Patent ID: 8168341

Claim:
A fuel cell including an electrolyte electrode assembly and a pair of separators sandwiching said electrolyte electrode assembly, said electrolyte electrode assembly including an anode, a cathode, and an electrolyte interposed between said anode and said cathode, said fuel cell comprising: first protrusions forming a fuel gas channel provided on one surface of said separator for supplying a fuel gas in one direction along an electrode surface of said anode; second protrusions forming an oxygen-containing gas channel provided on the other surface of said separator for supplying an oxygen-containing gas in the other direction opposite to the one direction along an electrode surface of said cathode; a channel member provided on the one surface or the other surface to form a fuel gas supply channel connected to a fuel gas supply unit and said fuel gas channel; a fuel gas inlet provided at a position spaced from the center of said electrolyte electrode assembly toward said fuel gas supply unit, said fuel gas inlet being connected to said fuel gas supply channel for supplying the fuel gas into said fuel gas channel; an oxygen-containing gas supply unit for mixing an exhaust fuel gas consumed in reaction at said anode and discharged from said fuel gas channel, with the oxygen-containing gas before consumption, and supplying the mixed gas to said oxygen-containing gas channel; an exhaust gas channel for discharging the fuel gas and the oxygen-containing gas consumed in the reaction in said electrolyte electrode assembly as an exhaust gas in a stacking direction of said electrolyte electrode assembly and said separators, wherein said fuel gas supply unit for supplying the fuel gas before consumption in the stacking direction is provided hermetically inside said exhaust gas channel; and said fuel gas supply channel connects said fuel gas channel and said fuel gas supply unit, and is provided along the separator surface that intersects said exhaust gas channel extending in the stacking direction.