Fuel cell stack assembly

Abstract

A fuel cell stack assembly is presented. The fuel cell stack assembly includes a plurality of fuel cells and a plurality of interconnect plates. In the fuel cell stack assembly, each interconnect plate of the plurality of interconnect plates is disposed between a pair of fuel cells of the plurality of fuel cells. The fuel cell stack assembly further includes a plurality of reactant manifolds defined by the plurality of interconnect plates and a heating element disposed in a reactant manifold of the plurality of reactant manifolds.

Description

technical field [0001] Embodiments of the disclosure generally relate to fuel cells, such as solid oxide fuel cells. Background technique [0002] Fuel cells are one of the promising technologies for generating electricity. Fuel cells are electrochemical devices that convert chemical energy produced by reactions directly into electrical energy. Fuel cells generally include an anode (or fuel electrode), a cathode (or oxide electrode), and an electrolyte. These fuel cells, such as batteries, react fuel and oxidant to generate electricity. However, unlike a battery pack, a fuel cell such as hydrogen and an oxidant such as air are continuously supplied to a fuel cell so that it continues to generate power as long as this reactant is provided. [0003] Since individual fuel cells generate power at low voltages, eg, less than about 1 volt per cell, multiple fuel cells are often assembled in a fuel cell stack to generate power at useful voltages. In a stack arrangement with pla...

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