Distribution manifold with water distribution and drainage functions for fuel cell

Abstract

A fuel cell distribution manifold with water distribution and drainage functions is characterized in that the distribution manifold is provided with a hydrogen chamber, an air chamber and a cooling water chamber which are mutually independent, the hydrogen chamber, the air chamber and the cooling water chamber are respectively provided with corresponding inlets and outlets, the distribution manifold is also provided with a steam-water separation chamber, and the steam-water separation chamber is provided with a water inlet and a water outlet. A water distribution structure is arranged in the steam-water separation cavity, the steam-water separation cavity is further provided with a steam-water separation outlet and a discharge outlet, and an electronic valve is arranged on the discharge outlet. According to the utility model, the steam-water separation chamber communicated with the hydrogen chamber is arranged in the distribution manifold of the fuel cell and is used for carrying out steam-water separation on high-humidity and high-temperature hydrogen in a fuel cell reactor, so that the fuel cell does not need to be additionally provided with a structure for separating reaction gas and water, the tedious assembly is avoided, the installation process is simplified, and the overall integration level is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the technical field of hydrogen fuel cells, in particular to a distribution manifold for fuel cells with both water distribution and drainage functions. Background Art

[0002] A hydrogen fuel cell is a device that uses hydrogen as a reducing agent and oxygen as an oxidant to convert chemical energy into electrical energy through a redox reaction. It has the advantages of high energy conversion rate, clean and environmentally friendly, and low noise. At present, hydrogen fuel cells have been widely used in automobiles, power stations, portable mobile power supplies, emergency power supplies, and household power supplies.

[0003] During the operation of a hydrogen fuel cell, unreacted hydrogen will mix with some of the water generated by the reaction and be discharged from the anode side of the fuel cell stack. If this gas-water mixture is directly discharged, the hydrogen utilization rate of the hydrogen fuel cell system will be greatly reduced. If the unreacted hydrogen is directly circulated into the fuel cell stack, the excess water in the hydrogen will also enter the fuel cell stack, causing the fuel cell stack to be flooded, thereby affecting the safe and stable operation of the fuel cell system. Therefore, effectively separating the unreacted hydrogen and the water generated by the fuel cell stack reaction is of great significance to improving the hydrogen utilization rate of the fuel cell system and ensuring the stable operation of the hydrogen fuel cell system.

[0004] In order to solve the above problems, Chinese utility model patents such as CN 215184095 U have appeared on the market: a steam-water separation device for a hydrogen fuel cell system, comprising a steam-water separation body, a separation baffle is arranged at the upper inner part of the steam-water separation body, the upper end of the separation baffle is connected to the top of the steam-water separation body, and the lower end thereof extends downwardly for a certain length in the vertical direction, the separation baffle separates the corresponding cavity in the steam-water separation body into an air inlet cavity and an air outlet cavity, the lower inner part of the steam-water separation body is a liquid storage cavity communicated with the air inlet cavity and the air outlet cavity, and an air inlet connected to the air inlet cavity, an air outlet connected to the air outlet cavity, and a discharge port connected to the liquid storage cavity are respectively arranged on the steam-water separation body.

[0005] Although the above scheme can achieve the steam-water separation effect of hydrogen, in actual use, the above device needs to be installed on the hydrogen pipeline of the fuel cell device, which increases the number of parts of the entire fuel cell device, distributes them in a scattered manner, makes the assembly process complicated, and reduces the overall integration of the device. Utility Model Content

[0006] In order to solve the above technical problems, the utility model adopts the following technical solutions:

[0007] A distribution manifold for a fuel cell with both water distribution and drainage functions is provided with mutually independent hydrogen chambers, air chambers and cooling water chambers, wherein the hydrogen chambers, air chambers and cooling water chambers are respectively provided with corresponding inlets and outlets. The distribution manifold is also provided with a steam-water separation chamber, which is connected to the hydrogen outlet of the hydrogen chamber, and a water distribution structure is provided in the steam-water separation chamber, and the steam-water separation chamber is also provided with a steam-water separation outlet and a discharge port for drainage, and an electronic valve is provided on the discharge port.

[0008] Furthermore, the steam-water separation chamber is provided with a detachable cover plate, and the water separation structure is integrated on the cover plate.

[0009] Furthermore, the steam-water separation chamber is provided with bolt holes and bolts for locking the cover plate.

