Bipolar plate for water electrolyzer with double seal

Abstract

The application discloses a bipolar plate with double sealing for water electrolysis tank, comprising a water / oxygen side and a hydrogen side, the water / oxygen side and the hydrogen side both comprise a flow field reaction area arranged at a middle position, and flow field distribution areas arranged at both ends of the length direction of the flow field reaction area, respectively, and water / oxygen inlets and outlets or hydrogen outlets are arranged at the end of the width direction of the flow field distribution area; a double sealing structure is arranged at the periphery of the flow field reaction area, the flow field distribution area and the water / oxygen inlets and outlets or the hydrogen outlets, the double sealing structure comprises a sealing ring groove and a water seal line groove arranged outside the sealing ring groove. The application considers the sealing effect and the size of the bipolar plate, adopts the double sealing form of the sealing ring groove and the water seal line groove, realizes a more reliable sealing mode, improves the problem of poor existing sealing effect, and enables the electrolysis tank to achieve an ideal sealing effect under long-term operation pressure.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of water electrolysis hydrogen production, in particular to a bipolar plate with double sealing for water electrolysis tank. BACKGROUND

[0002] In the field of hydrogen production technology, water electrolysis hydrogen production technology is favored because it can safely and efficiently obtain hydrogen. The performance of the water electrolysis tank, as the main equipment for water electrolysis hydrogen production, directly affects the production of hydrogen, and the performance of the bipolar plate, as one of the core components of the water electrolysis tank, directly affects the performance of the entire water electrolysis tank. The electrolysis tank has important functions such as gas distribution, electricity conduction, heat conduction, and water drainage. It usually has a central flow field area (composed of multiple flow channels), a flow field distribution area, a water / gas inlet and outlet area, and a peripheral sealing area.

[0003] For example, patent number 202123155395.7 discloses a water electrolysis tank injection molding non-metal frame bipolar plate, which belongs to the technical field of water electrolysis. The injection molding non-metal frame bipolar plate includes a metal separator, a non-metal frame, and a rubber sealing ring. The non-metal frame is injection molded and integrated with the metal separator, and the sealing ring is vulcanized in the groove of the non-metal frame. The non-metal frame and the metal separator are integrally formed to ensure the size of the bipolar plate and simplify the structure. The non-metal frame avoids electrochemical corrosion of the water channel and the hydrogen channel, reducing the pollution of metal ions into the water caused by electrolyte pollution. The sealing ring is integrated with the non-metal frame by vulcanization, avoiding misplacement of the sealing ring during assembly of the electrolysis tank.

[0004] The sealing ring of the above-mentioned patent solution is injection molded twice in the groove of the non-metal frame, and the umbrella-shaped structure makes the sealing ring tightly combined with the bipolar plate, avoiding the problem that the sealing ring cannot be tightly combined with the metal bipolar plate and easily falls off and misplaces during assembly of the electrolysis tank, resulting in sealing failure. However, it still has the following problems:

[0005] 1. The main purpose of the peripheral sealing area of the bipolar plate is to prevent water and gas leakage. The sealing method of the above-mentioned patent solution only uses one-time sealing, and its sealing performance is prone to decline under long-term running pressure, leading to sealing failure.

[0006] 2. The flow field area determines the proportion of the effective reaction area, the uniformity of the reactant (water) and the product (gas), the effective transmission of the product (gas), and the electrical conductivity. Therefore, the performance of the bipolar plate is largely determined by the flow field structure, and the flow field area of the above-mentioned patent solution needs to be improved.

[0007] Therefore, it is necessary to improve such a structure to overcome the above-mentioned defects. SUMMARY

[0008] The present application aims to provide a bipolar plate for water electrolysis cell with double sealing to solve the above problems.

[0009] The above technical purposes of the present application are achieved by the following technical solutions:

[0010] A bipolar plate for water electrolysis cell with double sealing comprises

[0011] A water / oxygen side comprises a first flow field reaction zone arranged at a middle position, first flow field distribution zones arranged at both ends of the length direction of the first flow field reaction zone respectively, and water / oxygen inlets and outlets arranged at both ends of the width direction of the first flow field distribution zones respectively and communicated with the first flow field reaction zone through the first flow field distribution zones.

