Patent ID: 8318367

Claim:
A method of operating an electrochemical energy generating apparatus, said electrochemical energy generating apparatus including an electrochemical device unit having an electrolyte disposed between an anode and a cathode, and a reference electrode disposed in contact with or in proximity to said electrolyte, said reference electrode being maintained at an oxidation-reduction potential between a metal and a metal ion, said method comprising: (a) generating a first result by measuring, with respect to the reference electrode: (i) a potential of said anode; and (ii) a potential of said cathode; (b) generating a second result by directly measuring at least one: (i) an output of the electromechanical energy generating apparatus; and (ii) an output current of the electromechanical energy generating apparatus; (c) determining an operating condition of said electrochemical device unit based on a combination of: (i) the first result; and (ii) the second result; and (d) setting the operating condition of said electrochemical device unit based on the determined operating condition.