摘要:
Because of its inability to uniformly control water content over the entire surface of a membrane electrode joining element, a polyelectrolyte fuel cell is difficult to keep a constant voltage over an extended time. A conductive polymer layer consisting of conductive particles and a polymer material is formed on the top of a porous material of carbon fibers, and a catalyst layer consisting of platinum-carrying carbon particles is disposed on the conductive polymer layer to form a gas diffusion electrode. The conductive polymer layer has conductive particles different in particle size mixed therein, with the mixed amount of conductive particles small in particle size decreasing from one end toward the other end of the gas diffusion electrode.
摘要:
The present invention restores the performance of a fuel cell by: operating the cell in a loaded current mode different from that of a normal operation for a predetermined time; supplying an oxidant gas and a fuel gas to an anode and a cathode respectively and outputting a current from a cell body with the polarity being inverted; supplying a pressurized gas to at least one of the cathode and anode in an amount not less than 1.5 times as much as that in the normal operation or supplying oxygen to the cathode; or injecting a cleaning solution into the cathode and anode through a gas flow path. Consequently, it is possible to effectively restore a degraded performance of a polymer electrolyte fuel cell caused by a long operation.
摘要:
A polyelectrolyte fuel cell having a gas channel, a proton channel and an electron channel formed in the vicinity of a pole in a catalyst layer to increase a reaction area, and comprising a hydrogen ion conductive polyelectrolyte film, and a pair of electrodes each having a catalyst layer sandwiching the hydrogen ion conductive polyelectrolyte film and a gas diffusion layer in contact with the catalyst layer, wherein the catalyst layer of at least one electrode contains carbon particles each supporting a noble-metal catalyst, and the carbon particles consist of at least two types of carbon particles being in mutually different dispersion conditions and having a hydrogen ion conductive polyelectrolyte adsorbed thereto.
摘要:
A polymer electrolyte fuel cell is provided comprising: a hydrogen ion conductive polymer electrolyte membrane; an anode and a cathode sandwiching the hydrogen ion conductive polymer electrolyte membrane; an anode side electroconductive separator having a gas channel for supplying a fuel gas to the anode; a cathode side electroconductive separator having a gas channel for supplying an oxidant gas to the cathode; characterized in that the anode and the cathode comprise a gas diffusion layer and a catalyst layer formed on the gas diffusion layer at the side in contact with the hydrogen ion conductive polymer electrolyte membrane, the catalyst layer has catalyst particles and a hydrogen ion conductive polymer electrolyte, and at least either of hydrogen ion conductivity and gas permeability of at least either of the anode and the cathode varies in a thickness direction of the anode or the cathode.
摘要:
Generally a polymer electrolyte fuel cell has an MEA comprising a polymer electrolyte film and a pair of gas diffusing electrodes sandwiching the film. A conductive separator is provided on the outer face of the MEA. Though a conductive separator is made of a carbonaceous material, use of a metallic base material has been studied from the viewpoint of the manufacturing cost. Such a conductive separator of a metallic base material is required to have a strong corrosion resistance against long-time exposure to high humidity gas and not to increase its contact resistance with the MEA. A polymer electrolyte fuel cell of the invention includes a conductive separator comprising a metallic base (1) and a conductive resin layer (2) provided on the metallic base (1), made of a resin (2) having a water-repellent or basic group and a conductive particulate material (3), and so disposed in contact with an MEA, thus meeting the above requirement.
摘要:
A method of operating a polymer electrolytic fuel cell, wherein its operating condition is regulated for an optimal one which is represented by a function of a gas flow rate and the difference between a saturated steam pressure and an actual steam pressure, by regulating an in-plane temperature distribution obtained by a cooling water flow direction and by the regulations of a cooling water inlet temperature and a cooling water flow rate, a gas supply amount, and a supplied moisture amount, and a current density, the method resolving conventional problems with a polymer electrolytic fuel cell that a performance distribution occurs in a single plane of a cell and a stable operation is difficult when a performance distribution is significant.
摘要:
A polymer electrolytic fuel cell comprises a hydrogen-ion-conductive polymer electrolytic film, a pair of electrodes sandwiching the film, a conductive separator plate having a gas passage for supplying fuel to one of the electrodes, and a conductive separator plate having a gas passage for supplying an oxidizer to the other electrode. Conventionally, a conductive separator plate is made of a carbonaceous material, and therefore the costs such as the fabrication cost are difficult to reduce, and a metallic plate is used on trial instead of a carbonaceous plate. However the metallic plate is exposed to a hot oxidizing atmosphere, and as a result the metallic plate is corroded after a long use, lowering the power generation efficiency gradually. According to the invention, the metallic conductive separator plate is a type in which a conductive film containing conductive particles and glass is formed on a surface having a gas passage. Thus, the corrosion of the metallic plate is suppressed and the degradation of the power generation efficiency after long use is also suppressed.
摘要:
By using a gas diffusion layer for a fuel cell comprising a fabric comprising a warp thread and a weft thread which are made of carbon fiber, wherein the distance X between adjacent intersections where the warp and weft threads cross each other and the thickness Y of the fabric satisfy the equation: 1.4 In order to further prevent the piercing of the polymer electrolyte membrane by the carbon fibers of the gas diffusion layer substrate, the rough surface of the carbon fabric is smoothed by:(1) applying a clamping pressure of 1 to 20 kgf/cm to the contact area between each electrode and each conductive separator plate of the fuel cell; or (2) heating the gas diffusion layer surface before the gas diffusion layer is disposed onto the polymer electrolyte membrane.
摘要:
A polymer electrolyte type fuel cell characterized in that a cathode and an anode consist of catalyst particles, hydrogen-ion-conductive polymer electrolytes, conductive porous base materials and water repellent agents, and the water repellency of at least one of the cathode and anode varies in a thickness direction or a surface direction. Such a position-dependent change in the water repellency level of an anode or cathode can provide an excellent polymer electrolyte type fuel cell having high discharge characteristics, especially, high current-voltage characteristics in a high current density region.
摘要:
The present invention provides an electrode for a fuel cell, which prevents electrode exfoliation at a manufacturing process by optimizing a water repellent material to be added to a gas diffusion layer, and which has a high discharge performance at a low cost. This electrode comprises a gas diffusion layer and a catalyst layer formed at a surface thereof to contact a polymer electrolyte membrane, wherein the gas diffusion layer contains a fibrillated water repellent material, and is subjected to heat treatment at a temperature of the melting point or below thereof.