JPH0321007Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] (A) Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to a fuel cell manifold attachment seal device, and particularly relates to reinforcement measures for the attachment seal portion in the stacking direction.

(B) Prior Art FIG. 1 shows a conventional example. In FIG. 1, manifolds 2 and 3 attached to each circumferential surface of a battery stack 1 have a frame-shaped structure between the peripheral mounting collar and each of the circumferential surfaces. A sealing material 4 was interposed and the stack was fastened to the upper and lower end plates 5, 5 with screws 6. However, in this method, the only tightening points of each manifold 2, 3 are the upper and lower mounting flanges 21, 31, and the stacking direction mounting flanges 2
2 and 32 cannot be tightened with screws due to their construction, so sufficient pressure against the sealing material in the stacking direction cannot be obtained, resulting in poor sealing performance, and only the top and bottom are fixed due to the difference in thermal expansion between the manifold and the stack. In such a manifold, the mounting flanges 22, 32 in the stacking direction may be deformed, creating a gap in the sealing surface. Therefore, leakage of each reaction gas reduces efficiency, and leakage of hydrogen gas also poses a safety problem.

(c) Purpose of the invention The purpose of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems by reinforcing the pressure contact force of the sealing surface in the stacking direction, which cannot be tightened with the screws of the manifold.

(d) Structure of the invention The present invention extends one side of the stacking direction mounting collars of adjacent manifolds at the battery stack corner, bends the tips inward, and extends the mounting collars along the extended bent portion. A reinforcing backing plate is attached, and the other mounting flange in the stacking direction is pressed by a bolt screwed together through a bent portion reinforced by the backing plate.

(E) Embodiment An embodiment of the present invention will be explained with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, and the same symbols as in FIG. 1 are given to the relevant parts.

The attachment of the battery stack 1 and the manifolds 2 and 3 is similar to that of the conventional product shown in FIG.
Before installation, the mounting collars 32 in the stacking direction on both sides are extended 7 and their tips are bent inward 8, and a reinforcing plate 9 is attached to the manifold 3 by welding along the extended bent portions 7 and 8. ing. As shown in Fig. 2, this reinforcing plate 9 is made up of a pair of parallel L-shaped pieces 9', 9' whose base ends are bent into a U-shape by sheet metal processing. A through hole is formed in the manifold bent portion 8' corresponding to the space between the pieces 9 and 9', and a nut 10 is fixed by welding. The stacking direction mounting collar 22 of the other manifold, for example, the hydrogen gas manifold 2, is pressed by the tightening bolt 11 that is screwed into the nut 10 through the through hole, and presses the stacking direction sealing material 4 onto the stack surface. to strengthen the seal.

On the other hand, a manifold 3 having extension bent portions 7 and 8 formed therein.
When the manifold 3 is installed, the sealing surface in the stacking direction of the manifold 3 is pressed by a reinforcing plate 9 installed in advance to reinforce the sealing performance.

Note that if the reinforcing plate 9 is made of a metal molded product instead of sheet metal processing, the nut 10 is not required and the bent portion 8
It is sufficient to form a screw thread into which the bolt 11 is screwed on the part of the backing plate that is in close contact with the plate.

(f) Effects of the invention According to the invention, one side of the stacking direction mounting collars of adjacent manifolds at the corners of the battery stack is extended and bent in advance, and the manifolds are attached in an L-shape along this extended bent part. A reinforcing plate is installed, and one mounting flange is reinforced by the plate, and the other mounting flange is pressed by the screwed bolt from the bent part of the plate, making it impossible to tighten with conventional screws. This significantly improves the sealing performance of the mounting collar in the stacking direction, making it possible to prevent a drop in efficiency due to gas leakage, damage to the battery due to mixing of both reactant gases, and the risk of explosion.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a battery stack equipped with a conventional manifold attachment device, Figure 2 is a perspective view of a battery stack with improved manifold attachment sealing properties according to the present invention, and Figure 3 is an enlarged plan view of the same essential parts. be. 1... Battery stack, 2, 3... Manifold,
21, 31... Manifold upper and lower mounting collar, 22, 3
2... Manifold stacking direction mounting collar, 4... Sealing material, 5... Stack upper and lower end plates, 6... Screw, 7,
8... Extension bent portion, 9... Reinforcement plate, 10... Nut, 11... Tightening bolt.

Claims (1)

[Claims for Utility Model Registration] A manifold attachment sealing device for attaching a manifold to each peripheral surface of a fuel cell stack via a sealing material, wherein one of the manifolds adjacent to each other at a corner of the stack is stacked. The direction mounting collar is extended and its tip is bent inward, and a reinforcing plate is attached along the extended bent part, and the screw is inserted through the bent part reinforced by the plate. 1. A fuel cell manifold mounting seal device, wherein the other stacking direction mounting collar is pressed by a mating bottle. The reinforcing plate has a pair of L connected at the base end.
A claim characterized in that the bolt is formed of a L-shaped piece, a through hole is bored in the bent part located between the pair of L-shaped pieces, and a nut into which the bolt is screwed is welded. A fuel cell manifold mounting seal device as described in .