Patent ID: 9240601
Filing Date: 2016-01-19
CPC Classification: H01M,Y02E

Claim Text:
1. A fuel cell module comprising: a fuel cell stack formed by stacking fuel cells for generating electricity by electrochemical reactions between a fuel gas and an oxygen-containing gas; a reformer for reforming a mixed gas of water vapor and a raw fuel chiefly containing hydrocarbon to produce the fuel gas supplied to the fuel cell stack; an evaporator for evaporating water, and supplying the water vapor to the reformer; a heat exchanger for raising temperature of the oxygen-containing gas by heat exchange with combustion gas, and supplying the oxygen-containing gas to the fuel cell stack; an exhaust gas combustor for combusting the fuel gas discharged from the fuel cell stack as a fuel exhaust gas and the oxygen-containing gas discharged from the fuel cell stack as an oxygen-containing exhaust gas to thereby produce the combustion gas; and a start-up combustor for combusting the raw fuel and the oxygen-containing gas to thereby produce the combustion gas, the fuel cell module further comprising: a first area where the exhaust gas combustor and the start-up combustor are provided; an annular second area disposed around the first area where one of the reformer and the heat exchanger is provided; an annular third area disposed around the second area where another of the reformer and the heat exchanger is provided; an annular fourth area disposed around the third area where the evaporator is provided; and a condensed water collecting mechanism for collecting condensed water produced by condensation of water vapor in the combustion gas by allowing the condensed water to flow the fourth area, then, the third area, then, the second area, and then, the first area, the condensing water collecting mechanism including: a first ring member that forms a bottom of the second area, a second ring member that forms a bottom of the third area, and a third ring member that forms a bottom of the fourth area, wherein the bottom of the third ring member is higher than the bottom of the second ring member, and the bottom of the second ring member is higher than the bottom of the first ring member, and a collection pipe for collecting water vapor is provided at a lower position of the first area.