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US 9,312,552 B2Granted
Fuel cell system and starting method thereof
AssigneeToyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorsTomio Yamanaka, Yoshiaki Naganuma
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The problem is that a large force is required to open a flow-dividing shut valve provided in an air supply path for supplying the air to a fuel cell stack at a start of a fuel cell system. This problem is solved by reducing a pressure difference between upstream and downstream of the flow-dividing shut valve, before the flow-dividing shut valve is opened, at a start of the fuel cell system.
Claims20
A fuel cell system, comprising:
- a fuel cell stack;
- an air supplier discharger that supplies the air that is taken in from the atmosphere and compressed to the fuel cell stack through an air supply path and discharges the air from the fuel cell stack through an air discharge path during operation of the fuel cell stack;
- a control unit including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, a valve controller programmed to open a supply shut valve provided in the air supply path at a start of the fuel cell system, and a pressure regulator programmed to reduce a pressure difference between upstream and downstream of the supply shut valve, before the valve controller opens the supply shut valve;
- and
- a bypass that serves as a flow path causing the air to flow from the air supply path to the air discharge path without passing through the fuel cell stack in at least a closed state of the supply shut valve, wherein
- the pressure regulator has a pressure-regulating shut valve provided in the air discharge path to regulate the air pressure in the fuel cell stack during operation of the fuel cell system,
- the pressure-regulating shut valve is provided between the fuel cell stack and a connection point of the air discharge path and the bypass, and
- wherein in response to a control signal from the control unit, the pressure regulator programmed to open the pressure-regulating shut valve with a pressure-regulating shut valve motor to reduce the pressure difference between upstream and downstream of the supply shut valve at a start of the fuel cell system after the air supplier discharger starts compression of the air.
5 more elements
A start method of a fuel cell system, comprising:
- a fuel cell stack;
- an air supplier discharger that supplies the air that is taken in from the atmosphere and compressed to the fuel cell stack through an air supply path and discharges the air from the fuel cell stack through an air discharge path during operation;
- a supply shut valve provided in the air supply path;
- a bypass that serves as a flow path causing the air to flow from the air supply path to the air discharge path without passing through the fuel cell stack in at least a closed state of the supply shut valve;
- and
- a pressure-regulating shut valve provided between the fuel cell stack and a connection point of the air discharge path and the bypass, the method
- opening the pressure-regulating shut valve to reduce the pressure difference between upstream and downstream of the supply shut valve at a start of the fuel cell system after the air supplier discharger starts compression of the air.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.