JP3122736B2 - Bipolar plate for water electrolysis tank and method for producing the same - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a water electrolyzer for producing hydrogen and oxygen using a polymer electrolyte membrane, and more particularly to a bipolar plate for a water electrolyzer, a method for producing the same, and the use of the bipolar plate. And a water electrolysis tank.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a filter press type water electrolyzer for producing hydrogen and oxygen by water electrolysis using a polymer electrolyte membrane, a filter press type water electrolyzer disclosed in JP-A-7-252682 is known. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, this water electrolysis tank is connected in series between an anode main electrode (1) and a cathode main electrode (2) arranged at both ends, and these main electrodes (1) and (2). It is mainly composed of a plurality of unit cells arranged, and four fastening bolts and nuts each of which integrates the unit cells. One cell has an anode side of a titanium alloy multi-polar plate (9) and an anode power supply. Body (7), electrode assembly membrane (3) composed of solid polymer electrolyte membrane, cathode feeder (8), and adjacent bipolar plate (9)
The electrode assembly membrane (3) comprises an ion exchange membrane (4) and catalyst electrode layers (5) and (6) provided on both surfaces thereof. The number of unit cells is 8 for a commercial scale electrolytic cell.
0 to 600. In the figure, (21) is a flange,
(22) is a nozzle plate, (23) is an insulating packing, (24) is O
A ring gasket, (25) shows a porous spacer, and (26) shows a seal gasket.

According to the water electrolysis tank having the above structure, first, water supplied from a water supply header (10) below the electrolysis tank passes through a porous anode power feeder (7) and passes through an electrode assembly membrane (3). It reaches the anode-side catalyst electrode layer (5). Here, the electrolysis reaction of water occurs by the added electric power, and oxygen is generated. The generated oxygen passes through the anode feeder (7), rises in the vertical flow path provided on the anode side of the bipolar plate (9) together with unreacted water, and flows through the bipolar plate.
It is discharged to the oxygen header (11) through the porous spacer (25) provided on the outer periphery of the oxygen header (11) of (9). On the other hand, hydrogen generated on the surface of the cathode-side catalyst electrode layer (6) of the electrode assembly membrane (3) and water permeated through the ion-exchange membrane (4) pass through the porous cathode power feeder (8) to form a bipolar electrode. Ascending in the vertical flow path provided on the cathode side of the plate (9), the hydrogen header (1
It is discharged to the hydrogen header (12) through the porous spacer (25) provided on the outer periphery of 2).

[0004]

In the above conventional electrolytic cell, the bipolar plate is made of unplated titanium, and on the cathode side of the bipolar plate, there is a problem of the bipolar plate breaking due to hydrogen embrittlement. On the anode side, there was a problem of an increase in electrical resistance due to the formation of an oxide film (titanium oxide). Further, on both electrode sides, there was a problem that the electrical contact resistance was high due to the surface roughness and hardness. .

Accordingly, the present inventors have proposed a technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application No. 10-57.
At 660, it was proposed to provide a noble metal plating layer on the surface of the bipolar plate contacting the cathode power supply, or to provide a noble metal plating layer on the surface contacting the cathode power supply and the surface of the bipolar plate contacting the anode power supply. . As a method of manufacturing such a double electrode plate, a method in which a thin plate made of a titanium alloy is superplastically processed and then plated with a noble metal is known.

However, according to the above-mentioned known bipolar plate manufacturing method, since an oxide layer is formed on the surface of the bipolar plate which has undergone superplastic working, the surface activation treatment which is a pretreatment for precious metal plating is performed. There is a problem that the operation is troublesome and the cost is high.

The present invention has been devised in order to solve the above-mentioned problems, and has an electrolytic cell excellent in hydrogen embrittlement resistance and low in electric resistance, and a low bipolar plate used in the electrolytic cell. Its purpose is to provide at a cost.

[0008]

A method for manufacturing a bipolar plate for a water electrolyzer according to the present invention is a method for manufacturing a bipolar plate for a water electrolyzer using a solid polymer electrolyte membrane. It is characterized by being formed by superplastic working after plating.

Further, the bipolar plate for a water electrolyzer according to the present invention is a bipolar plate for a water electrolyzer using a solid polymer electrolyte membrane, which is a thin plate made of a titanium alloy plated with noble metal on one or both sides. It is characterized by being superplastically processed.

A bipolar plate according to the present invention comprises an anode main electrode and a cathode main electrode arranged at both ends, a plurality of unit cells arranged in series between these main electrodes, and a fastener for integrating these. And one cell includes an anode side of a titanium alloy bipolar plate, an anode feeder, an electrode assembly film made of a solid polymer electrolyte membrane, a cathode feeder, and an adjacent bipolar plate. It can be used in a water electrolysis tank using a solid polymer electrolyte membrane consisting of a cathode side. In this case, a bipolar plate having noble metal plating on one side is arranged so that its plating layer is in contact with the cathode power supply. The bipolar plate having noble metal plating on both surfaces is arranged such that its plating layer is in contact with the anode power supply and the cathode power supply, respectively.

[0011]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below.

The water electrolyzer using the solid polymer electrolyte membrane of the present invention is the same as the conventional one shown in FIGS.
Only the configuration of (9) is different. That is, this bipolar plate
(9), as shown in FIG. 6, the cathode side and the anode side,
Each is provided with a platinum plating layer (37) (38).

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a bipolar plate (9), and FIG.
Is an aa cross section in FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a bb cross section, and FIG.
c section, FIG. 5 shows a dd section, and FIG. 6 shows an enlarged section of a main part of FIG. 3, respectively.

