Electrochemical cell device, module, and module-accommodating device

Abstract

This electrochemical cell device comprises an electrochemical cell and a gas supply unit that supplies gas to the electrochemical cell. The electrochemical cell has: a flow path member having a gas flow path, a gas introduction part, and a gas discharge part; and an element part positioned on the flow path member. The gas introduction part introduces the gas into the gas flow path. The gas discharge part discharges the gas from the gas flow path. At least one of the gas introduction part and the gas discharge part has an adjustment part for adjusting a pressure loss generated during passage of the gas. In the adjustment part, the introduction direction of the gas introduced from the gas supply part to the gas introduction part and / or the discharge direction of the gas discharged from the gas discharge part is orthogonal to the direction of flow of the gas in the gas flow path.

Description

Electrochemical cell device, module, and module housing device

[0001] The present disclosure relates to electrochemical cell devices, modules and module housing devices.

[0002] In recent years, various fuel cell stack devices having multiple fuel cell units have been proposed as next-generation energy sources. A fuel cell unit is a type of electrochemical cell that can generate electric power using a fuel gas such as a hydrogen-containing gas and an oxygen-containing gas such as air.

[0003] JP 2023-93447 A

[0004] An electrochemical cell device according to one aspect of the embodiment includes an electrochemical cell and a gas supply unit that supplies gas to the electrochemical cell. The electrochemical cell includes a flow path member that includes a gas flow path, a gas inlet, and a gas outlet, and an element unit located on the flow path member. The gas inlet introduces gas into the gas flow path. The gas outlet discharges gas from the gas flow path. At least one of the gas inlet and the gas outlet has an adjustment unit that adjusts pressure loss that occurs when gas passes through. In the adjustment unit, the introduction direction of gas introduced from the gas supply unit to the gas inlet and / or the discharge direction of gas discharged from the gas outlet is perpendicular to the gas flow direction in the gas flow path.

[0005] The electrochemical cell device disclosed herein also includes a flow path member, an electrochemical cell having an element section, and a gas supply section. The flow path member includes a support plate having a first surface and a second surface opposite the first surface, a back plate facing the first surface across the gas flow path, and a pair of first side portions connecting the support plate and the back plate along the gas flow path and facing each other across the gas flow path. The element section is located on the second surface. The gas supply section supplies gas to the gas flow path. The flow path member has a first end portion including a first end and a first portion fixed to the gas supply section, a second end portion including a second end opposite the first end, and a second side portion located at the first end and / or the second end and connecting the support plate and the back plate. At least one of the first end and the second end has one or more holes in at least one of the support plate, the back plate, the first side portion and the second side portion, the holes having an opening diameter smaller than the distance between the first surface at the first end or the second end and the back plate.

[0006] The module of the present disclosure includes the electrochemical cell device described above and a container that houses the electrochemical cell device.

[0007] The module housing device of the present disclosure includes the module described above, an auxiliary device for operating the module, and an exterior case for housing the module and the auxiliary device.

[0008] FIG. 1A is a diagram showing an example of an electrochemical cell device according to a first embodiment. FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A in FIG. 1A. FIG. 2A is an enlarged cross-sectional view of region R1 shown in FIG. 1B. FIG. 2B is a plan view showing an example of an electrochemical cell included in the electrochemical cell device shown in FIG. 2A. FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing another example of an electrochemical cell device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 4A is a cross-sectional view showing another example of an electrochemical cell device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 4B is a plan view showing an example of an electrochemical cell included in the electrochemical cell device shown in FIG. 4A. FIG. 5A is a cross-sectional view showing another example of an electrochemical cell device according to the first embodiment. FIG. 5B is a plan view showing an example of an electrochemical cell included in the electrochemical cell device shown in FIG. 5A. FIG. 6A is a diagram showing an example of an electrochemical cell device according to a second embodiment. FIG. 6B is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B in FIG. 6A. FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view schematically showing an example of a module housing device according to an embodiment.

[0009] The above-described fuel cell stack device has room for improvement in terms of power generation performance.

[0010] Therefore, it is desired to provide an electrochemical cell device, a module, and a module housing device that can improve performance.

[0011] Hereinafter, embodiments of an electrochemical cell device, a module, and a module housing device disclosed in the present application will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described below.

[0012] It should also be noted that the drawings are schematic and that the dimensional relationships and ratios of elements may differ from reality. Furthermore, the drawings may contain parts whose dimensional relationships and ratios differ from one another.

[0013] 1A and 1B, an electrochemical cell device including a solid oxide fuel cell as an electrochemical cell according to an embodiment will be described. The electrochemical cell device may include a cell stack including a plurality of electrochemical cells. An electrochemical cell device including a plurality of electrochemical cells will be simply referred to as a cell stack device.

