Patent ID: 8197988

Claim:
A hydrogen supply system for a fuel cell, comprising: a high pressure tank having hydrogen stored therein that is received from a hydrogen refueling station, wherein a metal hydride (MH) tank storing hydrogen is disposed within the high pressure tank; first and second solenoid valves provided at both ends of the high pressure tank; a buffer tank connected in parallel to the high pressure tank; and a fuel cell stack connected to the buffer tank wherein the hydrogen supply system is configured to supply hydrogen from the high pressure tank or the MH tank to the fuel cell stack through the buffer tank, and configured to charge the hydrogen from the hydrogen refueling station to the high pressure tank and discharge the hydrogen from the high pressure tank through the first solenoid valve, wherein the second solenoid valve is configured to charge and discharge the hydrogen to and from the MH tank, wherein the first and second solenoid valves are configured to be simultaneously opened to discharge the hydrogen from the MH tank when the hydrogen is charged to the high pressure tank, and wherein the hydrogen discharged from the MH tank is stored in the buffer tank and then supplied to the fuel cell stack.