METHODS OF MANUFACTURING FLUID STORAGE COMPONENTS
Embodiments of the invention relate to a method of manufacturing a fluid enclosure. The method includes reducing the size of active material particles sufficient to provide a maximum active material particle size substantially within the same order of size as the active material particle decrepitation size, contacting the particles with a binder sufficient to provide a mixture, pressing the mixture sufficient to provide a compacted mixture, heating the compacted mixture sufficient to form a fluid storage component and conformably coupling an outer enclosure wall to the fluid storage component sufficient to provide a fluid enclosure.
1 . A method of manufacturing a fluid storage component, comprising:
reducing the size of active material particles, sufficient to provide a maximum active material particle size substantially within the same order of size as the active material particle decrepitation size;
contacting the particles with a binder, sufficient to provide a mixture;
pressing the mixture, sufficient to provide a compacted mixture; and
heating the compacted mixture, sufficient to fuse the binder and the active material particles to form a fluid storage component.
2 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising laminating multiple fluid storage components, sufficient to provide a laminated fluid storage component.
3 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the laminated fluid storage component comprises features.
4 . The method of claim 3 , wherein the features comprise flow field features.
5 . The method of claim 1 , wherein reducing comprises one or more of grinding, milling, tumbling, and decrepitation through reacting with hydrogen.
6 . The method of claim 1 , wherein contacting comprises mixing, tumbling, stirring, combining in solution, or a combination thereof.
7 . The method of claim 1 , wherein reducing and contacting are performed simultaneously.
8 . The method of claim 1 , wherein heating comprises sintering.
9 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising after contacting, agglomerating the mixture.
10 . The method of claim 1 , wherein pressing comprises applying compaction pressure to the mixture within a mold, or forcing the mixture into a mold via applied pressure.
11 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the mold is structured to provide features or parts of features.
12 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising activating the fluid storage component.
13 . The method of claim 12 , wherein activating comprises contacting the component with a fluid.
14 . The method of claim 13 , further comprising removing the fluid.
15 . The method of claim 14 , further comprising after removing, repeatedly contacting the component with fluid and removing the fluid
16 . A method of manufacturing a fluid enclosure, the method comprising:
conformably coupling an outer enclosure wall to a fluid storage component;
wherein conformably coupling comprises molding an outer enclosure wall to a fluid storage component.
17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein molding comprises heating the fluid storage component and outer enclosure wall in a mold.
18 . The method of claim 16 , wherein molding comprises vacuum forming an outer enclosure wall to the fluid storage component.
19 . The method of claim 18 , further comprising pressing.
20 . The method of claim 19 , further comprising sintering.
21 . The method of claim 16 , further comprising before conformably coupling, abrading the surface of the fluid storage component.
22 . The method of claim 18 , wherein vacuum forming comprises:
contacting a first side of the fluid storage component with a first sheet of wall material;
heating the first sheet under vacuum, sufficient to form a first outer enclosure wall;
contacting a second side of the fluid storage component with a second sheet of wall material; and
heating the second sheet under vacuum, sufficient to form a second outer enclosure wall.
23 . The method of claim 22 , wherein the wall material comprises substantially the same material as a binder in the fluid storage component.
24 . The method of claim 18 , wherein vacuum forming comprises:
forming a shell comprising one or more components;
sealing the fluid storage component within the shell;
sintering the assembly of the fluid storage component and the shell while applying a vacuum to the inside of the assembly such that the shell conformally adheres to the fluid storage component.
25 . The method of claim 16 , wherein the fluid storage component is formed by:
reducing the size of active material particles, sufficient to provide an average active material particle size substantially within the same order of size as the active material particle decrepitation size;
contacting the particles with a binder, sufficient to provide a mixture;
pressing the mixture, sufficient to provide a compacted mixture; and
heating the compacted mixture, sufficient to fuse the binder and the active material particles.