[0012] A double sealing structure is arranged at the periphery of the first flow field reaction zone, the first flow field distribution zones and the water / oxygen inlets and outlets, and comprises a sealing ring groove and a water seal line groove arranged outside the sealing ring groove.

[0013] A hydrogen side comprises a second flow field reaction zone arranged at a middle position, second flow field distribution zones arranged at both ends of the length direction of the second flow field reaction zone respectively, and a hydrogen outlet arranged at a middle position of the width direction of the second flow field distribution zone and communicated with the second flow field reaction zone.

[0014] A double sealing structure is arranged at the periphery of the second flow field reaction zone, the second flow field distribution zones and the hydrogen outlet, and comprises a sealing ring groove and a water seal line groove arranged outside the sealing ring groove.

[0015] Further, the first flow field reaction zone is symmetrically distributed with V-shaped ridges, fold line ridges, trapezoidal ridges and cylindrical ridges along the length direction middle line.

[0016] The V-shaped ridges are respectively arranged at both sides and a middle position of the first flow field reaction zone, and the V-shaped ridges at the middle position are rhombic distributed along the width direction; the trapezoidal ridges are arranged at both sides of the middle position of the first flow field reaction zone and form a V-shaped whole; the cylindrical ridges are arranged at the middle position of the first flow field reaction zone, and the adjacent four cylindrical ridges are rhombic distributed; the V-shaped ridges, the fold line ridges, the trapezoidal ridges and the cylindrical ridges form water / oxygen delivery channels with the bottom plate; the V-shaped ridges, the trapezoidal ridges and the cylindrical ridges form direct current channels with the bottom plate at the middle position.

[0017] Further, the first flow field distribution zone is symmetrically distributed with cylindrical protrusions and straight ridges along the length direction middle line; the cylindrical protrusions are equidistantly distributed, and the adjacent two rows are staggered distributed, and any cylindrical protrusion of any row is at the center position of the two adjacent cylindrical protrusions of the adjacent row; the straight ridges are semicircular and left-right symmetrically distributed along the width direction, and one side of the straight ridges is communicated with the water / oxygen inlets and outlets.

[0018] Further, the second flow field reaction zone is provided with straight ridges symmetrically distributed at equal intervals along the length direction of the second flow field reaction zone, and the straight ridges and the bottom plate form hydrogen gas conveying channels.

[0019] Further, the second flow field distribution zone is symmetrically distributed with rectangular ridges, cylindrical protrusions and straight ridges along the length direction center line; one side of the rectangular ridge is communicated with the second flow field reaction zone, and the other side of the rectangular ridge is communicated with the cylindrical protrusion; the cylindrical protrusions are distributed at equal intervals, and two adjacent rows are staggered, and any cylindrical protrusion in any row is located at the center position of two adjacent cylindrical protrusions in adjacent rows; one side of the straight ridge is communicated with the hydrogen gas outlet.

[0020] Further, the sealing ring groove is provided with a sealing ring for a resealing, and a gasket is arranged on the periphery of the bipolar plate, and the gasket is extruded to form a double sealing structure at the water seal line groove.

[0021] Further, the sealing ring groove is a rectangular groove, and the water seal line groove is an inverted equilateral triangular groove.

[0022] Further, the water / oxygen gas inlets and outlets are symmetrically and equidistantly distributed on the left and right sides of the upper and lower ends of the bipolar plate, and the left and right water / oxygen gas inlets and outlets at any end are communicated with each other by a horizontal channel.

[0023] Further, the bipolar plate is suitable for a proton exchange membrane water electrolysis cell and an anion exchange membrane water electrolysis cell.

[0024] In summary, the present application has the following beneficial effects:

[0025] 1. By designing the water / oxygen gas side and hydrogen gas side flow field areas, the flow field structure of the bipolar plate is optimized, especially the water / oxygen gas side, a new flow field structure is formed in a combination distribution mode of four different shapes of ridges, the water flow resistance is balanced, the water / gas distribution is more uniform, especially the middle position avoids the problem of gas blockage, the water / gas flow is more smooth, and the generated gas is better discharged.

