Multiple stage combustion process to maintain a controllable reformation temperature profile
AssigneeGM Global Technology Operations LLC
InventorWilliam Henry Pettit
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A reaction vessel that integrates and balances an endothermic process with at least one exothermic process of the fuel cell system. Preferably the exothermic process is conducted in stages to provide more uniform and/or controllable heat generation and exchange, and to produce a uniform and/or controllable temperature profile in the endothermic reaction process. The invention allows for the elimination of the working fluid loop of prior art systems that had unsatisfactory response times at startup, and during transient conditions, and also added to the overall mass and volume of the fuel cell system.
Claims7
A multistage heat generation process to maintain a controllable reformation temperature profile comprising:
- providing a staged reaction vessel having at least two spaced apart heat generation chambers, and a reformation chamber in between and separating adjacent heat generation chambers such that the reformation chamber is not in fluid communication with the heat generation chambers,
- charging a first group of reactants to the reformation chamber to be reformed in the reformation chamber in an endothermic reaction,
- charging a second group of reactants to the heat generation chambers to generate heat from an exothermic reaction of the second group of reactants in an amount sufficient to supply heat for the endothermic reaction occurring in the adjacent reformation chamber and so that a substantially uniform temperature profile is maintained in the adjacent reformation reaction chamber.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.