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US 2014/0272636 A1Published application
Hybrid Autothermal Steam Reformer for Fuel Cell Systems
AssigneeCombined Energies LLC
InventorsDonald Frank Rohr, John Anthony Vogel
Life of this patent
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AssigneeCombined Energies LLC
InventorsDonald Frank Rohr, John Anthony Vogel
Estimating the term…
A reactant processing module with a hybrid autothermal reformer (HASR) can allow for control of both the amount of cathode recirculation and the amount of water sent to the HASR. At the beginning of life of the fuel cell, reactant processing module can operate on full cathode recirculation. As the fuel cell begins to age and become less efficient, the amount of nitrogen-heavy, vitiated air from the fuel cell cathode can be monitored by a control system and restricted using a valve. In order to compensate for the aforementioned restriction, the rate of input of the external air supply is increased to the HASR and the deficit in water is supplied in liquid form from a water reservoir and turned to steam within the HASR. The amount of liquid water input from the water reservoir that meets the need for continued efficient operation is relatively small.
A hybrid autothermal steam reformer (HASR) included within a reactant processing module having a variable cathode air recirculation system and a water delivery system, the reactant processing module providing a reformate stream to a power generation module, the HASR comprising:
A power generation system comprising:
A method of improving the efficiency of a fuel cell system comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.