[0026] 2. The sealing area of the bipolar plate directly affects the sealing performance and size of the bipolar plate, and in the design of the peripheral sealing area of the bipolar plate, the sealing effect and the size of the bipolar plate are considered, a double sealing form of a sealing ring groove and a water seal line groove is adopted, a more reliable sealing mode is realized, the problem of poor existing sealing effect is solved, and the electrolysis cell can also achieve ideal sealing effect under long-term operation pressure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0027] Figure 1 is a schematic view of the water / oxygen gas side of the bipolar plate of the electrolysis cell.

[0028] Figure 2is a schematic diagram of a hydrogen side bipolar plate of a water electrolyzer according to the present application.

[0029] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a water / oxygen side flow field distribution area according to the present application.

[0030] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a hydrogen side flow field distribution area according to the present application.

[0031] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of a double sealing structure according to the present application.

[0032] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of a water / oxygen inlet and outlet and a hydrogen outlet of a bipolar plate according to the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0033] In order to make the technical means, creative features, purposes and effects of the present application easy to understand, the present application is further described below in combination with the drawings and specific embodiments.

[0034] As shown in Figures 1 to 6 , a bipolar plate with double sealing for a water electrolyzer according to the present application comprises

[0035] a water / oxygen side 100, which comprises a first flow field reaction area 101 arranged at a middle position, first flow field distribution areas 102 arranged at both ends of the length direction of the first flow field reaction area 101 respectively, and water / oxygen inlets and outlets 103 arranged at both ends of the width direction of the first flow field distribution areas 102 respectively and communicated with the first flow field reaction area 101 through the first flow field distribution areas 102;

[0036] a double sealing structure is arranged at the periphery of the first flow field reaction area 101, the first flow field distribution areas 102 and the water / oxygen inlets and outlets 103, and the double sealing structure comprises a sealing ring groove 300 and a water seal line groove 301 arranged outside the sealing ring groove 300;

[0037] a hydrogen side 200, which comprises a second flow field reaction area 201 arranged at a middle position, second flow field distribution areas 202 arranged at both ends of the length direction of the second flow field reaction area 201 respectively, and a hydrogen outlet 203 arranged at a middle position of the width direction of the second flow field distribution areas 202 and communicated with the second flow field reaction area 201;

[0038] a double sealing structure is arranged at the periphery of the second flow field reaction area 201, the second flow field distribution areas 202 and the hydrogen outlet 203, and the double sealing structure comprises a sealing ring groove 300 and a water seal line groove 301 arranged outside the sealing ring groove 300.

[0039] The first flow field reaction zone 101 is equidistantly and symmetrically distributed with V-shaped ridges 104, zigzag ridges 105, trapezoidal ridges 106 and cylindrical ridges 107 along the length direction middle line.

[0040] The V-shaped ridges 104 are respectively located at the left and right sides and the middle position of the first flow field reaction zone 101, and the V-shaped ridges 104 at the middle position are rhombic distributed along the width direction; the trapezoidal ridges 106 are located at the upper and lower sides of the middle position of the first flow field reaction zone 101, and the whole is V-shaped; the cylindrical ridges 107 are located at the central position of the first flow field reaction zone 101, and the adjacent four cylindrical ridges 107 are rhombic distributed; the V-shaped ridges 104, the zigzag ridges 105, the trapezoidal ridges 106 and the cylindrical ridges 107 form water / oxygen delivery channels 108 with the bottom plate; the V-shaped ridges 104, the trapezoidal ridges 106 and the cylindrical ridges 107 form a straight flow channel 109 with the bottom plate at the central position.

[0041] The first flow field distribution zone 102 is symmetrically distributed with cylindrical protrusions 110 and straight ridges 111 along the length direction middle line; the cylindrical protrusions 110 are equidistantly distributed, and the adjacent two rows are staggered distributed, and any cylindrical protrusion 110 of any row is located at the central position of the two adjacent cylindrical protrusions 110 of the adjacent row; the straight ridges 111 are semicircular along the width direction and symmetrically distributed left and right, and one side of the straight ridges 111 is communicated with the water / oxygen inlet and outlet 103.