[0014] Fig. 1A is a diagram showing an example of an electrochemical cell device according to a first embodiment. Fig. 1B is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA shown in Fig. 1A. Figs. 1A and 1B show enlarged views of parts of each component of the electrochemical cell. Hereinafter, the electrochemical cell may also be simply referred to as a cell.

[0015] 1A and 1B illustrate a three-dimensional Cartesian coordinate system including a Z-axis, with the vertically upward direction being the positive direction and the vertically downward direction being the negative direction. This Cartesian coordinate system may also be shown in other drawings used in the following explanation. Furthermore, components similar to those in the electrochemical cell shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B are denoted by the same reference numerals, and their explanations will be omitted or simplified.

[0016] The cell stack device 10 according to this embodiment includes a gas supply unit 41, a gas recovery unit 42, and cells 1. The gas supply unit 41 supplies fuel gas generated in a reformer 50 to the cells 1. The gas recovery unit 42 recovers fuel gas discharged from the cells 1. The cell stack device 10 may have a cell stack 11 including a plurality of cells 1.

[0017] The reformer 50 reforms raw fuel such as natural gas or kerosene to generate fuel gas. The reformer 50 may include a vaporizer that vaporizes water and a reformer. The reformer includes a reforming catalyst (not shown) and reforms the raw fuel into fuel gas. Such a reformer 50 can perform steam reforming, which is a highly efficient reforming reaction. The fuel gas generated in the reformer 50 is supplied to the gas supply unit 41 through a pipe 43.

[0018] The cell 1 includes a flow path member 20 and an element section 3. The element section 3 has an electrochemical element that generates electricity using a fuel gas introduced into a gas flow path 30. Details of the element section 3 will be described later.

[0019] The flow path member 20 includes a gas flow path 30, a gas inlet, and a gas outlet. The gas inlet may have, for example, a hole 31 that introduces fuel gas supplied to a gas supply unit 41 into the gas flow path 30. The gas outlet may have, for example, a hole 32 that discharges fuel gas inside the gas flow path 30 to a gas recovery unit 42. The fuel gas recovered in the gas recovery unit 42 may be discharged to the outside through a pipe 44.

[0020] At least one of the gas inlet section and the gas outlet section has an adjustment section that adjusts the pressure loss that occurs when the fuel gas passes through. The adjustment section can, for example, generate a pressure loss greater than that of the gas flow path 30. This allows the fuel gas introduced into each of the multiple cells 1 in the cell stack device 10 to be appropriately distributed. This improves the power generation performance of each cell 1 in the cell stack device 10.

[0021] <Electrochemical Cell> Next, the fuel cell according to this embodiment will be further described. Fig. 2A is an enlarged cross-sectional view of region R1 shown in Fig. 1B. Fig. 2B is a plan view showing an example of an electrochemical cell included in the electrochemical cell device shown in Fig. 2A.

[0022] The cell 1 includes a flow path member 20 and an element section 3. The flow path member 20 has a first end 20a and a second end 20b located at opposite ends in the X-axis direction. The first end 20a is located on the upstream side of the gas flow path 30. The first end 20a includes a first end 25 and a first portion 26 fixed to a housing 410 of the gas supply unit 41, and is housed inside the gas supply unit 41.

[0023] The second end 20b is located downstream of the gas flow path 30. The second end 20b includes a second end 27 and a second portion 28 fixed to a housing 420 of the gas recovery unit 42, and is housed inside the gas recovery unit 42.

[0024] The flow path member 20 includes a support plate 21, a back plate 22, and a side portion 23. The support plate 21 has a first surface 211 and a second surface 212. The first surface 211 faces the back plate 22 across the gas flow path 30. The second surface 212 is located on the opposite side of the first surface 211 and faces the anode 5.

[0025] The support plate 21 may have holes 21a penetrating in the thickness direction (Z-axis direction). The fuel gas flowing through the gas flow path 30 is supplied to the fuel electrode 5 of the element section 3 through these holes 21a. The diameter of the holes 21a may be, for example, 0.1 mm to 0.5 mm, particularly 0.3 mm to 0.4 mm. The aperture ratio in the region where the holes 21a are formed may be, for example, 10% or more. The support plate 21 may have a coating covering the wall surfaces of the holes 21a. The support plate 21 does not need to have a coating on the wall surfaces of the holes 21a.

[0026] The back plate 22 is positioned to face the support plate 21 across the gas flow path 30. The back plate 22 has a surface 221 and a surface 222. The surface 221 faces the back plate 22 across the gas flow path 30. The surface 222 is positioned on the opposite side of the surface 221 and faces the air electrode 8. The surface 221 may have a convex portion that protrudes toward the support plate 21. The surface 222 may have a convex portion that protrudes toward the air electrode 8.