[0010] Furthermore, the water separation structure is a baffle type, collision type or spiral type structure.

[0011] Furthermore, the water-dividing structure is of baffle type, and is composed of a plurality of baffles, and the baffles are arranged to be inclined downward toward one side of the discharge port.

[0012] Furthermore, the hydrogen inlet of the hydrogen chamber is connected to the hydrogen exhaust port of the fuel cell reactor stack, the air inlet of the air chamber is connected to the external air, the cooling water inlet of the cooling water chamber is connected to the external water supply, and the cooling water outlet of the cooling water chamber is connected to the cooling water inlet of the fuel cell stack.

[0013] Furthermore, the steam-water separation outlet of the steam-water separation chamber is connected to a hydrogen recovery device of the fuel cell. The hydrogen recovery device can be a hydrogen pump or an ejector.

[0014] Furthermore, the distribution manifold is made of aluminum alloy or engineering plastics.

[0015] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects produced by the utility model are:

[0016] 1. The utility model sets a steam-water separation chamber in the distribution manifold of the fuel cell, which is connected to the hydrogen chamber, for separating steam and water in the high-humidity and high-temperature hydrogen in the fuel cell reactor, so that the fuel cell does not need to be additionally provided with a structure for separating hydrogen and water, avoids cumbersome assembly, simplifies the installation process, and improves the overall integration.

[0017] 2. Various types of water separation structures can be integrated on the cover plate of the steam-water separation chamber of the utility model. When a different water separation structure needs to be replaced, only the detachable cover plate needs to be replaced, which is easy to operate. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] Figure 1It is a three-dimensional diagram of the utility model.

[0019] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the cover plate of the utility model after being decomposed.

[0020] Figure 3 for Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the other direction.

[0021] Figure 4 for Figure 2 Schematic diagram of the other direction.

[0022] Among them, the numbers in the figure are: hydrogen chamber 10, hydrogen inlet 11, hydrogen outlet 12, air chamber 20, air inlet 21, air outlet 22, cooling water chamber 30, cooling water inlet 31, cooling water outlet 32, steam-water separation chamber 40, steam-water separation outlet 42, discharge port 43, cover plate 44, water separation structure 45. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] The specific implementation of the present utility model is described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0024] Reference Figure 1 and Figure 2 , a distribution manifold for a fuel cell with both water distribution and drainage functions, the distribution manifold is provided with a hydrogen chamber 10, an air chamber 20 and a cooling water chamber 30 which are independent of each other. The hydrogen chamber 10 is provided with a hydrogen inlet 11 and a hydrogen outlet 12, the air chamber 20 is provided with an air inlet 21 and an air outlet 22, and the cooling water chamber 30 is provided with a cooling water inlet 31 and a cooling water outlet 32. The distribution manifold is also provided with a steam-water separation chamber 40 for separating hydrogen and water of a fuel cell reactor. The steam-water separation chamber 40 is provided with a steam-water separation outlet 42 and a discharge port 43, and the hydrogen after separation treatment is discharged from the steam-water separation outlet 42, and an electronic valve (not shown in the figure) is provided on the discharge port 43 for discharging the separated water. In this embodiment, the material of the distribution manifold is preferably a strong material such as an aluminum alloy or an engineering plastic.

[0025] Reference Figure 2 and Figure 3The steam-water separation chamber 40 is provided with a water-dividing structure 45, which can be a baffle type, or a special structure such as a spiral type or a collision type. In this embodiment, the water-dividing structure 45 is preferably a baffle type structure composed of two baffles, and the baffle is arranged downwardly and tilted toward the discharge port 43. The steam-water separation chamber 40 is detachably provided with a cover plate 44. Preferably, in this embodiment, bolt holes are arranged on the steam-water separation chamber 40, and the cover plate 44 is locked to the steam-water separation chamber 40 with bolts. The type and specification of the water-dividing structure 45 can be selected according to actual needs such as the type of fuel cell. The water-dividing structure 45 in the steam-water separation chamber 40 is integrated on the cover plate 44. When it is necessary to replace a new water-dividing structure 45 or replace a water-dividing structure 45 of different specifications, it is only necessary to replace the detachable cover plate 44, thereby simplifying the assembly process.

[0026] In addition, in this embodiment, the water separation structure 45 can also be replaced by a special material with a drying function, and the special material with a drying function is used to absorb water from the high-temperature and high-humidity hydrogen to obtain dry hydrogen.

