Fuel cell systems are currently being developed for use as power supplies in numerous applications, such as automobiles and stationary power plants. Such systems offer promise of economically delivering power with environmental and other benefits.
Fuel cells convert reactants, namely fuel and oxidant, to generate electric power and reaction products. Fuel cells generally employ an electrolyte disposed between two electrodes, namely a cathode and an anode. A catalyst typically induces the desired electrochemical reactions at the electrodes. Preferred fuel cell types include solid polymer electrolyte fuel cells that comprise a solid polymer electrolyte and operate at relatively low temperatures.
During normal operation of a solid polymer electrolyte fuel cell, fuel is electrochemically oxidized at the anode catalyst, typically resulting in the generation of protons, electrons, and possibly other species depending on the fuel employed. The protons are conducted from the reaction sites at which they are generated, through the electrolyte, to electrochemically react with the oxidant at the cathode catalyst. The catalysts are preferably located at the interfaces between each electrode and the adjacent electrolyte.
A broad range of fluid reactants can be employed in solid polymer electrolyte fuel cells and may be supplied in either gaseous or liquid form. For example, the oxidant stream may be substantially pure oxygen gas or a dilute oxygen stream such as air. The fuel may be substantially pure hydrogen gas, a gaseous hydrogen-containing reformate stream, or an aqueous liquid methanol mixture in a direct methanol fuel cell. Reactants are directed to the fuel cell electrodes and are distributed to catalyst therein by means of fluid diffusion layers.
Solid polymer electrolyte fuel cells employ a membrane electrode assembly (“MEA”), which comprises the solid polymer electrolyte or ion-exchange membrane disposed between the two electrodes. Each electrode contains a catalyst layer, comprising an appropriate catalyst, located next to the solid polymer electrolyte. The catalyst may be, for example, a metal black, an alloy or a supported metal catalyst, for example, platinum on carbon. The catalyst layer typically contains ionomer, which may be similar to that employed for the solid polymer electrolyte (for example, Nafion®). The catalyst layer may also contain a binder, such as polytetrafluoroethylene. The electrodes may also contain a substrate (typically a porous electrically conductive sheet material) that may be employed for purposes of mechanical support and/or reactant distribution, thus serving as a fluid diffusion layer.
The MEA is typically disposed between two plates to form a fuel cell assembly. The plates act as current collectors and provide support for the adjacent electrodes. The assembly is typically compressed (for example, of order of 70 pounds per square inch (psi) overall) to ensure good electrical contact between the plates and the electrodes, in addition to good sealing between fuel cell components. A plurality of fuel cell assemblies may be combined in series or in parallel to form a fuel cell stack. In a fuel cell stack, a plate is usually shared between two adjacent MEAs, and thus also serves as a separator to fluidly isolate the fluid streams of the two adjacent MEAs.
Further, flow fields are typically incorporated into both surfaces of such plates in order to direct reactants across the electrochemically active surfaces of the fluid diffusion electrodes or electrode substrates. The flow fields typically comprise fluid distribution channels separated by landings. The channels provide passages for the distribution of reactant to the electrode surfaces and also for the removal of reaction products and depleted reactant streams. The landings act as mechanical supports for the fluid diffusion layers in the MEA and provide electrical contact thereto. Ports and other fluid distribution features are typically formed in the surfaces at the periphery of the flow field plates. When assembled into a fuel cell stack, the stacked ports can form internal manifolds for distribution of the fluids throughout the stack. The other distribution features typically are provided to distribute fluids from the ports to the appropriate flow fields. PCT/International Publication No. WO 00/41260, for instance, illustrates flow field plates with flow fields comprising a plurality of straight, parallel channels. The flow fields are fluidly connected to manifold openings in header regions at the periphery of the plates by a series of complex passages formed in the plate surfaces.
Sealing of some sort is generally required around the edges of the MEAs to isolate the different fluids on each side of the MEA. In principle, the membrane electrolyte in the MEA may be oversized and extend significantly beyond the electrochemically active area in order to be employed as a sealing gasket. However, membrane electrolyte material is generally expensive and has relatively poor mechanical properties for this purpose. Thus, it is preferred to employ other means for effecting edge seals.
As an alternative, U.S. Pat. No. 5,464,700 discloses a gasketed membrane electrode assembly that employs gasketing material at the membrane periphery, rather than the membrane itself, as a gasket. The gasketing material may be formed from an elastomeric material suitable for cold bonding or bonding by heat and pressure. A non-hydrophilic thermoplastic elastomer is the preferred gasketing material (for example, Santoprene brand gasketing material).
Further, U.S. Pat. No. 5,187,025 discloses a unitized cell assembly in which the edge of the MEA is extended with a laminated plastic structure to give it strength and rigidity for sealing and support. Therein, the electrolyte membrane is surrounded with a plastic spacer having a thickness closely matched to that of the membrane. A thin, plastic film is bonded with an adhesive layer to both sides of the membrane and spacer so that the film and adhesive bridge the gap therebetween. Porous electrodes with plastic frames are bonded to the composite membrane. The use of this type of structure permits the construction of a rigid cell frame, which can be made the same thickness as the membrane electrode package.
In an effort to further improve fuel cell performance and to reduce the thickness and cost of fuel cell assemblies, there is a trend to use thinner components and especially thinner flow field plates. A particularly thin design for flow field plates employs corrugated flow fields which are characterized by features on one side that are complementary with features on the other side. Corrugated structures are readily formed out of thin metallic sheets by stamping or rolling methods. However, it is not so easy to use such methods to form features on opposing sides of such sheets if the intended features are not substantially complementary. (Instead, engraving techniques may be employed on thicker starting sheet material.) Yet, some desirable corrugated flow field designs involve complex flow distribution and mechanical support features at the fluid inlet and outlet ports on one or both sides of the plate which, in some cases, cross over similarly complex features on the opposite side of the plate. Further, some designs may involve features that interconnect channels within the flow field itself (for example, which interconnect parallel flow channels at their ends so as to form serpentine channels). It might not be possible to form such features on both sides of a plate in a complementary fashion, thereby complicating the fabrication of plates with corrugated flow fields. For this and other reasons, it would be advantageous to be able to design and fabricate the components that distribute fluids to and from the flow fields more independently of the components that comprise the flow fields themselves.