Solid-oxide fuel cell system having means for controlling tail gas combustion temperature

Patent · Tue Feb 21 00:00:00 EST 2006

OSTI ID:1531503

Haltiner, Jr., Karl J.

In a solid-oxide fuel cell system, the fuel cell tail gas contains significant residual amounts of combustibles which are burned in a combustor with spent cathode air to reduce system emissions and to reclaim chemical energy in the form of heat, the hot exhaust being used to pre-heat air entering the fuel cell system. The tail gas combustibles content can vary widely as can the combustion temperature. When the temperature becomes unacceptably low, a control valve in the spent cathode air return is adjusted to divert a portion of the air around the combustor, thus enriching the fuel/air mixture and causing the combustion temperature to increase. When the temperature becomes unacceptably high, a control valve in the combustor fresh air supply is adjusted to provide more air, thus causing the mixture to become leaner and the combustion temperature to decrease.

• Research Organization: Delphi Technologies, Inc., Troy, MI (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• DOE Contract Number: FC26-02NT41246
• Assignee: Delphi Technologies, Inc. (Troy, MI)
• Patent Number(s): 7,001,682
• Application Number: 10/178,863
• OSTI ID: 1531503
• Resource Relation: Patent File Date: 2002-06-24
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English