[0027] The side portion 23 is located between the support plate 21 and the rear plate 22. The side portion 23 is located so as to surround the periphery of the gas flow path 30, and is a member that connects the support plate 21 and the rear plate 22.

[0028] The side portion 23 has side portions 231 to 234. The side portions 231 and 232 are second side portions located at both ends in the length direction (X-axis direction) of the gas flow path 30. The side portions 233 and 234 are first side portions located along the length direction (X-axis direction) of the gas flow path 30. The side portions 233 and 234 are located so as to connect both ends of the side portions 231 and 232, respectively.

[0029] The side portion 231 is located on the first end 25 side of the flow path member 20. The side portion 232 is located on the second end 27 side of the flow path member 20. The side portions 233 and 234 are located at both ends in the width direction (Y-axis direction) that intersects with the length direction of the gas flow path 30. The side portion 23 may be made of a single member, or may be made by joining two or more members together.

[0030] The flow path member 20 is electrically conductive. The flow path member 20 may be made of, for example, a metal or an alloy. The flow path member 20 may contain, for example, chromium. The material of the flow path member 20 may be, for example, a stainless steel such as a ferritic stainless steel or an austenitic stainless steel, which has high heat resistance. The material of the flow path member 20 may be, for example, a nickel-chromium alloy or an iron-chromium alloy. The flow path member 20 may contain, for example, a metal oxide. Furthermore, the flow path member 20 may have a coating covering the surface. The flow path member 20 does not have to have a coating on the surface.

[0031] The element unit 3 is located on the second surface 212 of the support plate 21. The element unit 3 may be located in a central portion 20c sandwiched between the first end portion 20a and the second end portion 20b. The element unit 3 has an anode 5, a solid electrolyte layer 6, and an air electrode 8. The anode 5 is the first electrode that comes into contact with the fuel gas, which is a reducing gas. The anode 5 is gas permeable. The open porosity of the anode 5 may be, for example, in the range of 30% to 50%, particularly 35% to 45%. The open porosity of the anode 5 is sometimes referred to as the porosity or void ratio of the anode 5.

[0032] A generally known material can be used for the fuel electrode 5. The fuel electrode 5 is made of a porous conductive ceramic, such as calcium oxide, magnesium oxide, or ZrO in which a rare earth element oxide is solid-solved. ２ and Ni and / or NiO may be used. The rare earth element oxide may contain, for example, a plurality of rare earth elements selected from Sc, Y, La, Nd, Sm, Gd, Dy, and Yb. Calcium oxide, magnesium oxide, or ZrO in which a rare earth element oxide is solid-solved may be used. ２The stabilized zirconia may contain partially stabilized zirconia. The anode 5 is made of CeO in which La, Nd, or Yb is solid-solved. ２ may include:

[0033] The solid electrolyte layer 6 is an electrolyte and transfers ions between the fuel electrode 5 and the air electrode 8. At the same time, the solid electrolyte layer 6 has gas barrier properties and makes it difficult for leakage of fuel gas and oxygen-containing gas to occur.

[0034] The material of the solid electrolyte layer 6 is, for example, ZrO in which 3 mol % to 15 mol % of rare earth element oxide is dissolved. ２ The rare earth element oxide may contain, for example, one or more rare earth elements selected from Sc, Y, La, Nd, Sm, Gd, Dy, and Yb. The solid electrolyte layer 6 may be, for example, ZrO in which Yb, Sc, or Gd is solid-solved. ２ and CeO in which La, Nd or Yb is solid-solved. ２ and BaZrO in which Sc or Yb is solid-solved. ３ and BaCeO in which Sc or Yb is solid-solved. ３ may include:

[0035] The air electrode 8 is a second electrode that comes into contact with an oxygen-containing gas. The air electrode 8 has gas permeability. The open porosity of the air electrode 8 may be, for example, in the range of 20% to 50%, particularly 30% to 50%. The open porosity of the air electrode 8 may also be referred to as the porosity of the air electrode 8.

[0036] There are no particular limitations on the material of the air electrode 8 as long as it is a material that is generally used for air electrodes. ３ Conductive ceramics such as perovskite oxides may also be used.

[0037] The material of the air electrode 8 may be, for example, a composite oxide in which Sr (strontium) and La (lanthanum) coexist at the A site. Examples of such composite oxides include La ｘ Sr １－ｘ Co ｙ Fe １－ｙ O ３ , La ｘ Sr１－ｘ MnO ３ , La ｘ Sr １－ｘ FeO ３ , La ｘ Sr １－ｘ CoO ３ Here, x is 0<x<1, and y is 0<y<1.

