Title:
STEAM GENERATOR FOR A PEM FUEL CELL POWER PLANT
Document Type and Number:
WIPO Patent Application WO2003071188
Kind Code:
A3
Abstract:
A burner assembly (14) includes a catalyzed burner for combusting an anode exhaust stream (68) from a polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cell power plant (12). The catalysts coated onto the burner can be platinum, rhodium, or mixtures thereof. The burner includes open cells which are formed by a lattice, which cells communicate with each other throughout the entire catalyzed burner. Heat produced by combustion of hydrogen in the anode exhaust stream (68) is used to produce steam for use in a steam reformer (16) in the PEM fuel cell assembly. The catalyzed burner has a high surface area wherein about 70-90% of the volume of the burner is preferably open cells, and the burner has a low pressure drop of about two to three inches water from the anode exhaust stream inlet to the anode exhaust stream outlet. The burner assembly (14) operates at essentially ambient pressure and at a temperature of up to about 1,700°F (927°C). The burner assembly (14) can combust anode exhaust (68) during normal operation of the fuel cell assembly (18). The burner assembly (14) also includes an adjunct burner which can combust gasoline (or other conventional fuel) (72) or anode bypass gas (52) (the latter of which is a reformed fuel gas which is tapped off of the fuel cell stack fuel inlet line) during startup of the fuel cell power plant (12). Once start up of the fuel cell power plant (12) is achieved, the burner assembly (14) will need only combustion of the anode exhaust (68) by the catalytic burner to produce steam (20) for the reformer (16).
Inventors:
ASSARABOWSKI RICHARD J
BREEN SEAN P
LOZYNIAK STEVEN A
UNKERT WILLIAM T
WYSOCKI JOSEPH B
YOKOSE MASAKI M
BREEN SEAN P
LOZYNIAK STEVEN A
UNKERT WILLIAM T
WYSOCKI JOSEPH B
YOKOSE MASAKI M
Application Number:
PCT/US2003/004809
Publication Date:
November 27, 2003
Filing Date:
February 18, 2003
Export Citation:
Assignee:
UTC FUEL CELLS LLC (US)
International Classes:
F23C13/00; C01B3/38; H01M8/04; H01M8/06; H01M8/10; (IPC1-7): H01M8/00
Foreign References:
| US20020012893A1 | 2002-01-31 | |||
| US6124053A | 2000-09-26 | |||
| US6093501A | 2000-07-25 |
Download PDF: