Fuel cell manifold cable end clamp
View Patent ↗A pair of reactant gas manifolds ( 11 and 12 ) on opposite sides of a fuel cell stack ( 7 ) are sealed to the fuel cells ( 14 ) and pressure plates ( 8 ) by means of pressure applied by load cables ( 17 ). The centers of the manifolds are prevented from having leakage between them and the end plates by means of a tensioning system comprising a plurality of pins ( 22 ) extending outwardly from the ends of the manifolds, and tensioning cables ( 23 ) extending around the pins in a closed loop and tensioned by a turnbuckle ( 24 ).
1. A fuel cell stack comprising:
a plurality of contiguous fuel cells compressed between pressure plates by tie rods;
at least one pair of manifolds for directing at least reactant gas into and out of said fuel cells, said at least one pair of manifolds being disposed on opposite sides of said fuel cell stack, said manifolds each having an end with an end surface adjacent to one of said pressure plates, said manifolds being held in gas sealing relationship to edges of said fuel cells and said pressure plates by means of seal materials and load cables under tension;
at least one pin disposed in the end surface of each of said manifolds, said at least one pin extending outwardly from the end surface of the corresponding manifold; and
a cable extending in a closed loop about said pins, said cable under tension, thereby drawing the pins and therefore the manifolds toward each other, whereby to overcome gas leakage through the seals at the interface of the manifolds with the pressure plates.
2. A fuel cell stack according to claim 1 wherein said cable has two ends which are drawn together by a tensioning turnbuckle.
3. A fuel cell stack according to claim 1 wherein there are two pine disposed in each end surface of each of said pair of manifolds, and said cable extends about four pins.