KR-20260063572-A - FUEL CELL STACK

Abstract

A fuel cell stack according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises a cell stack in which a plurality of unit cells are stacked in a first direction, an end plate disposed at at least one end of both sides of the cell stack, an enclosure that is coupled with the end plate and surrounds the side of the cell stack and is divided into a plurality of segments, a first gasket disposed in a first gap between the plurality of segments, and a second gasket disposed in a second gap between the enclosure and the end plate, wherein the end of the first gasket facing the second gasket in the first direction can be inserted by pushing into the second gasket when the end plate and the enclosure are coupled in the first direction.

Inventors

• 임재범

Assignees

• 현대자동차주식회사
• 기아 주식회사

Dates

Publication Date

20260507

Application Date

20241030

Claims (20)

1. A cell stack in which multiple unit cells are stacked in a first direction; An end plate disposed at at least one end of the two ends of the cell stack above; An enclosure that combines with the end plate to wrap around the side of the cell stack and is divided into a plurality of segments; A first gasket disposed in a first gap between the plurality of segments; and It includes a second gasket disposed in a second gap between the enclosure and the end plate, and The end of the first gasket facing the second gasket in the first direction is, When the above end plate and the above enclosure are joined in the above first direction, the second gasket is pushed in and inserted, Fuel cell stack.
2. In claim 1, the end plate is, A first end plate disposed at one end of the two ends of the cell stack; and a second end plate disposed at the other end of the two ends of the cell stack, comprising Fuel cell stack.
3. In claim 1, the plurality of segments are, A first segment having an exterior shape of the letter 'ㄱ'; and including a second segment having an L-shaped exterior, Fuel cell stack.
4. In claim 1, the first void is, A direction formed parallel to the first direction above, Fuel cell stack.
5. In claim 1, at least one of the plurality of segments is, It includes a first guide groove in which the first gasket is guided and seated on the surface forming the first void, and At least one of the above enclosure and the above end plate, A second guide groove comprising a second gasket guided and seated on a surface forming the second void, Fuel cell stack.
6. In claim 5, the first gasket is, A body extending in the first direction and disposed within the first guide groove; and A fixed groove disposed in a fixed groove adjacent to the first guide groove, comprising at least one protrusion protruding from the body in a direction perpendicular to the first direction. Fuel cell stack.
7. In claim 1, the hardness of the first gasket is, Greater than the hardness of the second gasket above, Fuel cell stack.
8. In claim 1, the end of the first gasket is, including inclined surfaces that come together as they extend in the aforementioned inserted direction, Fuel cell stack.
9. In claim 1, the first direction length of the first gasket is, The first direction length of the above enclosure, which is greater than or equal to Fuel cell stack.
10. A cell stack in which multiple unit cells are stacked in a first direction; An end plate disposed at at least one end of the two ends of the cell stack above; An enclosure that combines with the end plate to wrap around the side of the cell stack and is divided into a plurality of segments; A first gasket disposed in a first gap formed between the plurality of segments; A second gasket disposed in a second gap formed between the enclosure and the end plate; and It includes a reinforcing material disposed in a third void formed between the first gasket and the second gasket, and When the above enclosure and the above end plate are combined, the first gasket pushes into and inserts the reinforcing material. Fuel cell stack.
11. In claim 10, the end plate is, A first end plate disposed at one end of the two ends of the cell stack; and A second end plate disposed at the other end of the two ends of the cell stack, Fuel cell stack.
12. In claim 10, the plurality of segments are, A first segment having an exterior shape of the letter 'ㄱ'; and including a second segment having an L-shaped exterior, Fuel cell stack.
13. In claim 10, the first void is, A direction formed parallel to the first direction above, Fuel cell stack.
14. In claim 10, at least one of the plurality of segments is, It includes a first guide groove in which the first gasket is guided and seated on the surface forming the first void, and At least one of the above enclosure and the above end plate, A second guide groove comprising a second gasket guided and seated on a surface forming the second void, Fuel cell stack.
15. In claim 14, the first gasket is, A body extending in the first direction and disposed within the first guide groove; and A fixed groove disposed in a fixed groove adjacent to the first guide groove, comprising at least one protrusion protruding from the body in a direction perpendicular to the first direction. Fuel cell stack.
16. In claim 10, the hardness of the first gasket and the second gasket is, Same as each other or the difference is within the set range, Fuel cell stack.
17. In claim 10, the first direction length of the first gasket is, The length of the first direction of the enclosure is equal to or shorter than the first direction length. Fuel cell stack.
18. In claim 10, the thickness of the reinforcing material in the first direction is, Longer than the length between the first gasket and the second gasket Fuel cell stack.
19. In claim 10, the hardness of the reinforcing material is, Lower than the first gasket and the second gasket above, Fuel cell stack.
20. In claim 10, the reinforcing material is, tensile strength of 0.5 MPa or less, Fuel cell stack.

