US 8,263,281 B2Granted

Method for operating fuel-cell electricity-generating device

AssigneePanasonic Corporation

InventorsMasataka Ozeki, Akinari Nakamura, Shinji Miyauchi

Life of this patent

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Abstract

A stable and high reliability fuel cell electricity-generating device capable of generating electricity even in the case of sudden drop of load power includes a fuel cell generating electric power from a fuel and an oxidizer, a fuel processor producing fuel to be supplied into the fuel cell from an electricity-generating material, a combustion device combusting a residual fuel gas unconsumed in the fuel cell to raise the temperature of the fuel processor, and an electric power generation instructor determining the electric power generated by the fuel cell, wherein when the electric power generation instructor either decreases or prevents a decrease in the electric power generated by the fuel cell upon a decrease of load power to be supplied, depending on the temperature of the fuel processor.

Claims2

Dependent claims

A method for operating a fuel cell electricity-generating apparatus, comprising the steps of:

generating electric power by a fuel cell using a fuel gas and an oxidizer;
producing, by a fuel processor, the fuel gas from an electricity-generating material;
raising, by a combustion device, a temperature of the fuel processor using a residual fuel gas unconsumed in the fuel cell;
preventing, when load power is decreasing, the electric power generated by the fuel cell from decreasing if the temperature of the fuel processor is not lower than a certain threshold value;
and
decreasing, when the load power is decreasing, the electric power generated by the fuel cell at a rate absent a predetermined upper limit so that the generated electric power coincides with the load power, if the temperature of the fuel processor is not higher than another threshold value which is lower than the certain threshold value.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 13/192,917Filed 28 Jul 2011 · division
Priority: JP 2002-14056715 May 2002
Published: US 2011/0300459 A18 Dec 2011
Granted: 11 Sep 2012
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification8 codes

H01M 8/0612
With means for production of gaseous reactants: from carbon-containing material
H01M 8/04022
Heat exchange using gaseous fluids; Heat exchange by combustion of reactants: heating by combustion
H01M 8/04373
Temperature; Ambient temperature: of auxiliary devices, e.g. reformers, compressors, burners
H01M 8/04619
Power, energy, capacity or load: of fuel cell stacks

Family

PCT/JP03/05983Parent of this continuation · filed 14 May 2003
Application12/484,386Parent of this division · filed 15 Jun 2009
US 8,012,640 B2Parent of this division · filed 6 Sep 2011
US 2011/0300459 A1Pre-grant publication · published 8 Dec 2011
Application10/500,274Parent of this continuation
Application12/484,386Parent of this continuation
US 2005/0153182 A1Published application
US 2009/0253004 A1Published application
US 8,263,281 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.