Claims
- 1. A method for monitoring process gas of a solid oxide fuel cell system, comprising:
directing a portion of process gas from a chamber of said solid oxide fuel cell system to a main plenum chamber; cooling said portion of process gas to a measurable temperature; directing said cooled portion of process gas to a sensor; and analyzing said cooled portion of process gas in said sensor.
- 2. The method of claim 1, wherein said portion of process gas is selected from the group consisting of reformate, anode exhaust, system exhaust, and combinations comprising at least one of the foregoing process gases.
- 3. The method of claim 1, wherein said sensor is operating in an environment having a temperature of about 100° C. or less.
- 4. The method of claim 1, wherein said measurable temperature is about 100° C. or less.
- 5. The method of claim 1, wherein said cooling comprises directing said portion of process gas through a tubing having at least one loop.
- 6. The method of claim 1, wherein said cooling comprises directing said portion of process gas through a heat exchanger.
- 7. The method of claim 1, wherein said analyzing comprises determining the concentration of gas constituents.
- 8. The method of claim 1, further comprising eliminating said cooled portion of process gas through a device for processing waste products.
- 9. The method of claim 1, further comprising relaying a signal from said sensor to a controller.
- 10. The method of claim 9, further comprising adjusting the operation of solid oxide fuel cell system based upon said signal.
- 11. A method for monitoring reformate of a solid oxide fuel cell system, comprising:
directing a portion of reformate from a chamber of said solid oxide fuel cell system to a main plenum chamber; cooling said portion of reformate to a measurable temperature; directing said cooled portion of reformate to a sensor; analyzing said cooled portion of reformate in said sensor; relaying a signal from said sensor to a controller; and eliminating said cooled portion of reformate from said solid oxide fuel cell system.
- 12. The method of claim 11, wherein said sensor is operating in an environment having a temperature of about 100° C. or less.
- 13. The method of claim 11, wherein said measurable temperature is about 100° C. or less.
- 14. The method of claim 11, wherein said cooling comprises directing said portion of reformate through a tubing having at least one loop.
- 15. The method of claim 11, wherein said cooling comprises directing said portion of reformate through a heat exchanger.
- 16. The method of claim 11, wherein said analyzing comprises determining the concentration of gas constituents.
- 17. The method of claim 11, further comprising adjusting the operation of said solid oxide fuel cell system system.
- 18. A solid oxide fuel cell system, comprising:
a chamber disposed around a fuel cell stack and a waste energy recovery assembly; a means for diverting a portion of process gas contained within said chamber in fluid communication with a means for cooling said diverted portion of process gas to a measurable temperature; and a means for analyzing said cooled portion of process gas.
- 19. The solid oxide fuel cell system of claim 18, wherein said portion of process gas is selected from the group consisting of reformate, anode exhaust, system exhaust, and combinations comprising at least one of the foregoing process gases.
- 20. The solid oxide fuel cell system of claim 18, wherein said means for analyzing is a sensor operating in an environment having a temperature of about 100° C. or less.
- 21. The solid oxide fuel cell system of claim 20, wherein said environment is within a system enclosure, said system enclosure is disposed around said chamber.
- 22. The solid oxide fuel cell system of claim 18, wherein said measurable temperature is about 100° C. or less.
- 23. The solid oxide fuel cell system of claim 18, wherein said means for diverting is a tubing.
- 24. The solid oxide fuel cell system of claim 23, wherein said means for cooling comprises at least one loop of said tubing.
- 25. The solid oxide fuel cell system of claim 18, wherein said means for cooling comprises a heat exchanger.
- 26. The solid oxide fuel cell system of claim 18, further comprising a means for directing said cooled portion of process gas from said solid oxide fuel cell system.
- 27. A solid oxide fuel cell system, comprising:
a chamber disposed within said solid oxide fuel cell system; a means for diverting a portion of process gas contained within said chamber in fluid communication with a means for cooling said diverted portion of process gas to a measurable temperature; a means for analyzing said cooled portion of process gas; a means for receiving a signal from said means for analyzing; and a means for directing said cooled portion of process gas out of said solid oxide fuel cell system.
- 28. The solid oxide fuel cell system of claim 27, wherein said portion of process gas is selected from the group consisting of reformate, anode exhaust, system exhaust, and combinations comprising at least one of the foregoing process gases.
- 29. The solid oxide fuel cell system of claim 27, wherein said means for analyzing is a sensor operating in an environment having a temperature of about 100° C. or less.
- 30. The solid oxide fuel cell system of claim 29, wherein said environment is within a system enclosure, said system enclosure is disposed around said chamber.
- 31. The solid oxide fuel cell system of claim 27, wherein said measurable temperature is about 100° C. or less.
- 32. The solid oxide fuel cell system of claim 27, wherein said means for diverting is a tubing.
- 33. The solid oxide fuel cell system of claim 27, wherein said means for cooling comprises at least one loop of said tubing.
- 34. The solid oxide fuel cell system of claim 27, wherein said means for cooling is a heat exchanger.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] The present application claims the benefit of the date of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/201,568, filed on May 1, 2000 and an earlier filed provisional application, having U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/268,397, filed on Feb. 13, 2001.
Provisional Applications (2)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60201568 |
May 2000 |
US |
|
60268397 |
Feb 2001 |
US |