[0038] The element unit 3 may also have an intermediate layer (not shown) located between the solid electrolyte layer 6 and the air electrode 8. When the element unit 3 has an intermediate layer, the intermediate layer functions, for example, as a diffusion suppression layer. When elements such as Sr (strontium) contained in the air electrode 8 diffuse into the solid electrolyte layer 6, SrZrO ３ The intermediate layer makes it difficult for specific elements such as Sr to diffuse, resulting in a resistance layer such as SrZrO ３ This makes it difficult for compounds such as

[0039] The material of the intermediate layer is not particularly limited as long as it generally prevents diffusion of elements between the air electrode 8 and the solid electrolyte layer 6. The material of the intermediate layer is, for example, cerium oxide (CeO ２ ) may be included. Examples of such rare earth elements include Gd (gadolinium) and Sm (samarium).

[0040] The cell 1 may further include a constraining layer (not shown). The constraining layer is located between the element portion 3 and the support member 2. The constraining layer cooperates with the solid electrolyte layer 6 to make the element portion 3 less susceptible to warping, bending, and the like.

[0041] The material of the constraining layer exhibits a shrinkage rate similar to that of the material of the solid electrolyte layer 6 during firing. The material of the constraining layer may be the same as the material of the solid electrolyte layer 6. The element unit 3 obtained by sandwiching the material of the anode 5 of the element unit 3 between the material of the solid electrolyte layer 6 and the material of the constraining layer and firing the resulting element unit 3 has little warping or deformation.

[0042] The constraining layer may or may not be gas permeable. When the constraining layer has gas barrier properties comparable to those of the solid electrolyte layer 6, the constraining layer can be partially disposed so as not to obstruct the inflow of fuel gas to the anode 5.

[0043] The cell 1 may further include a gas diffusion layer (not shown). The gas diffusion layer is located between the anode 5 and the support member 2. The gas diffusion layer has gas permeability and allows the fuel gas flowing through the gas flow passage 30 (described later) to pass through to the anode 5. The open porosity of the gas diffusion layer may be in the range of, for example, 30% to 50%, particularly 35% to 45%.

[0044] The material of the gas diffusion layer may be a porous conductive ceramic, such as a ceramic containing calcium oxide, magnesium oxide, or stabilized zirconia or partially stabilized zirconia in which a rare earth element oxide is solid-solved, and Ni and / or NiO. The rare earth element oxide may contain a plurality of rare earth elements selected from, for example, Sc, Y, La, Nd, Sm, Gd, Dy, and Yb.

[0045] The cell 1 may further include an adhesive 9. The adhesive 9 is located between the air electrode 8 and the flow path member 20. The adhesive 9 bonds the air electrode 8 and the flow path member 20 together, and fixes the plurality of cells 1 together.

[0046] The adhesive 9 may be conductive. For example, the adhesive may be a mixture of conductive particles such as Ni and TiO ２ , rare earth element oxides (Y ２ O ３ , CeO ２ etc.), transition metal oxides (Fe ２ O ３ The inorganic oxide may include inorganic oxides such as SiO 2 , CuO, etc.

[0047] The adhesive 9 may be gas permeable. The adhesive 9 may be located between the fuel electrode 5 and the flow path member 20.

[0048] <Adjustment Section> As described above, the electrochemical cell device according to this embodiment has an adjustment section in at least one of the gas inlet section and the gas outlet section that adjusts the pressure loss that occurs when the fuel gas passes through. Such adjustment section may be, for example, holes 31, 32 in the flow path member 20. The holes 31, 32 may be, for example, through-holes that penetrate the support plate 21 in the thickness direction (Z-axis direction).

[0049] The hole 31 is located between the first portion 26 and the first end 25. The hole 31 is a gas inlet hole that introduces fuel gas inside the gas supply unit 41 into the cell 1. The flow path member 20 may have a single hole 31 or multiple holes 31. When the flow path member 20 has multiple holes 31, the multiple holes 31 may be aligned in a line along the Y-axis direction, for example. Furthermore, the multiple holes 31 may be aligned in multiple rows in the X-axis direction and / or the Y-axis direction in a plan view.

[0050] The hole 32 is located between the second portion 28 and the second end 27. The hole 32 is a gas discharge hole that discharges the fuel gas inside the gas flow path 30 to the gas recovery section 42. The flow path member 20 may have multiple holes 32 or may have only one hole 32. When the flow path member 20 has multiple holes 32, the multiple holes 32 may be aligned in a row along the Y-axis direction, for example. Furthermore, the multiple holes 32 may be aligned in multiple rows in the X-axis direction and / or the Y-axis direction in a plan view. The numbers of holes 31 and 32 in the cell 1 may be the same or different.

