Fuel cell system, fuel feed system for fuel cell and portable electric appliance

• US 5,976,725 A
• Filed: 06/16/1997
• Issued: 11/02/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Matsushita Electric Industrial Company Limited (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Nagai, Sadao, Suzuki, Jo, Hamanishi, Mamoru, Yasumoto, Eiichi, Hatoh, Kazuhito, Kuranaka, So, Morita, Yoshio, Gamo, Takaharu
• Primary Examiner(s): Bell, Bruce F.
• Application Number:
  US08/876,439
• Time in Patent Office: 869 Days
• Field of Search: 429/17, 429/19, 429/20, 429/24, 429/25, 429/33, 429/35, 429/34
• US Class Current: 429/421
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1616 with folding flat displays, e.g. laptop computers or notebooks having a clamshell configuration, with body parts pivoting to an open position around an axis parallel to the plane they define in closed position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1635 Details related to the integration of battery packs and other power supplies such as fuel cells or integrated AC adapter
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 2300/0082 Organic polymers
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/0606 with means for production of gaseous reactants
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/065 by dissolution of metals or alloys; by dehydriding metallic substances
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/50 Fuel cells

Abstract

A fuel cell system has a fuel cell of solid polymer type, a rectangular parallelepiped sealing container for accommodating hydrogen occlusion alloy for occluding hydrogen to be supplied to said fuel cell, a connection portion provided in a hydrogen passage between said sealing container and said fuel cell for connecting said sealing container and said fuel cell detachably, a valve mechanism provided in said hydrogen passage for opening and shutting hydrogen gas, and a hydrogen flow rate control mechanism provided in said hydrogen passage for controlling the flow rate of hydrogen gas, and/or hydrogen pressure control mechanism for controlling the pressure of hydrogen gas.

Claims

1. A fuel cell system for generating electric power, comprising:

a fuel cell of a solid polymer;

a rectangular parallelepiped sealing container for accommodating hydrogen occlusion alloy, for occluding hydrogen to be supplied to said fuel cell, said sealing container having an inner surface, an outer surface, a plurality of sides, and at least two confronting sides having having surfaces with the largest area;

a connection portion provided in a hydrogen passage between said sealing container and said fuel cell for detachably connecting said sealing container and said fuel cell;

a valve mechanism provided in said hydrogen passage for opening and shutting a flow of hydrogen gas; and

a flow control mechanism provided in said hydrogen passage for controlling a flow rate of hydrogen gas, said mechanism chosen from the group consisting of a hydrogen pressure control mechanism and a hydrogen flow rate control mechanism.

2. The fuel cell system defined in claim 1, wherein the sealing container has at least one support member for supporting two sides of said sealing container, said member provided between two confronting sides having the largest surface area.

3. The fuel cell system defined in claim 2, wherein said support member has a shape so as to increase a surface area in order to have a heat exchange function.

4. The fuel cell system defined in claim 2, wherein the support member comprises a plate.

5. The fuel cell system defined in claim 1, wherein said valve mechanism and said flow control mechanism are provided at said fuel cell side of said connection portion.

6. The fuel cell system defined in claim 1, wherein undulations or fins are present on the outer surface and the inner surface of said sealing container.

7. The fuel cell system defined in claim 1, wherein a heat exchange mechanism is provided in order to heat said sealing container by making use of heat generated from the fuel cell.

8. The fuel cell system defined in claim 1, wherein an alloy powder flow-out preventive mechanism for preventing hydrogen occlusion alloy from flowing out of said sealing container is provided inside said sealing container.

9. The fuel cell system defined in claim 1, wherein an alloy powder flow-out preventive mechanism for preventing hydrogen occlusion alloy from flowing out of said sealing container is provided in said hydrogen passage between said sealing container and said connection portion.

10. The fuel cell system defined in claim 1, wherein a porous element for hydrogen lead-in, communicating with said hydrogen passage, is provided in said sealing container.

11. The fuel cell system defined in claim 1, wherein a hydrogen equilibrium pressure, when releasing hydrogen occlusion alloy, is 11 MPa or less at 35°

C.

