Fuel cell power supply with oxidant and fuel gas switching

Patent · 01 January 1987

OSTI ID:866215

McElroy, James F ^[1]; Chludzinski, Paul J ^[2]; Dantowitz, Philip ^[3]

---

1. Hamilton, MA
2. Swampscott, MA
3. Peabody, MA

This invention relates to a fuel cell vehicular power plant. Fuel for the fuel stack is supplied by a hydrocarbon (methanol) catalytic cracking reactor and CO shift reactor. A water electrolysis subsystem is associated with the stack. During low power operation part of the fuel cell power is used to electrolyze water with hydrogen and oxygen electrolysis products being stored in pressure vessels. During peak power intervals, viz, during acceleration or start-up, pure oxygen and pure hydrogen from the pressure vessel are supplied as the reaction gases to the cathodes and anodes in place of air and methanol reformate. This allows the fuel cell stack to be sized for normal low power/air operation but with a peak power capacity several times greater than that for normal operation.

• Research Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-36
• Assignee: United Technologies Corporation (Hartford, CT)
• Patent Number(s): US 4657829
• OSTI ID: 866215
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

/429/
acceleration
air
allows
anodes
associated
capacity
catalytic
catalytic cracking
cathodes
cell
cell power
cell stack
cell vehicular
cracking
cracking reactor
electrolysis
electrolyze
fuel
fuel cell
fuel gas
gas
gas switch
gases
hydrocarbon
hydrogen
intervals
methanol
normal
normal operation
operation
oxidant
oxygen
peak
peak power
plant
power
power operation
power plant
power supply
pressure
pressure vessel
pressure vessels
products
pure
pure oxygen
reaction
reaction gas
reaction gases
reactor
reformate
relates
shift
sized
stack
start-up
stored
subsystem
supplied
supply
switching
times
vehicular
vehicular power
vessel
vessels
viz
water