Patent ID: 7435502

Claim:
A fuel cell stack for a fuel cell power plant, comprising: a plurality of fuel cells arranged in a stack, each including a membrane electrode assembly having a proton exchange membrane between a cathode catalyst and an anode catalyst, an anode support plate adjacent said anode catalyst, a cathode support plate adjacent said cathode catalyst, a porous anode water transport plate having a fuel reactant gas flow field adjacent said anode support plate, and a porous cathode water transport plate having an oxidant reactant gas flow field adjacent to said cathode support plate; a plurality of solid plates, selected from one or more of solid cooler plates and solid separator plates, interposed between adjacent ones of all of said cells in said stack; and water transfer means disposed in said fuel cell stack for transferring water only internally within said stack from said cathode water transport plate of at least one of said fuel cells to at least one of said anode water transport plates which may be within said one fuel cell or a different fuel cell.