JP3611065B2 - Integrated fuel cell power generator - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an integrated fuel cell power generation apparatus in which main devices are integrated and housed in the same containment vessel.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Molten carbonate fuel cells have characteristics that are not found in conventional power generators, such as high efficiency and low environmental impact, and are attracting attention as a power generation system following hydropower, thermal power, and nuclear power. Intensive research and development is conducted in each country.
[0003]
FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a power generation facility using a molten carbonate fuel cell using natural gas as a fuel, and includes a fuel preheater 10, a reformer 12, a fuel cell 14, and a catalytic combustor 16. . The fuel gas 1 is drowned by the fuel preheater 10, supplied to the reforming chamber Re of the reformer 12, reformed to the anode gas 2 containing hydrogen, cooled by the fuel preheater 10, and then the anode side of the fuel cell 14. A is supplied to A, where most of the hydrogen is consumed by the anodic reaction to become the anode exhaust gas 4, the unburned portion is burned in the catalytic combustor 16 to generate the high-temperature combustion gas 5, and the gas in the reformer 12 After being supplied to the chamber G and heating the reforming chamber Re, it is discharged out of the system. On the other hand, the air 3 containing CO 2 is supplied to the cathode side C of the fuel cell 14, where a part of oxygen is consumed by the cathode reaction to become the cathode exhaust gas 7, and a part thereof is supplied to the catalytic combustor 16. The anode exhaust gas 4 is burned. The remaining portion 7a of the cathode exhaust gas 7 comes out of the system and is mixed into the air 3 through a circulation path (not shown) so as to circulate and supply CO2 required for the cathode reaction.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
The above-described fuel cell power generator can be made more efficient and downsized by operating under pressure. However, in the conventional apparatus, the fuel preheater 10, the reformer 12, the fuel cell 14, and the catalyst combustor 16 are housed in separate pressure vessels, and each device is connected by piping. In the case of output, there is a problem that the installation area becomes large.
[0005]
In addition, the piping connecting each device is a large-diameter piping due to the flow of a large amount of high-temperature gas, making it difficult to bend or keep the piping warm, resulting in a large heat dissipation loss and a decrease in the efficiency of the entire generator. there were.
[0006]
The present invention has been made to solve such problems. That is, an object of the present invention is to provide an integrated fuel cell power generator that is small in size, has a small installation area, and has a small heat dissipation loss.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
According to the present invention, the fuel preheater, the reformer, the fuel cell, the catalytic combustor, and the pressure vessel for storing them, the fuel cell and the reformer are stacked,
On the front side, the combustion gas inlet to the reformer and the cathode exhaust gas outlet of the fuel cell are arranged in the same direction,
On the back side, the combustion gas outlet of the reformer and the cathode gas inlet to the fuel cell are arranged in the same direction,
On both sides , the fuel gas inlet to the reformer and the reformer outlet of the reformer are arranged in the same direction,
A plurality of catalytic combustors are disposed between the combustion gas inlet to the reformer and the cathode exhaust gas outlet of the fuel cell,
An integrated fuel cell power generator is provided, wherein a plurality of fuel preheaters are disposed between a fuel gas inlet to the pressure vessel and a reformed gas outlet of the reformer.
[0008]
According to the configuration of the present invention, since the fuel cell and the reformer having a large installation area are stacked, the installation area can be reduced even when the output is relatively small. Further, the combustion gas inlet and the fuel cell cathode exhaust outlet to the reformer, and since the cathode gas inlet to the combustion gas outlet and a fuel cell reformer is arranged in the same direction respectively, the flow rate of the larger cathode gas In addition, the combustion gas piping can be a short straight tube. In addition, since a plurality of (for example, two systems) catalyst combustors are disposed between the combustion gas inlet to the reformer and the cathode exhaust gas outlet of the fuel cell, the catalyst combustor and its piping can be reduced in size. Further, the fuel gas inlet to the pressure vessel and the reformer gas outlet of the reformer are arranged in the same direction, and a plurality of (for example, two systems) fuel preheaters are arranged between them. The gas line can also be a short straight pipe, and the fuel preheater can be downsized.
[0009]
Therefore, in a state where the stacked fuel cell and the reformer are housed in the pressure vessel, it is possible to efficiently store the downsized catalyst combustor and the fuel preheater in the remaining space, and effectively use the space in the vessel. be able to. In addition, it is possible to use small-diameter piping, which facilitates piping within the container. As a result, a relatively large output (for example, around 500 kW) is integrated into a pressure vessel (for example, about 2 m in diameter) that can be transported by land. The fuel cell power generator can be stored.
[0010]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, the same code | symbol is attached | subjected to the common part in each figure, and the overlapping description is abbreviate | omitted.
FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of an integrated fuel cell power generator according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of the integrated fuel cell power generator according to the present invention.
[0011]
The integrated fuel cell power generator of the present invention comprises a fuel preheater 10, a reformer 12, a fuel cell 14, a catalytic combustor 16, and a pressure vessel (not shown) for storing them. The fuel preheater 10 is a partition wall heat exchanger (preferably a plate fin heat exchanger), and the heat exchange between the fuel gas 1 and the anode gas 2 causes the anode gas 2 to be heated to a temperature suitable for the fuel cell 14 (for example, In addition, the fuel gas 1 is preheated to increase the thermal efficiency.
