Gas channel forming plate for fuel cell and fuel cell stack

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10347920-B2
Application number	US-201715489582-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 17, 2017
Priority date	Apr 27, 2016
Publication date	Jul 9, 2019
Grant date	Jul 9, 2019

Abstract

A gas channel forming plate is arranged between a membrane electrode assembly and a flat separator base. The gas channel forming plate includes gas channels arranged on a surface that faces the membrane electrode assembly, water channels each formed on the back side of the protrusion between an adjacent pair of the gas channels, communication passages that connect the gas channels and the water channels to each other, and guide portions formed by causing an inner wall surface of a gas channel to protrude inward in the gas channel. The guide portions are formed such that the upstream edge of each communication passage is arranged in a range in which, in the velocity vector of the gas flowing in the gas channel, the directional component directed from the side corresponding to the membrane electrode assembly toward the flat separator base has a positive value.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A gas channel forming plate for a single cell of a fuel cell, the gas channel forming plate being arranged between a membrane electrode assembly and a plate-shaped separator base and comprising:
a plurality of first grooves arranged at intervals on a surface that faces the membrane electrode assembly, each of the first grooves forming a gas channel;
a second groove formed on a back side of a protrusion located between an adjacent pair of the gas channels; and
a plurality of communication passages arranged at intervals in a direction in which the protrusion extends, the communication passages connecting the gas channels and the water channel to each other,
wherein a bottom surface of each of the first grooves includes a plurality of guide portions protruding inward in a corresponding one of the gas channels such that a cross-sectional area of the gas channel is partially narrowed,
wherein an edge of each communication passage or an upstream side in a flowing direction of gas flowing in the gas channel is arranged at a position where, in a velocity vector of the gas, a directional component directed from a side corresponding to the membrane electrode assembly toward the separator base has a positive value, and
wherein each guide portion includes an inclined surface that inclines such that the cross-sectional area of the gas channel is narrowed toward a downstream side in the flowing direction.

2. The gas channel forming plate for a fuel cell according to claim 1 , wherein downstream edges in the flowing direction of the guide portions and the upstream edges in the flowing direction of the communication passages are located at same positions in the flowing direction.

3. The gas channel forming plate for a fuel cell according to claim 1 , wherein the gas channel forming plate is a plate of which a cross-sectional shape in a direction perpendicular to the direction in which the gas channels extend has projections and depressions.

4. A fuel cell stack that is formed by stacking a plurality of single cells, wherein each single cell includes
a membrane electrode assembly,
a plate-shaped separator base, and
the gas channel forming plate for a fuel cell according to claim 1 , wherein the gas channel forming plate is arranged between the membrane electrode assembly and the separator base.

Assignees

• Shinozaki Yoshinori
• Futami Satoshi
• Kawajiri Kousuke
• Hashimoto Keiji
• Toyota Auto Body Co Ltd

Inventors

• Shinozaki Yoshinori
• Futami Satoshi
• Kawajiri Kousuke
• Hashimoto Keiji

Classifications

• H01M8/04291

  Arrangements for managing water in solid electrolyte fuel cell systems (H01M8/04119 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H01M8/026 Primary

  characterised by grooves, e.g. their pitch or depth · CPC title

• H01M8/0265

  the reactant or coolant channels having varying cross sections · CPC title

• H01M8/0206

  Metals or alloys · CPC title

• H01M8/04156

  with product water removal · CPC title