[0027] Reference Figure 3 and Figure 4 The air inlet 21 of the air chamber 20 is connected to the external air, and the air outlet 22 of the air chamber 20 is connected to the stack air inlet of the fuel cell reactor; the cooling water inlet 31 of the cooling water chamber 30 is connected to the external water supply, and the cooling water outlet 32 ​​is connected to the stack cooling water inlet of the fuel cell reactor; the hydrogen inlet 11 of the hydrogen chamber 10 is connected to the stack hydrogen outlet of the fuel cell reactor, and the hydrogen outlet 12 is connected to the steam-water separation inlet of the steam-water separation chamber 40 (not marked in the figure), and the steam-water separation outlet 42 is connected to the hydrogen return device of the fuel cell, which is a hydrogen pump or an ejector, which is used to recycle the hydrogen that is not reacted in the fuel cell reactor to the hydrogen chamber 10 of the fuel cell reactor to save hydrogen fuel and improve hydrogen utilization.

[0028] When the fuel cell is running, air and cooling water enter the distribution manifold from the air inlet 21 and the cooling water inlet 31 respectively. In the reactor of the fuel cell, the high-temperature and high-humidity hydrogen returns to the hydrogen inlet 11 from the hydrogen outlet of the fuel cell stack. The hydrogen enters the water separation structure 45 of the steam-water separation chamber 40 to separate steam and water. The separated hydrogen enters the inlet of the hydrogen return device from the steam-water separation outlet 42, and the separated water is discharged from the discharge port 43 through the control of the electronic valve. When the fuel cell reaction is completed, the unreacted hydrogen is discharged from the discharge port 43. In this embodiment, the steam-water separation chamber with a water separation structure is set in the distribution manifold, so that the fuel cell does not need to be additionally provided with a structure for separating hydrogen and water, avoiding cumbersome assembly, simplifying the installation process, and improving the overall integration.

[0029] The above is only a specific implementation method of the utility model, but the design concept of the utility model is not limited to this. Any non-substantial changes to the utility model using this concept shall be deemed as an infringement of the protection scope of the utility model.

Claims

1. A distribution manifold for a fuel cell with both water distribution and drainage functions, wherein the distribution manifold is provided with mutually independent hydrogen chambers, air chambers and cooling water chambers, wherein the hydrogen chambers, air chambers and cooling water chambers are respectively provided with corresponding inlets and outlets, and wherein: The distribution manifold is also provided with a steam-water separation chamber, in which a water separation structure is provided. The steam-water separation chamber is connected with the hydrogen outlet of the hydrogen chamber. The steam-water separation chamber is also provided with a steam-water separation outlet and a discharge port for drainage, and an electronic valve is provided on the discharge port.

2. A fuel cell distribution manifold with both water distribution and drainage functions according to claim 1, characterized in that: The steam-water separation chamber is provided with a detachable cover plate, and the water separation structure is integrated on the cover plate.

3. A fuel cell distribution manifold with both water distribution and drainage functions according to claim 2, characterized in that: The steam-water separation chamber is provided with bolt holes and bolts for locking the cover plate and the steam-water separation chamber.

4. A fuel cell distribution manifold with both water distribution and drainage functions according to claim 1, characterized in that: The water separation structure is a baffle type, collision type or spiral type structure.

5. A fuel cell distribution manifold with both water distribution and drainage functions according to claim 4, characterized in that: The water-dividing structure is of baffle type, and includes a plurality of baffles, and the baffles are arranged to be inclined downward toward one side of the discharge port.

6. A fuel cell distribution manifold with both water distribution and drainage functions according to claim 1, characterized in that: The hydrogen inlet of the hydrogen chamber is connected to the hydrogen exhaust port of the fuel cell stack; the air inlet of the air chamber is connected to the external air, and the air outlet of the air chamber is connected to the air inlet of the fuel cell stack; the cooling water inlet of the cooling water chamber is connected to the external water supply, and the cooling water outlet of the cooling water chamber is connected to the cooling water inlet of the fuel cell stack.

7. A fuel cell distribution manifold with both water distribution and drainage functions according to claim 1, characterized in that: The steam-water separation outlet of the steam-water separation chamber is connected to a hydrogen recovery device of the fuel cell.

8. A fuel cell distribution manifold with both water distribution and drainage functions according to claim 1, characterized in that: The distribution manifold is made of aluminum alloy or engineering plastics.

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