[0012]
The reformer 12 is a plate type reformer in which the gas chamber G and the reforming chamber Re face each other across a horizontal partition, the reforming chamber Re is filled with a reforming catalyst, and the gas chamber G is filled with a gas. The particles for dispersion are packed so as to make the flow of water uniform. The gas chamber G is supplied / exhausted with the high-temperature combustion gas 5 generated in the catalytic combustor 16, the fuel gas 1 containing water vapor is supplied to the reforming chamber Re, and is heated by heat transfer from the gas chamber G. The reforming catalyst reforms the anode gas 2 containing hydrogen.
[0013]
The fuel cell 14 is a stacked battery (stack) in which a single cell having an electrolyte plate (tile) sandwiched between two flat electrodes (anode and cathode) is sandwiched between conductive horizontal separator plates. . In this example, the fuel cell 14 is a molten carbonate fuel cell using molten carbonate as an electrolyte, and is operated at a temperature of about 650 ° C., and the anode gas 2 containing hydrogen gas and the cathode gas 3 containing oxygen are respectively used as anodes. And is supplied to the cathode to generate electricity. The catalytic combustor 16 is filled with a combustion catalyst, and the anode exhaust gas 4 exiting the fuel cell 14 is catalytically combusted with the cathode exhaust gas 7 to generate high-temperature (for example, about 750 to 850 ° C.) combustion gas 5. It has become.
[0014]
As shown in FIG. 1, in the integrated fuel cell power generator of the present invention, the reformer 12 is stacked on the fuel cell 14 at the same position. Reference numeral 18 in the figure denotes a clamping device, which sandwiches the fuel cell 14 and the reformer 12 between upper and lower clamping plates 18a and compresses the fuel cell 14 and the reformer 12 via a plurality of connecting rods 18b. At the same time as applying a predetermined surface pressure to the reformer 12, the fuel cell 14 and the reformer 12 are integrated. With this configuration, since the fuel cell 14 and the reformer 12 having a particularly large installation area among the constituent devices are stacked, the installation area can be reduced even when the output is relatively small.
[0015]
Further, as shown in FIG. 1, the inlet portion of the combustion gas 5 of the reformer 12 and the outlet portion of the cathode exhaust gas 7 of the fuel cell 14 are arranged in the same direction. Similarly, as shown in FIG. The outlet part of the combustion gas 5 of the mass device 12 and the inlet part of the cathode gas 3 of the fuel cell 14 are arranged in the same direction. In addition, the entrance / exit of each piping is provided in the end plate of the pressure vessel which is not shown in the figure located in the downward direction. Further, the outlet of the cathode exhaust gas 7 of the fuel cell 14 is provided upward and downward, and a part of the cathode exhaust 7a is directly discharged out of the system from the downward outlet. With such a configuration, the pipes of the cathode gas 3, the cathode exhaust gas 7 and the combustion gas 5 having a large flow rate can be made into a substantially straight short pipe.
[0016]
Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of (in this example, two systems) catalytic combustors 16 are disposed between the inlet portion of the combustion gas 5 of the reformer 12 and the outlet portion of the cathode exhaust gas 7 of the fuel cell 14. Has been. With this configuration, the catalytic combustor 16 and its pipes 5 and 7 can be downsized, and the space in the container can be effectively utilized.
[0017]
Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the inlet portion of the fuel gas 1 and the outlet portion of the reformed gas 2 of the reformer 12 are arranged in the same direction, and a plurality of (in this example, 2 System) fuel preheater 10 is arranged. With this configuration, the anode gas line with a relatively small flow rate can be made into a substantially straight short pipe, and the fuel preheater 10 can be downsized.
[0018]
In addition, this invention is not limited to embodiment mentioned above, Of course, it can change variously in the range which does not deviate from the summary of this invention.
[0019]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, the integrated fuel cell power generator according to the present invention efficiently stores the miniaturized catalyst combustor and the fuel preheater in the remaining space while the stacked fuel cell and the reformer are housed in the pressure vessel. It is possible to effectively use the space in the container. In addition, it is possible to use small-diameter piping, which facilitates piping inside the container. As a result, the integrated fuel cell power generator having a relatively large output (for example, around 500 KW) is stored in a pressure vessel of a size that can be transported by land. It becomes possible.
[0020]
Therefore, the integrated fuel cell power generator of the present invention has excellent effects such as small size, a small installation area, and a small heat loss.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of an integrated fuel cell power generator according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of an integrated fuel cell power generator according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of a molten carbonate fuel cell power generation facility using natural gas as fuel.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Fuel gas 2 Anode gas 3 Air 4 Anode exhaust gas 5 Combustion gas 7 Cathode exhaust gas 10 Fuel preheater 12 Reformer 14 Fuel cell 16 Catalytic combustor 18 Tightening device

Claims (1)

It consists of a fuel preheater, a reformer, a fuel cell, a catalytic combustor, and a pressure vessel for storing them, and the fuel cell and the reformer are stacked,
On the front side, the combustion gas inlet to the reformer and the cathode exhaust gas outlet of the fuel cell are arranged in the same direction,
On the back side, the combustion gas outlet of the reformer and the cathode gas inlet to the fuel cell are arranged in the same direction,
On both sides , the fuel gas inlet to the reformer and the reformer outlet of the reformer are arranged in the same direction,
A plurality of catalytic combustors are disposed between the combustion gas inlet to the reformer and the cathode exhaust gas outlet of the fuel cell,
An integrated fuel cell power generator, wherein a plurality of fuel preheaters are disposed between a fuel gas inlet to a pressure vessel and a reformed gas outlet of a reformer.

Images