Fuel cell module housing with field replaceable stacks

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10777838-B2
Application number	US-201716094860-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 21, 2017
Priority date	Apr 22, 2016
Publication date	Sep 15, 2020
Grant date	Sep 15, 2020

Abstract

A fuel cell module includes a plurality of fuel cell stacks; a manifold configured to provide process gases to and receive process gases from the plurality of fuel cell stacks; and a module housing enclosing the plurality of fuel cell stacks and the manifold. Each of the plurality of fuel cell stacks is individually installable onto the manifold by lowering the fuel cell stack onto the manifold, and is individually removable from the manifold by raising the fuel cell stack from the manifold.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A fuel cell module comprising:
a plurality of fuel cell stacks;
a manifold configured to provide process gases to and receive process gases from the plurality of fuel cell stacks; and
a module housing enclosing the plurality of fuel cell stacks and the manifold, wherein the module housing defines a hot region, and a cool region located above the hot region;
a thermally insulating wall separating the hot region from the cool region, wherein the thermally insulating wall comprises a plurality of openings and a plurality of closure plates, each closure plate removably closing a respective opening among the plurality of openings, wherein each opening and each respective closure plate corresponds to a respective fuel cell stack among the plurality of fuel cell stacks;
wherein each fuel cell stack is individually installable onto the manifold by removing the respective closure plate from the respective opening of the thermally insulating wall, and lowering the fuel cell stack from the cool region through the respective opening to the hot region and onto the manifold, and
each fuel cell stack is individually removable from the manifold by removing the respective closure plate from the respective opening of the thermally insulating wall, and raising the fuel cell stack off of the manifold and from the hot region through the respective opening to the cool region.

2. The fuel cell module of claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of fuel cell stacks is installable onto and removable from the manifold without manual mechanical attachment between the fuel cell stack and the manifold.

3. The fuel cell module of claim 1 , wherein:
the hot region includes at least one upper hot region and at least one lower hot region;
the plurality of fuel cell stacks are located in the at least one upper hot region; and
the manifold is located in the at least one lower hot region.

4. The fuel cell module of claim 3 , further comprising a plurality of in-situ process gas seals configured to seal between the plurality of fuel cell stacks and the manifold, wherein the in-situ process gas seals operate via static force from the weight of the fuel cell stacks.

5. The fuel cell module of claim 1 , further comprising at least one bus-bar that is located in the cool region and is configured to transfer current from the plurality of fuel cell stacks to power conditioning equipment.

6. The fuel cell module of claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of fuel cell stacks comprises a plurality of molten carbonate fuel cells.

Assignees

• Fuelcell Energy Inc

Inventors

• Davis Keith
• Jolly Stephen
• Quatannens Michael L
• Lambrech Matthew

Classifications

• H01M2008/147

  Fuel cells with molten carbonates · CPC title

• H01M8/249

  comprising two or more groupings of fuel cells, e.g. modular assemblies · CPC title

• Y02E60/50

  Fuel cells · CPC title

• H01M8/2485 Primary

  Arrangements for sealing external manifolds; Arrangements for mounting external manifolds around a stack · CPC title

• H01M8/2484

  characterised by external manifolds · CPC title