KR-20260066875-A - Gasket for reinforcing surface pressure and separator assembly including the same

KR20260066875AKR 20260066875 AKR20260066875 AKR 20260066875AKR-20260066875-A

Abstract

The present invention provides a gasket for reinforcing surface pressure according to an embodiment of the invention. The gasket is disposed on a separator plate comprising at least one piercing hole provided along a line where airtightness is required, wherein the gasket comprises a double uneven structure protruding on the separator plate and a bridge provided at a position corresponding to the at least one piercing hole, and the bridge is disposed in a groove portion provided by the double uneven structure.

Inventors

정영훈
한승훈
권덕훈

Assignees

현대자동차주식회사
기아 주식회사

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20241105

Claims (17)

A gasket disposed on a separator plate comprising at least one piercing hole provided along a line requiring airtightness, The above gasket is, A double uneven structure protruding on the above separator plate; and It includes a bridge provided at a position corresponding to the at least one piercing hole, and The above bridge is placed in the groove portion provided by the above double uneven structure, Gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
In Article 1, Based on one side of the above separator plate, the height of the uppermost part of the bridge is lower than the height of the uppermost part of the above double corrugated structure, Gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
In Article 1, The above gasket includes an upper gasket disposed on the reaction surface of the separator plate and a lower gasket disposed on the cooling surface of the separator plate, and The above bridge includes an upper bridge provided to the upper gasket and a lower bridge provided to the lower gasket based on the position of the piercing hole, Gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
In Paragraph 3, The upper bridge is thicker than the lower bridge relative to the direction in which the gasket extends, or The height of the uppermost part of the upper bridge relative to the reaction surface of the separator is higher than the height of the uppermost part of the lower bridge relative to the cooling surface of the separator. Gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
In Article 1, The above gasket comprises a first gasket disposed between the outer edge of the separator plate and manifolds through which reaction gas or cooling water flows, and a second gasket disposed on the flow path of reaction gas or cooling water discharged from or entering the manifolds. Gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
In Article 5, The above bridge includes a first bridge provided to the first gasket and a second bridge provided to the second gasket, Gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
In Article 6, Among the plurality of second bridges disposed on the second gasket positioned at a location corresponding to any one of the manifolds, the second bridges disposed at both ends are larger in size compared to the remaining second bridges. Gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
In Article 7, The second gasket includes a plurality of extensions extending along the flow path of the reaction gas or cooling water discharged from or flowing into the manifolds, and The second bridge is positioned at an outer edge relative to the connection point of the second gasket and the two extensions positioned at both ends relative to one of the manifolds, Gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
In Article 6, Among the plurality of second bridges disposed on the second gasket positioned at a location corresponding to the coolant manifolds linked to the coolant among the above manifolds, at least one second bridge disposed in the central part of the second gasket is smaller in size compared to the remaining second bridges. Gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
In Article 6, The above bridge includes a third bridge provided at a point on the first gasket connected to the second gasket disposed on the cooling surface of the separator plate, and The third bridge is larger in size compared to the first bridge, Gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
A cathode separator comprising a plurality of piercing holes provided along a line requiring confidentiality; and A gasket comprising a plurality of bridges provided at positions corresponding to the above piercing holes, and Each of the plurality of bridges is disposed on the double uneven structure of the gasket protruding from the cathode separator plate, Separator assembly having a gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
In Article 11, The plurality of bridges are disposed in the groove portion provided by the double uneven structure, Separator assembly having a gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
In Article 11, The above piercing holes include a first piercing hole disposed between the outer edge of the cathode separator and manifolds through which the reaction gas or cooling water flows, and a second piercing hole disposed in a direction toward the central region of the cathode separator from the manifolds. The plurality of bridges include a first bridge provided at a position corresponding to the first piercing hole and a second bridge disposed at a position corresponding to the second piercing holes. Separator assembly having a gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
In Article 13, Among the plurality of second bridges provided, the second bridge disposed on the second piercing holes disposed at both ends among the plurality of second piercing holes corresponding to each of the manifolds is larger in size compared to the remaining second bridges. Separator assembly having a gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
In Article 13, In some of the above manifolds linked with the reaction gas, a third piercing hole is provided that is positioned toward the central region of the cathode separator plate, and The third piercing hole is provided to be spaced apart from the portion of the manifolds relative to the second piercing hole, and The second bridge disposed on the third piercing holes positioned at both ends among the plurality of third piercing holes corresponding to each of the partial manifolds among the plurality of second bridges provided is larger in size compared to the remaining second bridges, Separator assembly having a gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
In Article 15, The plurality of first piercing holes include a fourth piercing hole disposed on an extension line in the direction in which the plurality of third piercing holes are arranged, and The plurality of bridges include a third bridge provided at a position corresponding to the fourth piercing hole, and The third bridge is larger in size compared to the first bridge, Separator assembly having a gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.
In Article 11, The above gasket includes an upper gasket disposed on the reaction surface of the cathode separator and a lower gasket disposed on the cooling surface of the cathode separator, and Among the plurality of bridges, the upper bridge disposed on the upper gasket is larger in size compared to the lower bridge disposed on the lower gasket among the plurality of bridges, Separator assembly having a gasket for surface pressure reinforcement.

