Patent ID: 8668752

Claim:
A reducing gas generator for startup and shutdown of a fuel cell, comprising: an air intake; an oxidant source structured to generate a low oxygen (O 2 ) content oxidant using air received from the air intake and to vary the O 2 content of the low O 2 content oxidant, the low O 2 content oxidant having an O 2 content less than that of atmospheric air; a fuel input configured to receive a hydrocarbon fuel; a merging chamber in fluid communication with said oxidant source and in fluid communication with said fuel inlet, said merging chamber structured to receive the hydrocarbon fuel and the low oxygen (O 2 ) content oxidant and to discharge a feed mixture containing both the hydrocarbon fuel and the low oxygen (O 2 ) content oxidant; a catalytic reactor in fluid communication with said merging chamber, said catalytic reactor structured to receive the feed mixture and to catalytically convert the feed mixture into a reducing gas; a reducing gas output fluidly coupled to said catalytic reactor and in fluid communication with at least one of an anode and a reformer of the fuel cell, said reducing gas output operative to direct the reducing gas to said at least one of the anode and the reformer of the fuel cell; and a control system programmed to control a flow rate of the feed mixture and vary both the O 2 content of the low O 2 content oxidant and the oxidant/fuel ratio of the feed mixture to maintain a predetermined control temperature while varying a combustibles content of the reducing gas output by said catalytic reactor.