Increasing thermal dissipation of fuel cell stacks under partial electrical load

• US 7,700,210 B2
• Filed: 05/10/2005
• Issued: 04/20/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/10/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bloom Energy Corporation
• Original Assignee: Bloom Energy Corporation
• Inventors: Sridhar, K. R., Gottmann, Matthias, Russell, Ian
• Primary Examiner(s): Ryan; Patrick
• Assistant Examiner(s): CONLEY, OI K
• Application Number:
  US11/125,267
• Publication Number:
  US 20060257696A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,806 Days
• Field of Search: 429/13, 429/23, 429/24, 429/12
• US Class Current: 429/431
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 2008/1293 Fuel cells with solid oxide electrolytes
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 2008/147 Fuel cells with molten carbonates
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/04007 related to heat exchange
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/04619 of fuel cell stacks
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/04753 of fuel cell reactants
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/0625 in a modular combined reactor/fuel cell structure
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/184 Regeneration by electrochemical means
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/2425 High-temperature cells with solid electrolytes
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/2432 Grouping of unit cells of planar configuration
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/244 with matrix-supported molten electrolyte
• CPC Class Codes: H01M 8/249 comprising two or more groupings of fuel cells, e.g. modular assemblies
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 60/50 Fuel cells

Abstract

A method of operating a high temperature fuel cell system containing a plurality of fuel cell stacks includes operating one or more of the plurality of fuel cell stacks at a first output power while operating another one or more of the plurality of the fuel cell stacks at a second output power different from the first output power.

Claims

1. A method of operating a high temperature fuel cell system comprising a plurality of fuel cell stacks which comprise a first set of fuel cell stacks containing one or more first stacks and a second set of fuel cell stacks containing one or more second stacks;

wherein the method comprising operating one or more of the plurality of the first set or the one or more of the plurality of the second set of fuel cell stacks at a first output power while operating another one or more of the plurality of the first set or the one or more of the plurality of the second set of fuel cell stacks at a second output power different from the first output power,

wherein providing a same amount of fuel to each of first set of fuel cell stacks and second set of fuel cell stacks; and

providing a load to the first and the second sets of stacks, wherein

the load is repeatedly varied such that the output power of the first set of stacks is alternately higher or lower than the output power of the second set of stacks.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein a sum of output powers from the plurality of the first set and the second set of stacks equals to a required output power.

3. The method of claim 2,

wherein a combined thermal dissipation in each of the first set and second set of stacks is higher compared to the thermal dissipation when operating all of the first set and the second set of the stacks at a same output power.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein each one of the plurality of stacks is thermally integrated with one or more other stacks, such that each one of the plurality of stacks provides dissipated heat to one or more other stacks or absorbs heat from one or more other stacks.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the load variation frequency on the first and the second sets of stacks is 1 kHz or higher.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the load on the first and on the second sets of stacks is varied by reversing a polarity of current provided to the stacks.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of fuel cell stacks is separately electrically connected to at least one of a power conditioning subsystem and a power control subsystem.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of fuel cell stacks comprise a plurality of solid oxide fuel cell stacks.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising operating three or more sets of fuel cell stacks of the plurality of fuel cell stacks at different output powers.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of the stacks are operated at different output powers during a partial system load which is lower than a designed system operating load.