifold and the channel part. .

In this case, the gasket is formed in a structure to maintain the airtightness around the manifold and the reaction gas inlet hole. Here, the part where the above components are gathered is called the inlet part of the metal separator plate for fuel cells, and the other side facing it is called the discharge part.

Thus, at a position symmetrical with the inlet, a reaction gas discharge hole, an oxygen (air) discharge manifold, a coolant discharge manifold and a hydrogen discharge manifold are formed.

Among the fuel cells having the above-described structure, in particular, in the case of a polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEMFC), the gas flow in and out structure of the metal separator for supplying and discharging the reaction gas to the polymer electrolyte membrane is a fuel cell. It is one of the important factors that determine performance. In addition, the reaction gas inlet and outlet holes may act as a key element necessary for improving fuel cell performance in combination with the durability of the metal separator.

Conventional fuel cell stacks must form a thin split frame that divides the reactant gas manifold and the coolant manifold in the manifold of the metal separator plate, which is characterized by its corrosion characteristics as compared to other separator parts. It is vulnerable to

Therefore, there is a high risk of corrosion during operation of the fuel cell, and if such corrosion occurs, the performance of the stack is degraded in the long term, thereby reducing the efficiency of the system.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide a gasket for a metal separator plate that can easily perform a gasket forming process while minimizing manifold corrosion of the metal separator plate for a fuel cell.

In addition, the present invention provides a manifold spacing secured margin to allow the gasket injection mold to directly hold and press the metal body, thereby improving the yield of the gasket manufacturing process, to reduce the cost of manufacturing the separator plate It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for producing a gasket for a metal separator plate.

In addition, an object of the present invention is to provide a metal separator plate for a fuel cell having a structure that is completely free of corrosion and improved durability by completely enclosing the inner edge of the manifold in the 'c' shape by the above method.

The gasket for metal separating plate according to the present invention is injection molded integrally with the first gasket portion and the first gasket portion formed in the edge region of the channel of the metal body including the channel and the manifold, and the inner surface of the manifold Including a second gasket portion formed in a wrapping form characterized in that to provide airtightness to the channel and the manifold.

Here, the second gasket portion is formed on the upper and lower surfaces based on the metal body, respectively, the upper and lower gaskets are coupled to each other inside the manifold, so as to surround the rim portion of the manifold in a '-' shape It is characterized by the form.

In addition, the method for forming a gasket for a metal separator according to the present invention forms a metal body including a channel and a manifold, and a region capable of fixing a gasket forming mold in an area between the manifolds of the metal body and the manifold. Comprising a margin area for forming a gasket in the edge of the step, and pressing the mold for forming the gasket in the area between the manifold and injecting a gasket material in the mold to the inner surface of the manifold And forming a second gasket portion having a shape surrounding the edge portion, and a first gasket portion integrally formed with the second gasket portion and formed in the edge region of the channel of the metal body.

In addition, the fuel cell separator according to the present invention is integrally injection molded with a metal body including a channel and a manifold, a first gasket portion and a first gasket portion formed in an edge region of the channel of the metal body. And a second gasket portion formed to surround the inner surface of the manifold, wherein a portion of the second gasket portion is formed on the upper and lower surfaces of the metal body and connected to the first gasket portion. The remaining portion is coupled to each other in the upper and lower gaskets inside the manifold, characterized in that the rim of the manifold has a '' 'shape.

In this case, the metal body includes a reaction gas manifold and a coolant manifold, and the region between each manifold may form a gasket at the edge of the manifold and a region capable of fixing the gasket forming mold. It is characterized by having an extended manifold spacing, including margin areas.

The gasket of the metal separator plate for fuel cell according to the present invention provides a structure that completely encloses the 'c' shape of the inner edge of the manifold, thereby providing an effect of blocking the problem of corrosion of the manifold.

In addition, the gasket manufacturing method of the metal separator plate according to the present invention allows to process by holding the metal separator plate directly with the injection mold. Therefore, the accuracy of the manufacturing process can be improved, and the effect of improving the manufacturing yield is provided.

In addition, the metal separator plate for fuel cells according to the present invention includes a gasket having a structure completely surrounding the manifold as described above, thereby improving durability of the metal separator plate and improving characteristics of the metal separator plate for fuel cells.

