Fuel cell system

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2023317984-A1
Application number	US-202318123029-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Mar 17, 2023
Priority date	Mar 29, 2022
Publication date	Oct 5, 2023
Grant date	—

Abstract

A control device of a fuel cell system controls a temperature adjusting device in a manner that vapor in the oxygen-containing off-gas discharged from a fuel cell stack is saturated.

First claim

1 . A fuel cell system comprising:
a fuel cell stack configured to generate electric power using an oxygen-containing gas and a fuel gas; a supply passage through which the oxygen-containing gas flows to be supplied to the fuel cell stack; a discharge passage through which the oxygen-containing off-gas discharged from the fuel cell stack flows; a humidifying device connected to the supply passage and the discharge passage and configured to render the fuel cell stack humidified; a temperature adjusting device configured to adjust a temperature of the fuel cell stack as a stack temperature; a temperature acquiring device configured to acquire the stack temperature; and one or more processors that execute computer-executable instructions stored in a memory, wherein the one or more processors execute the computer-executable instructions to cause the fuel cell system to: assess, on a basis of the stack temperature acquired by the temperature acquiring unit, a level of humidification attained to the fuel cell stack by the humidifier, and control the stack temperature through the temperature adjusting device, and control the temperature adjusting device in a manner that vapor in the oxygen-containing off-gas discharged from the fuel cell stack is saturated.

2 . The fuel cell system according to claim 1 , wherein the temperature acquiring device acquires a temperature at an outlet of the fuel cell stack positioned upstream of the humidifying device in the discharge passage.

3 . The fuel cell system according to claim 2 ,
wherein the one or more processors cause the fuel cell system to: set a temperature as a target stack temperature at which the vapor in the oxygen-containing off-gas is saturated at the outlet of the fuel cell stack, on a basis of a power generation state of the fuel cell stack, and the temperature adjusting device adjusts the stack temperature to be equal to or lower than the target stack temperature.

4 . The fuel cell system according to claim 2 ,
wherein the one or more processors cause the fuel cell system to: set a temperature as a target stack temperature at which the vapor in the oxygen-containing off-gas is saturated at the outlet of the fuel cell stack and at which condensation occurs inside the fuel cell stack or in the discharge passage, on a basis of a power generation state of the fuel cell stack, and the temperature adjusting device adjusts the stack temperature to be equal to or lower than the target stack temperature.

5 . The fuel cell system according to claim 3 ,
wherein the one or more processors cause the fuel cell system to: set a temperature as the target stack temperature at which the vapor in the oxygen-containing off-gas is saturated at the outlet of the fuel cell stack and at which condensation occurs inside the fuel cell stack or in the discharge passage, on a basis of a power generation state of the fuel cell stack, and the temperature adjusting device adjusts the stack temperature to be equal to or lower than the target stack temperature.

6 . The fuel cell system according to claim 3 , wherein the one or more processors cause the fuel cell system to:
calculate a saturated vapor pressure from the stack temperature when the stack temperature acquired by the temperature acquiring device is equal to or lower than the target stack temperature, and acquire the level of humidification attained to the fuel cell stack by the humidifying device, on a basis of the saturated vapor pressure.

7 . The fuel cell system according to claim 5 , wherein the one or more processors cause the fuel cell system to:
calculate a saturated vapor pressure from the stack temperature when the stack temperature acquired by the temperature acquiring device is equal to or lower than the target stack temperature, and acquire the level of humidification attained to the fuel cell stack by the humidifying device, on a basis of the saturated vapor pressure.

Assignees

• Honda Motor Co Ltd

Inventors

• Inoue Tomoyuki
• Sakai Ryoji

Classifications

• H01M8/04126 Primary

  Humidifying · CPC title

• H01M8/04701

  Temperature · CPC title

• H01M8/0432

  Temperature; Ambient temperature · CPC title

• H01M8/04761

  of fuel cell exhausts · CPC title

• H01M8/04992

  characterised by the implementation of mathematical or computational algorithms, e.g. feedback control loops, fuzzy logic, neural networks or artificial intelligence · CPC title