Fuel cell system and method for operating the fuel cell system
AssigneeBallard Power Systems Inc.
InventorLars Kaufmann
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A fuel cell system and method of operation in which the fuel cell system has a fuel cell unit with anode and cathode, a media flow path for supplying substantially pure hydrogen to the anode, a media flow path for the cathode, an anode exhaust-gas flow path and a cathode exhaust-gas flow path. A fan for supplying air to the cathode is provided in the flow path of the cathode, and a catalytic burner is arranged in the cathode exhaust-gas flow path. The anode exhaust-gas flow path opens into the catalytic burner and/or into the cathode exhaust-gas flow path upstream of the catalytic burner. The combined, catalytically converted fuel cell exhaust-gas flow is passed into an expansion machine.
Claims7
A method for operating a fuel cell system having a fuel cell unit with an anode and a cathode, a media flow path leading to the anode, a media flow path leading to the cathode, an anode exhaust-gas flow path, a cathode exhaust-gas flow path, a fan inserted in the media flow path leading to the cathode for supplying air to the cathode, and a catalytic burner arranged in the cathode exhaust-gas flow path, said method comprising:
- introducing an anode exhaust gas into, and mixing the anode exhaust gas with a cathode exhaust gas in, at least one of the catalytic burner and the cathode exhaust-gas flow path upstream of the catalytic burner;
- converting the anode exhaust gas and the cathode exhaust gas into a combined catalytically converted fuel cell exhaust flow in the catalytic burner,
- passing the combined catalytically converted fuel cell exhaust flow from the catalytic burner into an expansion machine;
- and
- feeding the fuel cell unit with a lower excess of hydrogen in part-load operation than in full-load operation.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.