The present disclosure provides an integrated flow battery stack with a heat exchanger for thermal control of the battery during operation. The battery can comprise a stack consisting a plurality of electrochemical cells, each cell comprising a pair of electrodes separated by a membrane and sandwiched between a pair of bipolar plates. Each bipolar plate is shared between two adjacent cells. The stack is connected to an external electrical circuit by two current collectors placed at each end of the stack. At least one current collector plate is thermally coupled to a heat exchange plate which can be configured to have its temperature varied through external means. The heat exchange plate exchanges heat with the battery stack and maintains the temperature of the stack, by implication, maintains the temperature of the circulating electrolytes.

A fuel cell assembly, a heat pipe for such a fuel cell assembly, and a fuel cell stack. The fuel cell assembly includes a fuel cell having an MEA structure, and a pair of heat pipe separator plates in physical and thermal contact with a planar surface of the fuel cell. Each heat pipe separator plate includes an external heat transfer fin to dissipate a portion of the heat generated by the fuel cell through exposed outer peripheral edges thereof. Each heat pipe separator plate also includes voids formed in an interior planar surface thereof, to be aligned with voids of other heat pipe separator plates when the fuel cell assembly is arranged in a stack. Upper voids are to define upper interior channels in fluid communication with a portion of the air stream supplied to the cathode. A heat transfer insert is arranged in the upper voids, and includes internal heat transfer fins to dissipate another portion of the heat into the upper interior channels for contact with the air stream.

A fuel cell system includes a combined cooling circuit for a motor vehicle that provides a method of cooling a fuel cell of a fuel cell system.

A method for controlling a catalytic combustion apparatus having a heater capable of heating fuel to be supplied to a catalyst includes a step of supplying oxidant gas to the catalytic combustion apparatus, and an injection step of injecting the fuel into the catalytic combustion apparatus. The injection step also includes an electric power feeding step of supplying electric power to the heater, and a setting step of setting an injection amount of the fuel to be injected into the catalytic combustion apparatus in response to output of the heater.

Disclosed are methods and devices for controlling freezing of a cooling module for use in a fuel cell system. The cooling module includes a first chamber configured to receive a first material, a second chamber configured to receive a second material, and a first insulating layer disposed between the first chamber and the second chamber. The second chamber surrounds, at least partly, the first chamber. As ambient temperature decreases, the second material begins freezing before the first material begins freezing.

An assembly for producing energy may include a fuel cell, a fluidic cell circuit configured to receive a first heat-transfer fluid and arranged at least partially around the fuel cell, a reversible thermodynamic system configured to alternatively: (i) evacuate the thermal energy produced by the fuel cell and transform it into mechanical energy through the first heat-transfer fluid, and (ii) input thermal energy to the fuel cell through the first heat-transfer fluid, wherein the thermodynamic system includes: (a) a fluidic thermodynamic circuit to receive a second heat-transfer fluid; (b) a first exchanger to exchange thermal energy between the fluidic thermodynamic circuit and the fluidic cell circuit; and (c) a second exchanger configured to exchange thermal energy between the fluidic thermodynamic circuit and an external source. The arrangement may improve fuel cell function, particularly for proton exchange membrane, usefully with fuel cell(s), particularly, proton exchange membrane fuel cells, preferably in transport.

The present invention relates to a humidifying and cooling apparatus for a fuel cell, and more particularly, to a humidifying and cooling apparatus for a fuel cell for actively and effectively performing a cooling and a humidification control of supplied air, when high-humidity air is supplied to a fuel cell stack in an air supplying apparatus for a fuel cell for supplying an appropriate humidity to the fuel cell stack.

A fuel cell system includes: a fuel cell; an air discharge passage configured to discharge an air exhaust gas from the fuel cell; a back pressure adjusting valve provided in the air discharge passage and configured to adjust pressure of the air exhaust gas; a cooling device configured to cool the fuel cell by carrying out heat exchange using a heat medium; a water reservoir storing water; a high pressure introduction passage connecting an upstream side of the air discharge passage which is more upstream than the back pressure adjusting valve in an air flow direction to the water reservoir; and a sprinkling device configured to sprinkle the water of the water reservoir over the cooling device. The sprinkling device is configured to sprinkle the water of the water reservoir pumped by pressure of the air exhaust gas over the cooling device.

A fuel cell system (1) comprising a fuel cell (2), a liquid fuel supply (3) for providing liquid fuel, an evaporator (6) for evaporating the liquid fuel to fuel vapor, a reformer (7) for catalytic conversion of the fuel vapor to syngas for the fuel cell and a burner (8) for heating the reformer (7). The burner (8) comprises a catalytic monolith (21) down-stream of a mixing chamber (31) in which air is mixed with evaporated fuel or rest gas prior to entering the monolith (21). The mixing chamber (31) is surrounded by a sleeve (23), which comprises a plurality of openings (29A, 29B) around the mixing chamber (31) for supply of fuel vapor through the openings (29A, 29B) in the startup phase and for supply of rest gas through the openings (29A, 29B) during normal operation. Optionally, a heat exchanger (17) is provided between the burner (8) and the reformer (7) for reducing the temperature of the exhaust gas from the burner (8) before it reaches the reformer (7). This temperature reduction prevents degradation of the reformer (7) by hot exhaust gas during start-up of the fuel cell system (1).

A battery cell is made more thermally efficient with the addition of an integrated vapor chamber that extends out from the cell and into an external heat exchange interface. The integrated vapor chamber can contain a working fluid which undergoes phase changes between liquid and vapor phases when there is a temperature differential between the interior and exterior of the cell. The integrated vapor chamber can include a wicking material to transfer the working fluid to the exterior wall of the vapor chamber. The integrated vapor chamber allows for both heating and cooling of the battery cell.