Description

Gasket for reinforcing surface pressure and separator assembly including the same The present invention relates to a gasket capable of reinforcing surface pressure through a bridge provided in a part where surface pressure is weak, and a separator assembly including the same. Fuel cells are a type of power generation device that converts the chemical energy contained in fuel into electrical energy through an electrochemical reaction within a stack. They can be used not only to supply power for industrial, residential, and vehicle use, but also to power small electronic products such as portable devices, and their scope of application is gradually expanding as a high-efficiency clean energy source. In a typical fuel cell stack, the unit cell consists of a Membrane-Electrode Assembly (MEA) located at the innermost part. This MEA is composed of a polymer electrolyte membrane capable of transporting hydrogen cations (protons) and catalyst layers coated on both sides of the membrane to allow hydrogen and oxygen to react, namely the anode and cathode. A pair of gas diffusion layers (GDLs) are stacked on the outer part of the membrane electrode assembly, and a separator assembly is positioned outside the gas diffusion layers with a gasket in between, having a flow field formed to supply fuel and discharge water generated by the reaction. The separator assembly is formed by joining an anode separator plate placed at the anode and a cathode separator plate placed at the cathode, facing each other. The anode separator plate and the cathode separator plate are joined to become an integrated unit, and are configured with similar shapes so that the manifolds communicate with each other and the reaction surfaces are positioned at the same location. In addition, an end plate is attached to the outermost part of the stacked unit cell to support and secure each of the above-mentioned components. A gasket is placed on the reaction surface and cooling surface of the cathode separator. The gasket is formed through an injection process, and in the case of the cathode separator, a double-sided injection process is performed to simultaneously inject the gasket on the reaction surface and the cooling surface. For the double-sided injection process, a piercing hole is formed along the line where the gasket is placed. Through the piercing hole, the material provided on one side of the cathode separator is transferred to the other side of the cathode separator, thereby realizing double-sided injection of the cathode separator. However, due to the presence of the piercing hole, a variation in shrinkage occurred between the gasket placed over the piercing hole and other gaskets. Due to the variation in the amount of gasket ejected after injection, a problem arose where the height of the gasket placed over the piercing hole was lower compared to the height of the gasket placed at other locations. Additionally, a problem occurred where the surface pressure with the gasket decreased at the location where the piercing hole exists, making it vulnerable to airtightness. FIG. 1 is a drawing showing a cathode separator according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a drawing showing an upper gasket according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a drawing showing a lower gasket according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a drawing showing a bridge disposed on a gasket according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along A-A' of Figure 4. Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along B-B' of Figure 4. FIG. 7 is a drawing showing a plurality of bridges disposed on an upper gasket according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a drawing showing a plurality of bridges disposed on a lower gasket according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9 is a drawing showing a fourth piercing hole according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10 is a drawing showing a third bridge positioned at a location corresponding to the fourth piercing hole of FIG. 9. FIG. 11 is a drawing for explaining the difference between the upper gasket and the lower gasket on the cathode separator plate according to an embodiment of the present invention. The advantages and features of the present invention and the methods for achieving them will become clear by referring to the embodiments described below in detail together with the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below but can be implemented in various different forms. These embodiments are provided merely to ensure that the disclosure of the present invention is complete and to fully inform those skilled in the art of the scope of the invention, and the present invention is defined only by the scope of the claims. Throughout the entire specification, the same reference numerals refer to the same components. In addition, the cla