[0042] The second flow field reaction zone 201 is provided with equidistantly and symmetrically distributed straight ridges 204 along the length direction; the straight ridges 204 form hydrogen delivery channels 205 with the bottom plate.

[0043] The second flow field distribution zone 202 is symmetrically distributed with rectangular ridges 206, cylindrical protrusions 207 and straight ridges 208 along the length direction middle line; one side of the rectangular ridges 206 is communicated with the second flow field reaction zone 201, and the other side of the rectangular ridges 206 is communicated with the cylindrical protrusions 207; the cylindrical protrusions 207 are equidistantly distributed, and the adjacent two rows are staggered distributed, and any cylindrical protrusion 207 of any row is located at the central position of the two adjacent cylindrical protrusions 207 of the adjacent row; one side of the straight ridges 208 is communicated with the hydrogen outlet 203.

[0044] The sealing ring groove 300 is provided with a sealing ring 302 for a resealing, and a gasket 303 is arranged on the periphery of the bipolar plate; the gasket 303 is extruded to form a double sealing structure at the water seal line groove 301.

[0045] The sealing ring groove 300 is a rectangular groove, and the water seal line groove 301 is an inverted equilateral triangular groove.

[0046] The water / oxygen inlet and outlet 103 is located at the left and right sides of the upper and lower ends of the bipolar plate, and is symmetrically and equidistantly distributed; the left and right water / oxygen inlets and outlets 103 at any end are communicated with each other by a horizontal channel 400.

[0047] The bipolar plate is suitable for a proton exchange membrane water electrolyzer and an anion exchange membrane water electrolyzer.

[0048] The bipolar plate optimizes the flow field structure of the bipolar plate through the design of the water / oxygen side and the hydrogen side flow field area, especially the water / oxygen side, forms a new flow field structure in a combination distribution mode of four different shapes of ridges, balances the water flow resistance, makes the water / gas distribution more uniform, especially avoids the gas blockage problem in the middle position, makes the water / gas flow more smooth, and further makes the generated gas better discharged.

[0049] The sealing area of the bipolar plate directly affects the sealing performance and size of the bipolar plate, in the design of the peripheral sealing area of the bipolar plate, the sealing effect and the size of the bipolar plate are considered, a double sealing form of sealing ring groove and water seal line groove is adopted, a more reliable sealing mode is realized, the problem of poor existing sealing effect is improved, and the electrolyzer can also achieve ideal sealing effect under long-term operation pressure.

[0050] In this document, the terms "upper", "lower", "front", "back", "left", "right", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", "vertical", "horizontal", and the like indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings, and are only for the purpose of expressing the technical solution clearly and conveniently, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on the present application.

[0051] In this document, the terms "include", "contain" or any other variants thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, in addition to containing the listed elements, other elements not explicitly listed can also be contained.