[0051] In the cell 1 according to this embodiment, the holes 31 and 32 are open to the first surface 211 and the second surface 212. The opening diameter d1 of the holes 31 and 32 is the smaller opening diameter of the opening on the first surface 211 or the opening on the second surface 212. The shapes of the holes 31 and 32 may be circular, elliptical, polygonal, or irregular. When the opening shapes of the holes 31 and 32 are circular, the opening diameter d1 is the diameter of the opening. When the opening shapes of the holes 31 and 32 are elliptical, polygonal, or irregular, the opening diameter d1 is the minor axis of the opening. The opening shapes of the holes 31 and 32 may be slits, in which case the opening diameter d1 is the width of the slit.

[0052] The opening diameter d1 of the holes 31 and 32 may be smaller than the distance h1 between the first surface 211 and the back plate 22. This allows the holes 31 and 32 to function as an adjustment section that adjusts the pressure loss that occurs when the fuel gas passes through. Specifically, the holes 31 and 32 can cause a greater pressure loss in the fuel gas than the gas flow path 30. Therefore, even if the flow path member 20 is warped or bent due to an assembly error or the like, causing the gas flow path 30 to include a deformed cell 1, the fuel gas introduced into each of the multiple cells 1 in the cell stack device 10 can be appropriately distributed. In other words, the bias in the fuel gas introduced into the multiple cells 1 can be reduced. Therefore, the cell stack device 10 including the cells 1 has improved power generation performance.

[0053] Furthermore, in the cell 1 according to this embodiment, the introduction direction of gas introduced from the gas supply unit 41 into the hole 31 and / or the discharge direction of gas discharged from the hole 32 may be perpendicular to the gas flow direction in the gas flow path 30. This allows the hole 31 to generate a greater pressure loss for the fuel gas than the gas flow path 30. This allows the fuel gas introduced into each of the multiple cells 1 in the cell stack device 10 to be more appropriately distributed. Therefore, the power generation performance of the cell stack device 10 including the cell 1 is further improved.

[0054] Here, the distance h1 between the first surface 211 and the rear plate 22 may be, for example, 0.1 mm to 1.0 mm. The distance h1 refers to the average distance between the first surface 211 and the rear plate 22. If the surface 221 of the rear plate 22 has a convex portion, the distance h1 refers to the average distance between the first surface 211 and the surface 221 where the convex portion is not located.

[0055] Furthermore, the opening diameter d1 of the holes 31 and 32 may be, for example, 0.1 mm to 1.0 mm. When the flow path member 20 has a plurality of holes 31 and / or a plurality of holes 32, the opening diameter d1 can be the average of the opening diameters of the plurality of holes 31 and / or the plurality of holes 32. The opening diameters of the holes 31 and 32 may be the same or different from each other.

[0056] Furthermore, in the cell 1, the sum of the opening areas of the holes 31 may be ¼ or less of the cross-sectional area of ​​the gas flow path 30. In the cell 1, the sum of the opening areas of the holes 32 may be ¼ or less of the cross-sectional area of ​​the gas flow path 30. In the cell 1, the sum of the opening areas of the holes 31 and the sum of the opening areas of the holes 32 may each be ¼ or less of the cross-sectional area of ​​the gas flow path 30. This makes the pressure loss of the holes 31 and / or the pressure loss of the holes 32 sufficiently larger than the pressure loss of the gas flow path 30. Therefore, the fuel gas introduced into each of the multiple cells 1 can be more appropriately distributed.

[0057] The distance h1, the opening diameter d1, and the opening diameter d2 described below can be measured as follows. The distance h1 can be determined by observing a cross section of the flow path member 20 taken along the thickness direction (Z-axis direction) of the first surface 211 and the back plate 22 using an optical microscope, a scanning electron microscope (SEM), or the like, and measuring the distance between the first surface 211 and the back plate 22. The opening diameter d1 can be determined by observing the first surface 211 and / or the second surface 212 at a location where the hole 31 or the hole 32 of the flow path member 20 is located using an optical microscope, a scanning electron microscope (SEM), or the like, and measuring the diameter or minor axis of the hole 31 or the hole 32 on the first surface 211 and / or the second surface 212.

[0058] 3 is a cross-sectional view showing another example of the electrochemical cell device according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3, a sealant 4 different from the solid electrolyte layer 6 may be located on the side surface of the fuel electrode 5 and the solid electrolyte layer 6. The sealant 4 may be dense glass or ceramic. The material of the sealant 4 may be, for example, amorphous glass or crystallized glass. Examples of crystallized glass include SiO ２ -CaO system, MgO-B ２ O ３ System, La ２ O ３ -B ２ O ３ -MgO-based, La ２ O ３ -B ２ O ３ -ZnO-based, SiO ２ -CaO-ZnO system materials, etc., may be used, and in particular SiO ２- An MgO-based material may be used. The sealing material 4 may have electrical insulating properties.