1 is a plan view showing a gasket structure of a metal separator plate for fuel cells according to the prior art.
2 is a plan view illustrating a gasket structure and a method of manufacturing the metal separator plate for fuel cell according to the present invention.
3 is a cross-sectional view of the metal separator showing a cross section along the AA ′ direction of FIG. 2.

Hereinafter, a fuel cell metal separator and a fuel cell stack having the same according to the present invention will be described in detail.

Advantages and features of the present invention and methods for achieving them will be apparent with reference to the embodiments and drawings described below in detail. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below, but can be implemented in various different forms, only the embodiments are to make the disclosure of the present invention complete, it is common in the art It is provided to fully inform those skilled in the art of the scope of the invention, which is to be defined only by the scope of the claims.

1 is a plan view showing a gasket structure of a metal separator plate for fuel cells according to the prior art.

Referring to FIG. 1, the metal body 10 includes a channel and a manifold, which are disposed in a predetermined area of the metal separator plate.

The channel includes a reactant gas channel and a coolant channel, and the manifold may include a reactant gas inlet manifold, a coolant inlet manifold, a reactant gas outlet manifold, a coolant outlet manifold, and the like.

In this case, as described above, the gasket 20 is formed in a shape capable of sealing the edge portion of the metal body 10.

However, in this case, since the metal body 10 is exposed to the inside of the manifold as it is, corrosion may occur by the reaction gas and the cooling water.

In addition, when the inner edge of the manifold is damaged by corrosion, circulation of the cooling water and the reaction gas may not be smooth, and impurities may be introduced, thereby reducing the efficiency of the fuel cell.

In addition, in the case of the gasket 20 according to the prior art, since most of the regions of the metal body 10 are all sealed, a portion in which the mold can hold and fix the metal body 10 in the gasket 20 injection process is very limited. It is.

Therefore, misalignment may occur between the metal body 10 and the gasket 20 forming region in the gasket 20 injection process.

In order to solve the above problems in the present invention, a method of forming a gasket in the corroded portion of the manifold is used.

In this case, since a relatively empty space is generated in the peripheral region of the manifold, in the present invention, by fixing the injection mold in the empty space, the gasket forming process can be made easier and more efficient.

2 is a plan view illustrating a gasket structure and a method of manufacturing the metal separator plate for fuel cell according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2, a second gasket portion 120 having a shape surrounding the inner rim of the manifold of the metal body 100 and a first gasket portion 110 formed at the edge of the channel portion are formed.

Here, since the flow path of the channel portion is mostly a matter that is proceeded as a separate patent, specific illustration is avoided. Therefore, the first gasket portion 110 is not normally displayed, but follows the same general gasket structure. In addition, the manifold and the second gasket portion 120 may be identically formed in the region symmetrical with respect to the channel region, but a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

Referring to the second gasket portion 120 of the present invention formed as described above compared with the gasket 20 of FIG. 1 as follows.

First, in the case of the existing gasket 20, the metal body 10 is exposed to the inside of the manifold, but in the case of the second gasket part 120 according to the present invention, the metal body is exposed to the inside of the manifold. There is no 100.

Therefore, the phenomenon in which the metal body 100 is corroded in the manifold can be fundamentally prevented, and defects caused by corrosion can be blocked.

Next, it can be seen that the second gasket portion 120 according to the present invention provides a wider manifold spacing than the gasket 20 of FIG. 1.

At this time, the manifold spacing refers to the spacing between the reaction gas manifold and the coolant manifold.

Since the second gasket portion 120 according to the present invention is manufactured in the form of attaching to the inner edge portion of the manifold, a margin region such as L1 should be considered to maintain a size similar to that of the manifold region of FIG. 1.

Nevertheless, in the present invention, it is possible to represent an interval of L2 length which is more extended than a conventional manifold interval.

In addition, the second gasket portion according to the present invention by providing a manifold spacing of the expanded form as described above, so that the mold can support the metal body 100 efficiently in the injection process for forming the gasket.

