Fuel cell system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11469427-B2
Application number	US-202016818432-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 13, 2020
Priority date	Apr 2, 2019
Publication date	Oct 11, 2022
Grant date	Oct 11, 2022

Abstract

A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell generating electric power by a reaction between a fuel gas and an oxidant gas, an injector supplying the fuel gas to the fuel cell, a discharge line in which an off-gas discharged from the fuel cell flows, an ejector recirculating the off-gas flowing in the discharge line to the fuel cell using a flow of the fuel gas from the injector, a discharge valve discharging the off-gas flowing in the discharge line to the outside, and a control device controlling supply of the fuel gas by the injector and opening and closing of the discharge valve. When supply of the fuel gas by the injector is stopped, the control device opens the discharge valve while the off-gas is recirculated to the fuel cell and closes the discharge valve before supply of the fuel gas by the injector is restarted.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A fuel cell system comprising:
a fuel cell configured to generate electric power by a reaction between a fuel gas and an oxidant gas;
an injector configured to supply the fuel gas to the fuel cell;
a discharge line in which an off-gas which is discharged from the fuel cell flows;
an ejector configured to recirculate the off-gas flowing in the discharge line to the fuel cell using a flow of the fuel gas from the injector;
a discharge valve configured to discharge the off-gas flowing in the discharge line to the outside;
a first detection unit configured to detect a temperature of a cooling medium that cools the fuel cell; and
a control device programmed to control the supply of the fuel gas by the injector and opening and closing of the discharge valve, wherein
the control device is programmed to open the discharge valve while the off-gas is recirculated to the fuel cell and close the discharge valve before supply of the fuel gas by the injector is restarted, when supply of the fuel gas by the injector is stopped, and
the control device is programmed to delay a time at which the discharge valve is opened further from a time at which supply of the fuel gas by the injector is stopped when the temperature of the cooling medium is lower than a threshold value than when the temperature of the cooling medium is equal to or higher than the threshold value.

2. The fuel cell system according to claim 1 , wherein the control device is programmed to estimate an amount of liquid water in the fuel cell from the temperature of the cooling medium and further delay the time at which the discharge valve is opened as the amount of liquid water becomes greater.

3. The fuel cell system according to claim 1 , wherein the control device is programmed to calculate a required time for discharging the off-gas based on a partial pressure of impurities in the off-gas and determine a valve opening period of the discharge valve based on the required time.

4. The fuel cell system according to claim 3 , further comprising:
a second detection unit configured to detect an output current of the fuel cell; and
a third detection unit configured to detect a pressure of a mixed gas of the fuel gas supplied to the fuel cell and the off-gas recirculated to the fuel cell,
wherein the control device is programmed to calculate a stoppable period of supply of the fuel gas based on the output current and the pressure of the mixed gas and determine the valve opening period of the discharge valve based on the required time and the stoppable period.

Assignees

• Toyota Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Matsusue Masaaki

Classifications

• H01M8/04589

  of fuel cell stacks · CPC title

• H01M8/04492

  Humidity; Ambient humidity; Water content · CPC title

• H01M8/04358

  of the coolant · CPC title

• H01M8/04559

  of fuel cell stacks · CPC title

• H01M8/04388

  of anode reactants at the inlet or inside the fuel cell · CPC title