[0052] The above shows and describes the basic principles, main features and advantages of the present application. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that the present application is not limited by the above examples, the above examples and descriptions in the specification are only to illustrate the principles of the present application, and various changes and improvements can be made to the present application without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application, and these changes and improvements all fall within the scope of the present application. The scope of protection of the present application is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A bipolar plate for a water electrolyzer with double sealing, characterized in that: include The water / oxygen side (100) comprises a first flow field reaction zone (101) arranged in the middle, first flow field distribution zones (102) respectively arranged at both ends of the first flow field reaction zone (101) in the length direction, and water / oxygen inlet and outlet (103) respectively arranged at both ends of the first flow field distribution zone (102) in the width direction and connected to the first flow field reaction zone (101) through the first flow field distribution zone (102); A double sealing structure is provided on the periphery of the first flow field reaction zone (101), the first flow field distribution zone (102) and the water / oxygen inlet and outlet (103), the double sealing structure comprising a sealing ring groove (300) and a water seal line groove (301) provided outside the sealing ring groove (300); The hydrogen side (200) comprises a second flow field reaction zone (201) arranged in the middle, second flow field distribution zones (202) respectively arranged at both ends of the second flow field reaction zone (201) in the length direction, and a hydrogen outlet (203) arranged in the middle of the second flow field distribution zone (202) in the width direction, and the second flow field distribution zone (202) is in communication with the second flow field reaction zone (201); A double sealing structure is provided on the periphery of the second flow field reaction zone (201), the second flow field distribution zone (202) and the hydrogen outlet (203), the double sealing structure comprising a sealing ring groove (300) and a water seal line groove (301) provided outside the sealing ring groove (300); The first flow field reaction zone (101) has V-shaped ridges (104), broken line ridges (105), trapezoidal ridges (106) and cylindrical ridges (107) symmetrically distributed along the longitudinal midline; The V-shaped ridges (104) are respectively located on the left and right sides and the middle position of the first flow field reaction zone (101), and the V-shaped ridges (104) at the middle position are distributed in a rhombus shape along the width direction; the trapezoidal ridges (106) are located on the upper and lower sides of the middle position of the first flow field reaction zone (101), and are V-shaped as a whole; the cylindrical ridges (107) are located in the middle position of the first flow field reaction zone (101), and the four adjacent cylindrical ridges (107) are distributed in a rhombus shape; the V-shaped ridges (104), the broken line ridges (105), the trapezoidal ridges (106) and the cylindrical ridges (107) form a water / oxygen transport channel (108) with the bottom plate; the V-shaped ridges (104), the trapezoidal ridges (106) and the cylindrical ridges (107) form a direct current channel (109) with the bottom plate at the middle position.

2. The bipolar plate for a water electrolyzer with double sealing according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first flow field distribution area (102) is symmetrically distributed with cylindrical protrusions (110) and straight ridges (111) along the longitudinal midline; the cylindrical protrusions (110) are equidistantly distributed, and two adjacent rows are staggered, and any cylindrical protrusion (110) in any row is located at the center of two adjacent cylindrical protrusions (110) in the adjacent row; the straight ridges (111) are semicircular and symmetrically distributed along the width direction, and one side of the straight ridges (111) is connected to the water / oxygen inlet and outlet (103).

3. The bipolar plate for a water electrolyzer with double sealing according to claim 1, characterized in that: The second flow field reaction zone (201) is provided with straight ridges (204) distributed symmetrically and equidistantly along its length direction, and the straight ridges (204) and the bottom plate form hydrogen delivery channels (205).

4. The bipolar plate for a water electrolyzer with double sealing according to claim 1, characterized in that: The second flow field distribution area (202) is symmetrically distributed with a rectangular ridge (206), a cylindrical protrusion (207) and a straight ridge (208) along the midline of the longitudinal direction; one side of the rectangular ridge (206) is connected to the second flow field reaction area (201), and the other side of the rectangular ridge (206) is connected to the cylindrical protrusion (207); the cylindrical protrusions (207) are distributed at equal intervals, and are staggered in two adjacent rows, and any cylindrical protrusion (207) in any row is located at the center position of two adjacent cylindrical protrusions (207) in the adjacent row; one side of the straight ridge (208) is connected to the hydrogen outlet (203).

5. The bipolar plate for a water electrolyzer with double seal according to claim 1, characterized in that: A sealing ring (302) for single sealing is placed in the sealing ring groove (300), and a gasket (303) is placed on the periphery of the bipolar plate. The gasket (303) is squeezed and concave at the water seal groove (301) to form a double sealing structure.

6. The bipolar plate for a water electrolyzer with double sealing according to claim 1, characterized in that: The sealing ring groove (300) is a rectangular groove, and the water seal wire groove (301) is an inverted equilateral triangle groove.

7. The bipolar plate for a water electrolyzer with double sealing according to claim 1, characterized in that: The water / oxygen inlet and outlet (103) are located on the left and right sides of the upper and lower ends of the bipolar plate and are symmetrically and equidistantly distributed. The left and right water / oxygen inlet and outlet (103) at either end are interconnected by a transverse channel (400).

8. The bipolar plate for a water electrolyzer with double sealing according to claim 1, characterized in that: The bipolar plate is suitable for a proton exchange membrane water electrolyzer and an anion exchange membrane water electrolyzer.

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