Compared with FIG. 1, the remaining portion of the metal body 10 except for the gasket 20 is almost never seen, but in the case of the metal body 100 according to the present invention, the manifold spacing extended by L2 length is shown. By providing this, it is possible to support the mold at that portion.

In this way, when the support of the mold becomes easy, the problem of misalignment for gasket injection can be reduced, and the yield of manufacturing a metal separator plate for a fuel cell can be improved.

In addition, in the case of the present invention, a circular hole or the like may be sufficiently formed in the manifold spacing for sure support of the mold, thereby obtaining a reliable mold support effect.

Therefore, looking at the cross section that can more easily observe the mold support form and the form that completely encloses the manifold border to obtain the above effects are as follows.

3 is a cross-sectional view of the metal separator showing a cross section along the AA ′ direction of FIG. 2.

Referring to FIG. 3, it can be seen that the second gasket portion 120 having a 'c' shape is formed at both edge portions of the metal body 100.

This is a form that can be easily formed by the mold 200 supported in the region between the manifolds. Therefore, the second gasket portion 120 according to the present invention is coupled to the portion of the gasket 120a formed at the upper portion and the lower portion of the gasket 120b formed on the basis of the metal body 100 to completely wrap the manifold. The second gasket portion 120 can be formed.

In addition, by completely sealing the rim of the manifold as described above, the corrosion of the metal main body 100 can be completely blocked.

In addition, all of the first and second gasket parts 110 and 120 described above may be compression molded to a rubber material to improve sealing and airtightness.

As described above, the metal separator plate for fuel cells according to the present invention forms a gasket in a structure that completely encloses the inner edge portion of the manifold 'c' shape, thereby preventing the manifold from being corroded, and separating the metal. The durability of the plate can be improved.

In addition, the gasket manufacturing method of the metal separator according to the present invention can be processed by holding the metal separator plate directly with the injection mold, thereby improving the accuracy of the gasket manufacturing process.

Therefore, the metal separator plate for fuel cells according to the present invention can reduce the manufacturing cost and improve the production yield while improving the gasket characteristics.

While the present invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be practical exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. It is therefore to be understood that the above-described embodiments are illustrative in all aspects and not restrictive.

10, 100: metal disc 20, 120: gasket
200: mold

Claims (7)

A first gasket portion formed in an edge region of the channel of the metal body including a channel and a manifold; And
And a second gasket part integrally injection molded with the first gasket part and formed to surround the inner surface of the manifold, thereby providing airtightness to the channel and the manifold.
The method of claim 1,
The second gasket portion
It is formed on the upper and lower surfaces based on the metal body, respectively, the upper and lower gaskets are coupled to each other inside the manifold, the metal characterized in that the form surrounding the rim of the manifold in the form of ''' Gasket for separator plate.
The method of claim 1,
The first gasket portion
Gasket for a metal separator plate, characterized in that formed on each side on the basis of the metal body.
The method of claim 1,
The channel comprises a reaction gas channel and a coolant channel,
The manifold gasket for metal separator plate, characterized in that it comprises a reaction gas manifold and a coolant manifold.
A metal body including a channel and a manifold is formed, and an area for fixing a gasket forming die in an area between the manifolds of the metal body and a margin area for forming a gasket at an edge of the manifold. Including;
Pressing the mold for gasket formation in an area between the manifolds; And
A first gasket formed by injecting a gasket material into the mold to surround the inner rim of the manifold; Forming gasket portion; gasket forming method for a metal separator comprising a.
A metal body comprising a channel and a manifold;
A first gasket portion formed in an edge region of the channel of the metal body; And
And a second gasket part integrally injection molded with the first gasket part and formed to surround the inner surface of the manifold.
One portion of the second gasket portion is formed on the upper and lower surfaces based on the metal body, respectively, and is connected to the first gasket portion.
The remaining portion of the fuel cell metal separator plate, characterized in that the upper and lower gaskets are coupled to each other inside the manifold, the edge portion of the manifold has a '''shape.
The method according to claim 6,
The metal body is
Including a reactant gas manifold and a coolant manifold,
The region between each manifold has an extended manifold spacing, including an area for fixing the gasket forming mold and a margin area for forming a gasket on the rim of the manifold. Metal separator for battery.

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