Patent ID: 8980488
Filing Date: 2015-03-17
Classification: C01B,H01M,Y02E,Y02P

Abstract:
1. A fuel cell system comprising: a reforming unit configured to subject a mixed gas containing a raw gas and steam to a reforming reaction by a reforming catalyst, thereby generating a reformed gas containing hydrogen; a carbon monoxide decreasing unit configured to allow the reformed gas generated by the reforming unit to contact a carbon monoxide decreasing catalyst, thereby decreasing carbon monoxide contained in the reformed gas; a fuel cell configured to generate electric power by hydrogen contained in the reformed gas passed through the carbon monoxide decreasing unit; a burner unit configured to burn at least one of an off-gas containing hydrogen not consumed in the fuel cell, the raw gas and the reformed gas using combustion air supplied by an air blower; a raw gas supply device configured to supply the raw gas to the reforming unit and the burner unit directly or through the reforming unit; one or more temperature sensors configured to detect at least one of a temperature of the reforming catalyst and a temperature of the carbon monoxide decreasing catalyst; and a control unit, wherein the control unit is configured to store therein a correlation between the temperature of the reforming catalyst detected by the one or more temperature sensors and an amount of the desorbed raw gas desorbed from the reforming catalyst or a correlation between the temperature of the carbon monoxide decreasing catalyst detected by the one or more temperature sensors and an amount of desorbed raw gas desorbed from the carbon monoxide decreasing catalyst, and, wherein at a start-up operation of the fuel cell system, the control unit programmed to determine, based on at least one of the temperature of the reforming catalyst and the temperature of the carbon monoxide decreasing catalyst detected by the one or more temperature sensors, the amount of the desorbed raw gas desorbed out of the components of the raw gas adsorbed to at least one of the reforming catalyst and the carbon monoxide decreasing catalyst, and adjusts an amount of raw gas supplied from the raw gas supply device according to the amount of the obtained desorbed raw.