[0059] The cell 1 may not have one of the holes 31 and 32. Fig. 4A is a cross-sectional view showing another example of the electrochemical cell device according to the first embodiment. Fig. 4B is a plan view showing an example of an electrochemical cell included in the electrochemical cell device shown in Fig. 4A.

[0060] As shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the cell 1 may have, for example, an opening 29 in communication with the gas flow channel 30 at the second end 27 instead of the hole 32.

[0061] In the cell 1 according to this embodiment, the opening diameter d1 of the hole 31 may be smaller than the distance h1 between the first surface 211 and the back plate 22. This allows the hole 31 to function as an adjustment section that adjusts the pressure loss that occurs when the fuel gas passes through. Specifically, the hole 31 can cause a greater pressure loss in the fuel gas than the gas flow path 30. Therefore, even if the flow path member 20 is warped or bent due to an assembly error or the like, and the gas flow path 30 includes a deformed cell 1, the fuel gas introduced into each of the multiple cells 1 in the cell stack device 10 can be appropriately distributed. Therefore, the cell stack device 10 including the cell 1 has improved power generation performance.

[0062] Although an example having the hole 31 but not having the hole 32 is shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B, the hole 32 may be provided but the hole 31 may not be provided.

[0063] Fig. 5A is a cross-sectional view showing another example of the electrochemical cell device according to the first embodiment, and Fig. 5B is a plan view showing an example of an electrochemical cell included in the electrochemical cell device shown in Fig. 5A.

[0064] As shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B , the cell 1 may have an adjustment section for adjusting the pressure loss that occurs when the fuel gas passes through the cell 1, located in the side section 231 and / or the side section 232 as a second side section. Specifically, for example, instead of the hole 31, a hole 231a opening at the first end 25 may be provided. The hole 231a penetrates the side section 231 in the thickness direction (X-axis direction) and communicates with the gas flow path 30. The hole 231a is a gas inlet hole that introduces the fuel gas inside the gas supply section 41 into the cell 1. There may be multiple holes 231a, or there may be only one hole 231a. When the flow path member 20 has multiple holes 231a, the multiple holes 231a may be aligned in a line along the Y-axis direction, for example. Furthermore, the multiple holes 31 may be located closer to the support plate 21 or the back plate 22, or they may be located closer to the support plate 21 or the back plate 22 in the center.

[0065] In the cell 1 according to this embodiment, the opening diameter d2 of the hole 231a may be smaller than the distance h1 between the first surface 211 and the back plate 22. This allows the hole 231a to generate a greater pressure loss for the fuel gas than the gas flow path 30. For this reason, even if the flow path member 20 is warped or bent due to an assembly error or the like, and the gas flow path 30 includes a deformed cell 1, the fuel gas introduced into each of the multiple cells 1 in the cell stack device 10 can be appropriately distributed. Therefore, the cell stack device 10 including the cell 1 has improved power generation performance.

[0066] Furthermore, the sum of the opening areas of the holes 231a of the cell 1 may be equal to or less than ¼ of the cross-sectional area of ​​the gas flow path 30. This makes the pressure loss of the holes 231a sufficiently large compared to the pressure loss in the gas flow path 30. Therefore, the flow rate of the fuel gas introduced into each of the multiple cells 1 can be appropriately distributed.

[0067] 5A and 5B show an example in which the second end 20b, which is located between the second end 27 and the central portion 20c, has a hole 32. However, instead of the hole 32, the cell 1 may have a hole in the side portion 232 that opens to the second end 27, or may have an opening 29 (see FIGS. 4A and 4B) in the second end 27 that communicates with the gas flow path 30.

[0068] Furthermore, when the cell 1 has a hole in the side 232 that opens to the second end 27, it may have a hole 31 in the first end 20a instead of the hole 231a, or it may have an opening in the first end 25 that communicates with the gas flow path 30.

[0069] In addition, instead of holes located at the first end 20a and / or second end 20b of the support plate 21 and / or side portion 23, the cell 1 may have holes penetrating the back plate 22 in the thickness direction (Z-axis direction), or may have holes penetrating the side portions 233, 234 as the first side portions in the Y-axis direction.

[0070] Second Embodiment Fig. 6A is a diagram showing an example of an electrochemical cell device according to a second embodiment, and Fig. 6B is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB shown in Fig. 6A.

[0071] The cell stack device 10 according to this embodiment includes a gas supply unit 41 and cells 1. The gas supply unit 41 supplies fuel gas generated in a reformer 50 to the cells 1. The cell stack device 10 may have a cell stack 11 including a plurality of cells 1.

