Method for Detecting the Permeability State of the Ion Exchanger Polymer Membrane of a Fuel Cell
AssigneesCompagnie Generale Des Establissements Michelin, Michelin Recherche et Technique S.A.
InventorGino Paganelli
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Abstract
Procedure for detecting the permeability state of the polymeric ion-exchange membrane of a fuel cell stack, in which, as soon as the pressure difference in the anode and cathode circuits drops to a value below a threshold value PS, the pressure variation in said circuits for a predetermined time period tC is measured and the pressure difference in these circuits at the end of a predetermined time period, called the control pressure PC, is calculated and a warning is given when the control pressure PC is below a warning threshold PA.
Claims15
A procedure for detecting the permeability state of the polymeric ion-exchange membrane of a fuel cell stack, the fuel cell stack (1) being formed by stacking electrochemical cells each having an anode and a cathode on either side of a polymeric ion-exchange membrane, the fuel cell stack having a fuel gas supply system on the anode side of the electrochemical cells and an oxidant gas supply system on the cathode side of the electrochemical cells, wherein the procedure comprises, upon each shut-down of the fuel cell stack, in measuring the dynamic behaviour as the pressure in the anode circuit and the pressure in the cathode circuit come to equilibrium and, when said dynamic behaviour exhibits pre-identified characteristic signs, a warning signal indicating that the fuel cell stack requires inspection is activated.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.