Flat-Tubular Solid Oxide Cell Stack Design
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing flat-tubular solid oxide cell stacks face challenges in minimizing stress during cell stacking, sealing area, and maintaining uniform gas flow and temperature, leading to inefficient electricity generation and hydrogen purity when used as fuel cells or high-temperature electrolyzers.
Innovation Solution
A flat-tubular solid oxide cell stack design with unit cells featuring first-gas flow channels and connection holes that allow continuous gas flow in a single direction, minimizing temperature and concentration changes, and utilizing ring-shaped sealing materials to reduce sealing areas and stress, while maintaining long reaction pathways.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Power
If cells are stacked one on top of another to enhance output, then power density is improved, but stress during cell stacking increases and sealing area becomes larger
Solution Approach 1:
The cell stack is divided into multiple unit cells, each independently structured with flat-tubular configuration. This segmentation allows stress distribution across individual cells rather than concentrating it in a single large stacked structure, while still achieving high power density through the combined output of multiple cells.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention transitions from traditional flat-type or cylindrical-type single-cell structures to a multi-cell stacked configuration in the thickness direction. This dimensional arrangement enhances power density by stacking cells while the flat-tubular geometry of each cell minimizes thermal shock and stress through its specific shape characteristics.
2Area of stationary object
If gas flows through stacked cells in a zigzag manner, then sealing area is minimized, but temperature and concentration changes occur leading to inefficient electricity generation
Solution Approach 1:
The first gas flow channel is designed to enable continuous, unidirectional gas flow from one end of the unit cell to the other end, avoiding zigzag patterns. This continuous flow maintains uniform temperature and concentration of the first gas throughout the reaction pathway, ensuring efficient electrochemical reactions and electricity generation while still achieving compact sealing through the flat-tubular structure.
3Productivity
If the pathway of chemical reactions is extended, then electricity generation efficiency is improved, but temperature and flow rate variations of feed gas increase
Solution Approach 1:
The flat-tubular structure of the unit cell creates a specific flow pattern where gas moves uniformly through the extended reaction pathway. The local geometry of the flow channel maintains consistent flow characteristics and temperature distribution along the entire reaction path, allowing extended pathway length to improve electricity generation efficiency without causing significant temperature or flow rate variations.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design enhances electrical energy generation efficiency and hydrogen purity by minimizing gas flow rate variations and reducing sealing complexities, resulting in improved reaction performance and durability.
Implementation Method 1
fuel cells use high-efficiency clean electricity generation technology in which oxygen in the air and hydrogen contained in a hydrocarbon material, such as natural gas, coal gas, methanol, etc., are directly converted into electric energy by an electrochemical reaction
Implementation Method 2
the SOFC can be used as a high-temperature solid oxide electrolyzer cell (SOEC) by performing an inverse electrochemical reaction
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed herein is a flat-tubular solid oxide cell stack in which the pathway of chemical reactions is long and the temperature and flow rate of feed gas are maintained at uniform levels, thus the efficiency of electrical energy generation is increased when the cell stack is used as a fuel cell, and the purity of generated gas (hydrogen) is increased when the cell stack is used as a high-temperature electrolyzer.