[0072] The cell 1 includes a flow path member 20 and an element portion 3. The flow path member 20 includes a gas flow path 30, a gas inlet, and a gas outlet. The gas inlet may have, for example, a hole 31 that introduces fuel gas supplied to a gas supply unit 41 into the gas flow path 30. The gas outlet may have, for example, a hole 32 that discharges fuel gas inside the gas flow path 30 to the outside of the cell 1.

[0073] At least one of the gas inlet section and the gas outlet section has an adjustment section that adjusts the pressure loss that occurs when the fuel gas passes through. The adjustment section can, for example, generate a pressure loss greater than that of the gas flow path 30. This allows the fuel gas introduced into each of the multiple cells 1 in the cell stack device 10 to be appropriately distributed. This improves the power generation performance of each cell 1 in the cell stack device 10.

[0074] [Embodiments] <Module and Module Housing Apparatus> Next, a module and a module housing apparatus using the electrochemical cell device according to each of the above-described embodiments will be described with reference to FIG.

[0075] 7 is an exploded perspective view showing an example of a module housing device according to an embodiment. The module housing device 110 according to this embodiment includes an outer case 111, a module 100, and auxiliary equipment (not shown).

[0076] The module 100 includes a storage container 101 and a cell stack device 10 housed in the storage container 101. A reformer 50 (see FIGS. 1A and 6A) may be disposed above the cell stack device 10.

[0077] Furthermore, in the module 100 having the above-described configuration, the temperature inside the module 100 during normal power generation reaches approximately 500°C to 1000°C due to the combustion of gas and the power generation of the cells 1.

[0078] In such a module 100, as described above, the cell stack device 10 that improves power generation performance is housed therein, and thus the module 100 can have improved performance.

[0079] The accessories operate the module 100. The module 100 and the accessories are housed in an exterior case 111. Note that some components are omitted in FIG.

[0080] The exterior case 111 of the module accommodating device 110 has support posts 112 and an exterior plate 113. A partition plate 114 divides the interior of the exterior case 111 into upper and lower sections. The space above the partition plate 114 in the exterior case 111 is a module accommodating chamber 115 that accommodates the module 100, and the space below the partition plate 114 in the exterior case 111 is an accessory accommodating chamber 116 that accommodates accessories that operate the module 100. Note that in Figure 7, the accessories accommodated in the accessory accommodating chamber 116 are not shown.

[0081] The partition plate 114 also has an air flow port 117 for allowing air from the auxiliary equipment housing chamber 116 to flow toward the module housing chamber 115. The exterior plate 113 that constitutes the module housing chamber 115 has an exhaust port 118 for exhausting air from within the module housing chamber 115.

[0082] In such a module accommodating device 110, as described above, the module 100 with improved performance is provided in the module accommodating chamber 115, so that the module accommodating device 110 can have improved performance.

[0083] Other Embodiments In the above-described embodiments, a fuel cell, a fuel cell stack device, a fuel cell module, and a fuel cell device are shown as examples of an "electrochemical cell," "electrochemical cell device," "module," and "module housing device." However, other examples may be an electrolysis cell, an electrolysis cell stack device, an electrolysis module, and an electrolysis device, respectively. The electrolysis cell has a hydrogen electrode as a first electrode and an oxygen electrode as a second electrode, and decomposes water vapor into hydrogen and oxygen, or decomposes carbon dioxide into carbon monoxide and oxygen, when supplied with electric power. Furthermore, in the above-described embodiments, an oxide ion conductor or a hydrogen ion conductor is shown as an example of the electrolyte material of the electrochemical cell, but a hydroxide ion conductor may also be used. Such an electrolysis cell, an electrolysis cell stack device, an electrolysis module, and an electrolysis device can improve electrolysis performance.

[0084] The present disclosure has been described in detail above, but the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications, improvements, etc. are possible within the scope that does not deviate from the gist of the present disclosure.

[0085] In one embodiment, (1) an electrochemical cell device comprises: an electrochemical cell having a gas flow path member including a gas inlet portion for introducing gas into the gas flow path and a gas outlet portion for discharging gas from the gas flow path; and an element portion located on the flow path member; and a gas supply portion for supplying gas to the electrochemical cell, wherein at least one of the gas inlet portion and the gas outlet portion has an adjustment portion for adjusting a pressure loss occurring when the gas passes through, and in the adjustment portion, an introduction direction of the gas introduced from the gas supply portion to the gas inlet portion and / or an exhaust direction of the gas exhausted from the gas outlet portion is / are orthogonal to a gas flow direction in the gas flow path.

[0086] and a gas supply unit that supplies gas to the gas flow path, wherein the flow path member has: a first end including a first end and a first portion fixed to the gas supply unit; a second end including a second end opposite to the first end; and a second side that is located at the first end and / or the second end and connects the support plate and the back plate; and at least one of the first end and the second end has, in at least one of the support plate, the back plate, the first side, and the second side, one or more holes having an opening diameter smaller than the distance between the first surface and the back plate at the first end or the second end.

