Fuel cell stack with multilayer type collector plate
AssigneesHyundai Motor Company, Kia Motors Corporation
InventorHaeng Jin Ko
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A fuel cell stack is provided which manually increases the temperature of cells arranged in the vicinity of an end plate of the stack to improve starting performance of a fuel cell vehicle at temperatures below zero and driving performance thereof at low temperatures. The fuel cell stack realizes rapid thawing and heating functions in response to freezing of end cells when a vehicle is started at temperatures below zero, using a multilayer current collector having at least one thin collector plate which is structurally and sensitively expandable or contractible based on temperature changes.
Claims10
A fuel cell stack with a multilayer collector plate, comprising:
- end plates disposed at opposite sides of stack cells stacked in a line to fixedly support the stack cells;
- and
- current collectors disposed inside the end plates to collect electricity generated by the stack cells and configured to transmit the electricity to the outside,
- wherein at least one of the current collectors disposed at the opposite sides of the stack cells includes a first collector plate having a current collection terminal, and a second collector plate stacked on one surface of the first collector plate,
- wherein the first collector plate is elastically supported by an elastic member to be pressed against an end cell of the stack cells,
- wherein the first collector moves from the end plate to the end cell by the elastic member to form a gap between the first and second collector plates when the stack cells are thermally contracted, and
- wherein the second collector plate is not supported by the elastic member such that the gap is formed between the first collector plate and the second collector plate by the thermal contraction of the stack cells.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.