Description

Fuel Cell Stack An example relates to a fuel cell stack. Fuel cells are power generation devices capable of producing electricity through a chemical reaction of fuel materials via a catalyst, and are utilized as power supply devices in various fields. The substances used as fuel are diverse, including hydrogen, hydrocarbons, and hydrocarbon compounds; among these, hydrogen reacts with oxygen to produce water, thermal energy, and electrical energy. Generally, a fuel cell comprises a unit cell consisting of a Membrane-Electrode Assembly (MEA) that includes an oxidation electrode (fuel electrode, hydrogen electrode, or anode) where hydrogen is oxidized, a reduction electrode (air electrode, oxygen electrode, or cathode) where oxygen is supplied and a reduction reaction occurs, and a polymer electrolyte membrane through which hydrogen ions are transferred. Since the output voltage of a unit cell is only 0.6V to 1V, unit cells are stacked in series to obtain a practical output, and such a collection of stacked cells is called a stack. These fuel cell stacks require a high level of airtightness or watertightness for various reasons, such as preventing electrical energy loss due to gas leakage inside the stack and protecting the fuel cell from the external environment. FIG. 1 is a combined perspective view of a fuel cell stack according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a fuel cell stack according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a drawing illustrating an enclosure and a first gasket of a fuel cell stack according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 4 (a) shows the second segment of Figure 3 combined with the first gasket, and (b) shows the first gasket according to another embodiment. FIG. 5 is a fuel cell stack according to the first embodiment of the present invention, showing the first segment removed from the portion corresponding to area A of FIG. 1. Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the cross-section of region B of Figure 5. FIG. 7 is a fuel cell stack according to a second embodiment of the present invention, showing the first segment (210) removed from the portion corresponding to area A of FIG. 1. Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the cross-section of region C of Figure 7. Below, embodiments of the present invention are described in detail with reference to the attached drawings so that those skilled in the art can easily implement the invention. However, the present invention may be embodied in various different forms and is not limited to the embodiments described herein. Furthermore, in order to clearly explain the present invention in the drawings, parts unrelated to the explanation have been omitted, and similar parts throughout the specification have been given similar reference numerals. The terms used in this application are used merely to describe specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the invention. The singular expression includes the plural expression unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In this application, terms such as "comprising" or "having" are intended to specify the presence of the features, numbers, steps, actions, components, parts, or combinations thereof described in the specification, and should be understood as not precluding the existence or addition of one or more other features, numbers, steps, actions, components, parts, or combinations thereof. Terms such as “…part,” “…unit,” and “module” as described in the specification refer to a unit that processes at least one function or operation, and this may be implemented in hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software. Terms containing ordinal numbers, such as “first,” “second,” etc., may be used to describe various components, but said components are not limited by said terms. These terms may be used solely in a nominal sense to distinguish one component from another, and their sequential meaning is determined not by such nomenclature but by the context of the description. The term “and/or” is used to include any combination of the multiple items in question. For example, “A and/or B” means including all three cases, such as “A,” “B,” and “A and B.” When it is stated that one component is "connected" or "joined" to another component, it should be understood that while it may be directly connected or joined to that other component, there may also be other components in between. Unless otherwise defined, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, have the same meaning as generally understood by those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains. Terms such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant technology, and should not be interpreted in an ideal or overly formal sense unless explicitly defined in this application. Hereinafter, a fuel c