12. The fuel cell system defined in claim 1, wherein the valve mechanism has an automatic opening and closing mechanism for opening when connecting at the connection portion, and closing when dismounting at the connection portion.

13. The fuel cell system defined in claim 12, wherein the connection portion incorporates said valve mechanism.

14. The fuel cell system defined in claim 12, wherein the valve mechanism is comprised of a push-in valve.

15. The fuel cell system defined in claim 1, wherein a hydrogen flow-out side pressure of the flow control mechanism is in a range of between atmospheric pressure and 0.4 Mpa.

16. A portable electric appliance, wherein the power source of the appliance comprises the fuel cell system of claim 1.

17. The portable electric appliance defined in claim 16, wherein a container, which is rectangular parallelepiped, which contains hydrogen occlusion alloy, and which is capable of being sealed, is detachably set into a main body of the portable electric appliance.

18. A fuel feed system for a fuel cell, comprising:

a sealing container for feeding fuel to a polyelectrolyte fuel cell, and

a fuel passage between said sealing container and said polyelectrolyte fuel cell,

wherein said sealing container further comprises

a first chamber containing water,

a second chamber containing a substance for generating hydrogen by reacting with water, and

isolation means for isolating said first chamber containing water from said second chamber containing a substance for generating hydrogen by reacting with water,

wherein said isolation means further comprises

switch means for opening a hole in said isolating means and feeding hydrogen into said polyelectrolyte fuel cell, in order to generate hydrogen by inducing reaction, by adding water to the substance for generating hydrogen by reaction with water when operating said polyelectrolyte fuel cell.

19. The fuel feed system defined in claim 18, wherein the substance for generating hydrogen by reacting with water is a hydride.

20. The fuel feed system defined in claim 18, wherein the substance for generating hydrogen by reacting with water is a boron hydride.

21. The fuel feed system defined in claim 18, wherein the substance for generating hydrogen by reacting with water is at least one substance selected from the group consisting of BH₃, B₃ H₆, B₄ H₁₀, B₅ H₉, B₅ H₁₁, B₆ H₁₀, and B₁₀ H₁₄.

22. The fuel feed system defined in claim 18, wherein the substance for generating hydrogen by reacting with water is a boron lithium hydride.

23. The fuel feed system defined in claim 18, wherein the substance for generating hydrogen by reacting with water is MxByHz, wherein M is an alkaline metal, B is boron, H is hydrogen, x is an integer from 1 to 10, y is an integer from 1 to 20, and z is an integer from 1 to 30.

24. The fuel feed system defined in claim 18, wherein the substance for generating hydrogen by reacting with water is a boron aluminum hydride.

25. The fuel feed system defined in claim 18, wherein the substance for generating hydrogen by reacting with water is FeO.

26. The fuel feed system defined in claim 18, wherein a hydrophilic nonwoven cloth is placed in said chamber containing said substance for generating hydrogen by reacting with water or acidic aqueous solution.

27. A portable electric appliance, wherein the power source of the appliance comprises a fuel cell having the fuel feed system as defined in claim 18.

28. The portable electric appliance defined in claim 27, wherein a container of said fuel feed system for a fuel cell is detachably set into a main body of the portable electric appliance.

29. A fuel feed system for a fuel cell, comprising:

a sealing container for feeding fuel to a polyelectrolyte fuel cell, and

a fuel passage between said sealing container and said polyelectrolyte fuel cell, wherein

said sealing container further comprises

a first chamber containing an acidic aqueous solution,

a second chamber containing a substance for generating hydrogen by reacting with acidic aqueous solution, and

isolation means for isolating said first chamber containing acidic aqueous solution from said second chamber containing a substance for generating hydrogen by reacting with acidic aqueous solution, said isolation means further comprising switch means, for opening a hole in said isolating means and feeding hydrogen into said polyelectrolyte fuel cell, in order to generate hydrogen by inducing reaction by adding acidic aqueous solution to the substance for generating hydrogen by reaction with acidic aqueous solution when operating said polyelectrolyte fuel cell.