US 2006/0141337 A1Published application

Fuel cell

AssigneeHonda Motor Co., Ltd.

InventorsTomohide Shibutani, Osamu Kakutani

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Abstract

A fuel cell is provided having a positive electrode layer (13) and a negative electrode layer (14) disposed on the front and rear sides of an electrolyte membrane (12), for generating electricity by bringing hydrogen into contact with a catalyst in the negative electrode layer and bringing oxygen into contact with a catalyst in the positive electrode layer. The positive electrode layer includes the components electrolyte, carbon (36, 37), a catalyst (38) carried on the carbon, a pore-forming material and a water-repellent resin. In the electrolyte membrane vicinity (34) of the positive electrode layer, which is a part where the reaction between the oxygen and the hydrogen ions proceeds readily, the electrolyte/carbon weight ratio and the carried catalyst amount are made large. In parts where product water tends to stagnate, the amounts of the pore-forming material and the water-repellent resin are increased.

Claims3

Dependent claims

A fuel cell characterized in that it comprises:

an electrolyte membrane;
positive and negative electrode layers respectively disposed on a front side and a rear side of the electrolyte membrane and oriented vertically;
a positive electrode diffusion layer disposed on the positive electrode layer;
a negative electrode diffusion layer disposed on the negative electrode layer;
an oxygen gas passage provided on the outer face of the positive electrode layer;
and
a hydrogen gas passage provided on the outer face of the negative electrode layer,
and the positive electrode layer includes an electrolyte, carbon, a catalyst carried on the carbon, a pore-forming material and a water-repellent resin, and the electrolyte/carbon weight ratio, the carried amount of catalyst, the amount of pore-forming material and the amount of water-repellent resin change gradually from the electrolyte membrane side in the direction of the positive electrode diffusion layer, change gradually from the vertical-direction top part in the direction of the bottom part, and change gradually from the supply side of the oxygen gas passage toward the discharge side.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.