Porous body for fuel cell

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2018175405-A1
Application number	US-201715703000-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Sep 13, 2017
Priority date	Dec 16, 2016
Publication date	Jun 21, 2018
Grant date	—

Abstract

A porous body for a fuel cell is interposed between a membrane-electrode assembly (MEA) and a bipolar plate to form a gas channel through which a reactant gas flows in a predetermined direction, the porous body including: a main body disposed to contact the bipolar plate; and a plurality of ribs each including a land portion disposed to contact the MEA and a connecting portion connecting the land portion to the main body, in which an area of the land portion is gradually narrowed from an upstream part to a downstream part of the gas channel.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . A porous body for a fuel cell, which is interposed between a membrane-electrode assembly (MEA) and a bipolar plate to form a gas channel through which a reactant gas flows in a predetermined direction, the porous body comprising:
a main body disposed to contact the bipolar plate; and a plurality of ribs each including a land portion disposed to contact the MEA and a connecting portion connecting the land portion to the main body, wherein an area of the land portion is gradually narrowed from an upstream part to a downstream part of the gas channel.

2 . The porous body according to claim 1 , wherein the main body includes a plurality of first holes perforated at predetermined intervals, and
the connecting portion of each of the plurality of ribs extends from an inner surface of each of the plurality of first holes to be connected to the inner surface of each of the plurality of first holes.

3 . The porous body according to claim 2 , wherein a sum of an area of the land portion and an area of the connecting portion is the same as an area of each of the plurality of first holes.

4 . The porous body according to claim 1 , wherein the connecting portion is inclined at a predetermined angle of inclination with respect to a direction of gas flow, and
the angle of inclination is increased from the upstream part of the gas channel to the downstream part thereof.

5 . The porous body according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of ribs are classified into a plurality of first ribs located in the upstream part of the gas channel and a plurality of second ribs located below the plurality of first ribs in the downstream part of the gas channel,
each of the plurality of first ribs includes a first land portion disposed to contact the MEA and a first connecting portion connecting the first land portion to the main body, and each of the plurality of second ribs includes a second land portion disposed to contact the MEA and having an area narrower than that of the first land portion and a second connecting portion connecting the second land portion to the main body.

6 . The porous body according to claim 5 , wherein each of the plurality of second ribs includes a second hole perforated in the second land portion.

7 . The porous body according to claim 5 , wherein a direction of gas flow is parallel to a direction of gravity,
the first connecting portion is inclined in a direction opposing the direction of gravity as the first connecting portion extends from the main body to the first land portion, and the second connecting portion is inclined in a direction toward the direction of gravity as the second connecting portion extends from the main body to the second land portion.

8 . The porous body according to claim 1 , wherein a gas diffusion layer is attached to the MEA, and
the porous body is interposed between the gas diffusion layer and the bipolar plate.

9 . A porous body for a fuel cell, which is interposed between a membrane-electrode assembly (MEA) and a bipolar plate to form a gas channel through which a reactant gas flows in a predetermined direction, the porous body comprising:
a main body disposed to contact the bipolar plate; and a plurality of ribs each including a land portion disposed to contact the MEA and a connecting portion connecting the land portion to the main body, wherein the gas channel includes a power generation section facing the MEA and a diffusion section located above the power generation section in an upstream part of the gas channel, and an area of a land portion of a rib located in the diffusion section is narrower in a direction of gas flow than an area of a land portion of a rib located in the power generation section.

10 . The porous body according to claim 9 , wherein the gas channel further includes an exhaust section located below the power generation section in a downstream part of the gas channel, and
an area of a land portion of a rib located in the exhaust section is narrower in the direction of gas flow than the area of the land portion of the rib located in the power generation section.

11 . The porous body according to claim 10 , wherein the connecting portion is inclined at a predetermined angle of inclination with respect to the direction of gas flow, and
an angle of inclination is higher in the ribs located in the diffusion section and the exhaust section than in the rib located in the power generation section.

12 . The porous body according to claim 9 , wherein a gas diffusion layer is attached to the MEA, and
the porous body is interposed between the gas diffusion layer and the bipolar plate.

Assignees

• Hyundai Motor Co Ltd
• Kia Motors Corp

Inventors

• Jo Jang Ho
• Park Soon Hong

Classifications

• H01M8/0241

  Composites · CPC title

• H01M8/0297

  Arrangements for joining electrodes, reservoir layers, heat exchange units or bipolar separators to each other (H01M8/0271 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H01M2008/1095

  Fuel cells with polymeric electrolytes · CPC title

• H01M8/023

  Porous and characterised by the material · CPC title

• H01M8/0258 Primary

  characterised by the configuration of channels, e.g. by the flow field of the reactant or coolant · CPC title