[0087] (3) In the electrochemical cell device of (2) above, the support plate and the back plate may be made of a metal or an alloy.

[0088] (4) In the electrochemical cell device of (2) or (3) above, the hole may be located between the first portion and the first end.

[0089] (5) In the electrochemical cell device of any one of (2) to (4) above, the second end may have a second portion fixed to a gas recovery unit that recovers gas discharged from the gas flow path, and the hole may be located between the second portion and the second end.

[0090] (6) In the electrochemical cell device according to any one of (2) to (5) above, the hole may be located on the second side portion.

[0091] (7) In the electrochemical cell device according to any one of (2) to (6) above, the element section may be located in a central portion sandwiched between the first end and the second end.

[0092] (8) In the electrochemical cell device of (7) above, the hole may be located between the second end and the central portion.

[0093] (9) In the electrochemical cell device according to any one of (2) to (8) above, a plurality of the electrochemical cells may be provided.

[0094] (10) In the electrochemical cell device according to any one of (2) to (9) above, the sum of the opening areas of the holes in the electrochemical cell may be equal to or less than ¼ of the cross-sectional area of ​​the gas flow channel.

[0095] In one embodiment, (11) a module includes the electrochemical cell device according to any one of (1) to (10) above, and a container that houses the electrochemical cell device.

[0096] In one embodiment, (12) a module housing device includes the module of (11) above, an auxiliary device for operating the module, and an exterior case for housing the module and the auxiliary device.

[0097] The disclosed embodiments should be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. Indeed, the above-described embodiments may be embodied in various forms. Furthermore, the above-described embodiments may be omitted, substituted, or modified in various ways without departing from the scope and spirit of the appended claims.

[0098] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 cell 2 support member 3 element section 5 fuel electrode 6 solid electrolyte layer 8 air electrode 10 cell stack device 20 flow path member 21 support plate 22 back plate 23 side portion 31, 32 hole 100 module 110 module receiving device

Claims

1. An electrochemical cell device comprising: a flow path member including a gas flow path, a gas introduction portion for introducing gas into the gas flow path, and a gas discharge portion for discharging gas from the gas flow path; an element portion located on the flow path member; and a gas supply portion for supplying gas to the electrochemical cell, wherein at least one of the gas introduction portion and the gas discharge portion has an adjustment portion for adjusting the pressure loss generated when gas passes through, and in the adjustment portion, the introduction direction of the gas introduced from the gas supply portion into the gas introduction portion and / or the discharge direction of the gas discharged from the gas discharge portion is orthogonal to the flow direction of the gas in the gas flow path.

2. An electrochemical cell device comprising: a support plate having a first surface and a second surface opposite to the first surface; a back plate facing the first surface with the gas flow path therebetween; a flow path member connecting the support plate and the back plate along the gas flow path and including a pair of first side portions facing each other with the gas flow path therebetween; an element portion located on the second surface; and a gas supply portion for supplying gas to the gas flow path, wherein the flow path member has a first end portion including a first end and a first portion fixed to the gas supply portion, a second end portion including a second end opposite to the first end, and a second side portion located at the first end and / or the second end and connecting the support plate and the back plate, and at least one of the first end portion and the second end portion has one or more holes in at least one of the support plate, the back plate, the first side portion, and the second side portion, the aperture diameter of which is smaller than the distance between the first surface and the back plate at the first end portion or the second end portion.

3. The electrochemical cell device according to claim 2, wherein the support plate and the back plate are made of metal or alloy.

4. The electrochemical cell device according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the hole is located between the first portion and the first end.

5. The electrochemical cell device according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the second end portion has a second portion fixed to a gas recovery portion for recovering the gas discharged from the gas flow path, and the hole is located between the second portion and the second end.

6. The electrochemical cell device according to any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein the hole is located in the second side portion.

7. The electrochemical cell device according to any one of claims 2 to 6, wherein the element portion is located in a central portion sandwiched between the first end portion and the second end portion.

8. The electrochemical cell device according to claim 7, wherein the hole is located between the second end and the central portion.

9. The electrochemical cell device according to any one of claims 2 to 8, comprising a plurality of the electrochemical cells.

10. The electrochemical cell device according to any one of claims 2 to 9, wherein the sum of the opening areas of the holes in the electrochemical cell is 1 / 4 or less of the cross-sectional area of the gas flow path.

11. A module comprising the electrochemical cell device according to any one of claims 1 to 10, and a storage container for storing the electrochemical cell device.

12. A module housing device comprising the module according to claim 11, an auxiliary machine for operating the module, and an exterior case for housing the module and the auxiliary machine.

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