Fuel cell system and method for starting up the same
AssigneeNippon Oil Co., Ltd.
InventorSusumu Hatada
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A method for starting a fuel cell system may include raising the temperature of the reforming catalyst layer while measuring the temperature of the reforming catalyst layer, calculating the flow rate of a hydrocarbon fuel which can be reformed in the reforming catalyst layer based on the measured temperature of the reforming catalyst layer, and supplying the hydrocarbon fuel at the calculated flow rate into the reforming catalyst layer to reform the fuel, and supplying the resultant reformed gas into an anode of a high temperature-type fuel cell. The amount of the hydrocarbon fuel supplied into the reforming catalyst layer is increased until the amount of the hydrocarbon fuel supplied into the reforming catalyst layer reaches the flow rate at the time of the completion of the start.
Claims9
A method for starting up a fuel cell system comprising a reformer having a reforming catalyst layer, for reforming a hydrocarbon-based fuel to produce a hydrogen-containing gas, and a high temperature fuel cell for generating electric power using the hydrogen-containing gas, comprising:
- a) increasing a temperature of the reforming catalyst layer, while measuring the temperature of the reforming catalyst layer;
- b) calculating a flow rate of the hydrocarbon-based fuel that can be reformed in the reforming catalyst layer, based on the measured temperature of the reforming catalyst layer;
- and
- c) supplying the hydrocarbon-based fuel at the calculated flow rate to the reforming catalyst layer to reform the hydrocarbon-based fuel, and supplying the obtained reformed gas to an anode of the high temperature fuel cell,
- wherein a feed rate of the hydrocarbon-based fuel to the reforming catalyst layer is increased, while steps b and c are repeated, until the feed rate of the hydrocarbon-based fuel to the reforming catalyst layer becomes the flow rate at completion of start-up.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.