Fuel cell system with degradation protected anode

A method of operating a fuel cell including an anode, a cathode, a first passage, and a second passage, wherein the anode is disposed in the first passage and the cathode is disposed in the second passage, comprising:

• (i) progressively heating the first fluid passage;
• (ii) producing a non-explosive gaseous feed consisting of (a) at least one oxidizable component having a greater tendency to undergo oxidation relative to the anode, and (b) a remainder, wherein the remainder is the predominant component in the gaseous feed and consists essentially of water vapor;
• and
• (iii) purging the first passage with the gaseous feed when the temperature of the anode is above a temperature effective to cause deteriorative oxidation of the anode in the presence of an oxidizing agent.

A method of operating a fuel cell including an anode comprising nickel, a cathode, a first passage, and a second passage, wherein the anode is disposed in the first passage and the cathode is disposed in the second passage:

• (i) producing a non-explosive gaseous feed comprising water vapor and at least one oxidizable component having a greater tendency to undergo oxidation relative to the anode by either of:
• (a) evaporating an aqueous mixture comprising the at least one oxidizable component;
• or
• (b) evaporating a source of water to produce the water vapor, and combining the water vapor with the at least one oxidizable component;
• and
• (ii) purging the first passage with the gaseous feed when the anode realizes a temperature effective to facilitate deteriorative oxidation of the anode in the presence of an oxidizing agent.

A fuel cell system comprising:

• a fuel cell including an anode, a cathode, a first passage, and a second passage, wherein the anode is disposed in the first passage and the cathode is disposed in the second passage;
• means for evaporating an aqueous mixture including at least one oxidizable component to form a gaseous feed;
• and
• means for delivering the gaseous feed to the first passage to form a first gaseous stream flowing through the first passage and effective in mitigating corrosion of the anode.

A fuel cell system comprising:

• a fuel cell including an anode, a cathode, a first passage, and a second passage, wherein the anode is disposed in the first passage and the cathode is disposed in the second passage:
• an evaporator, fluidly communicating with the first passage, for evaporating an aqueous mixture including at least one oxidizable component to form a gaseous feed;
• and
• a controller, communicating with the fuel cell for receiving an anode corrosion indication, and configured to deliver the gaseous feed to the first passage to form a first gaseous stream flowing through the first passage in response to the anode corrosion indication within the fuel cell.