Media management plate comprising water trap and water reservoir, and fuel cell system

A fuel cell system comprising:

• a fuel cell assembly;
• a media management plate, wherein the media management plate comprises
• a plate base body comprising
• a first major surface that attaches to the fuel cell assembly, and
• a second major surface opposite the first major surface,
• a media line system that supplies fuel cell media with an anode operating gas, a cathode operating gas and a coolant to the fuel cell assembly, and that discharges used fuel cell media from the fuel cell assembly, the media line system comprising an anode operating gas line, a cathode operating gas line and a coolant line extending from the second major surface of the plate base body to the first major surface, to supply the anode operating gas, the cathode operating gas and the coolant to the fuel cell assembly, and an anode exhaust gas line, a cathode exhaust gas line and a used coolant line extending from the first major surface of the plate base body to the second major surface, to discharge anode exhaust gas, cathode exhaust gas and used coolant from the fuel cell assembly,
• a water separator with a water reservoir to separate liquid water from the anode exhaust gas, wherein the water reservoir comprises an inlet opening and an outlet opening for the anode exhaust gas and the liquid water,
• a channel that drains the liquid water from the water reservoir,
• valve seats, measuring devices and regulating and control devices on the second major surface of the plate base body in communication with the media line system or the water reservoir or the channel,
• wherein the anode operating gas line, the anode exhaust gas line, the water reservoir and optionally the channel are in fluid communication with each other, and
• wherein the coolant line comprises at least one coolant branch line which is at least partially in thermally conducting contact with on or more of the media line system, the channel, the valve seats, the measuring devices and the regulating and control devices,
• or
• wherein a shape of the water reservoir and arrangement of the inlet opening and the outlet opening are selected such that the media management plate is oriented both perpendicular to a direction of gravity action and parallel to the direction of gravity action, such that, with gravity acting from top to bottom, the inlet opening and the outlet opening for the anode exhaust gas are located in an uppermost region of the water reservoir and the outlet opening for the liquid water is located in a lowermost region of the water reservoir;
• wherein the fuel cell assembly and the media management plate are attached to each other;
• first connections between the media management plate and the fuel cell assembly that introduce fresh anode operating gas, fresh cathode operating gas and fresh coolant into the fuel cell assembly;
• and,
• second connections between the media management plate and the fuel cell assembly that discharge said anode exhaust gas, said cathode exhaust gas and said used coolant from the fuel cell assembly.

A method of operating a fuel cell system comprising:

• providing a fuel cell assembly;
• providing a media management plate,
• wherein the media management plate comprises
• a plate base body comprising
• a first major surface that attaches to the fuel cell assembly, and
• a second major surface opposite said first major surface,
• a media line system that supplies fuel cell media with an anode operating gas, a cathode operating gas and a coolant to the fuel cell assembly, and that discharges used fuel cell media from the fuel cell assembly, the media line system comprising
• an anode operating gas line, a cathode operating gas line and a coolant line extending from the second major surface of the plate base body to the first major surface, to supply the anode operating gas, the cathode operating gas and the coolant to the fuel cell assembly, and
• an anode exhaust gas line, a cathode exhaust gas line and a used coolant line extending from the first major surface of the plate base body to the second major surface, to discharge anode exhaust gas, cathode exhaust gas and used coolant from the fuel cell assembly,
• a water separator with a water reservoir to separate liquid water from the anode exhaust gas, wherein the water reservoir comprises an inlet opening and an outlet opening for the anode exhaust gas and the liquid water,
• a channel that drains the liquid water from the water reservoir,
• valve seats, measuring devices and regulating and control devices on the second major surface of the plate base body in communication with the media line system or the water reservoir or the channel,
• wherein the anode operating gas line, the anode exhaust gas line, the water reservoir and optionally the channel are in fluid communication with each other, and wherein the coolant line comprises at least one coolant branch line which is at least partially in thermally conducting contact with on or more of the media line system, the channel, the valve seats, the measuring devices and the regulating and control devices,
• or
• wherein a shape of the water reservoir and arrangement of the inlet opening and the outlet opening are selected such that the media management plate is oriented both perpendicular to a direction of gravity action and parallel to the direction of the gravity action, such that, with gravity acting from top to bottom, the inlet opening and the outlet opening for the anode exhaust gas are located in an uppermost region of the water reservoir and the outlet opening for the liquid water is located in a lowermost region of the water reservoir;
• wherein the fuel cell assembly and the media management plate are attached to each other;
• introducing said anode operating gas into the fuel cell assembly through the anode operating gas line of the media management plate;
• discharging said anode exhaust gas from the fuel cell assembly through the anode exhaust gas line of the media management plate;
• recirculating the anode exhaust gas through an anode exhaust gas recirculation line into the anode operating gas line of the media management plate;
• introducing said cathode operating gas through the cathode operating gas line into the fuel cell assembly;
• discharging said cathode exhaust gas from the fuel cell assembly through the cathode exhaust gas line of the media management plate;
• introducing the coolant into the fuel cell assembly through the coolant line of the media management plate;
• discharging said used coolant from the fuel cell assembly through the used coolant line of the media management plate;
• separating said liquid water from the anode exhaust gas via the water separator with said water reservoir in the anode exhaust gas line of the media management plate;
• one or more of measuring, regulating and controlling one or more of a temperature, amount, pressure of the anode operating gas, the cathode operating gas and the anode exhaust gas and the cathode exhaust gas flowing in the media management plate and the amount of said liquid water in the water reservoir via the measuring devices and the regulating and control devices incorporated in the media management plate;
• periodically discharging one or more of the anode exhaust gas and the liquid water in the water reservoir of the media management plate;
• and,
• heating at least the anode exhaust gas line and the water separator with the water reservoir via the coolant in the at least one coolant branch line which extends in thermally conducting contact with the anode exhaust gas line and the water separator with the water reservoir.