The bipolar plate (9) is made of a titanium alloy having platinum plating layers (37) and (38), and satisfies all the conditions required for a bipolar plate. That is, in the cross section aa in FIG. 1, as shown in FIG. 2, the electrode assembly film (3), the anode feeder (7), and the cathode feeder (8) are formed of the multipolar plate (9). The gap between the peaks and the valleys is approximately 1 to 3 mm, and the structure is such that the peaks and the valleys are alternately combined.With this structure, the contact between the power feeders (7) and (8) is maintained, In addition, the elasticity of the cell is obtained. The valleys on the anode side and the cathode side serve as upward flow paths for oxygen and hydrogen, respectively. A concave strip (27) provided on the outer peripheral portion of the multipolar plate (9) is a fitting groove of an O-ring gasket (24) for sealing.
The upper and lower portions of the bipolar plate (9) are portions that are required to have a function that allows fluid to freely flow up, down, left and right and that uniformly supports the electrode assembly membrane (3). As shown in FIG. 3 showing a cross section, the electrode assembly membrane (3) is supported from both sides by a large number of substantially cubic projections, and the other portions function as flow channels.

In FIG. 1, the lower hole of the bipolar plate (9) is a water supply header (10), and the upper left hole is an oxygen header (1).
1). By processing these headers as shown in the cross section shown in FIG. 4, water is supplied to the anode side, and generated oxygen is discharged to the oxygen header (11). 4 and 5, a porous spacer (2) is provided between the bipolar plate (9) and the electrode assembly membrane (3) around the outer periphery of each header of the bipolar plate (9).
5) interposed, the electrode assembly membrane (3) and another bipolar plate
A seal gasket (26) is interposed between the gasket (9).
The hole on the upper right side of the bipolar plate (9) is the hydrogen header (12).
By processing this portion as shown in the cross section shown in FIG. 5, the generated hydrogen is discharged to the hydrogen header (12). It is desirable for the fluid to flow uniformly in the central electrode portion of the bipolar plate (9). If there is a drift, in extreme cases, the part becomes dry and causes an accident such as damage to the membrane. With this structure, it is possible to achieve a more uniform flow by forming a large number of substantially cubic protrusions on the upper and lower parts of the bipolar plate (9) and designing the distribution hydrodynamically. . Furthermore, by adjusting the porosity or width of the ring-shaped porous spacer (25) installed in each cell of the water electrolysis tank, specifically, the inlet header and the outlet header, the amount of water flowing into each cell can be reduced. It can be uniform. When such a structure is adopted, the thickness of the unit cell is about 2 to 6 mm.

In order to manufacture the above bipolar plate (9), a titanium alloy thin plate is plated with platinum (other noble metal plating is also possible).
And then formed into a predetermined shape by a superplastic working method. The platinum plating layers (37) and (38) are preferably provided on both the cathode side and the anode side of the bipolar plate (9).
May be provided only on the cathode side.

According to the bipolar plate (9) thus obtained, a pre-plating process can be performed on the titanium alloy sheet in a state where the oxide layer is not formed on the surface of the titanium alloy sheet. Platinum plating layers (37) and (38) having good adhesion to plating (titanium alloy thin plate before superplastic working) and having no defects such as pinholes can be obtained. Therefore,
A multi-polar plate that reduces the time and effort for pre-treatment and has few defective products
(9) can be obtained.

According to the water electrolysis tank having the above structure, the double electrode plate (9)
Since the platinum plating layer (37) is provided on the cathode side, the embrittlement of the bipolar plate by hydrogen is prevented, the durability and safety of the electrolytic cell are remarkably improved, and the electrical The contact resistance is reduced, and the characteristics of the electrolytic cell are improved. In addition, double pole plate (9)
Since the platinum plating layer (38) is provided on the anode side, the formation of an oxide film during electrolysis is prevented, the increase in electrical resistance and the increase in electrical contact resistance due to the oxide film are suppressed, and the electrical resistance is reduced. Thus, a water electrolysis tank having better electrolysis characteristics can be obtained. When the electrolytic cell having the above-mentioned bipolar plate (9) was operated with a stack of 20 cells each having an electrode size of 250 cm ² , the electrolytic cell was compared with an electrolytic cell having an unplated titanium bipolar plate. The electric resistance was small and the characteristics were good. Since no defects such as pinholes occur in the platinum plating layers (37) and (38), a decrease in the hydrogen embrittlement prevention effect due to the defects is prevented.

[0019]

According to the method for manufacturing a bipolar plate of the present invention, a state in which an oxide layer is not formed on the surface of a titanium alloy,
Since the pre-plating process can be performed, the adhesion of the plating to the base material (titanium alloy before superplastic working) is good, and a noble metal plating layer free from defects such as pinholes can be obtained. Therefore, it is possible to obtain a bipolar plate with less trouble in pretreatment and with less defective products.

Further, according to the bipolar plate of the present invention, a bipolar plate with few defective products can be supplied at low cost for a water electrolysis tank. In this case, the bipolar plate having noble metal plating on one surface is provided. However, in the water electrolysis tank where the plating layer is placed in contact with the cathode power supply, embrittlement of the bipolar plate by hydrogen is prevented, and the durability and safety of the electrolysis tank are remarkably improved. Electrical contact resistance is reduced, electrolytic cell characteristics are improved, and the effect of preventing hydrogen embrittlement can be improved by a noble metal plating layer having no pinholes.
Further, in a water electrolysis tank in which a bipolar plate having noble metal plating on both sides is arranged so that its plating layer is in contact with the anode power supply and the cathode power supply, an oxide film is further formed on the bipolar plate during electrolysis. Thus, the increase in electric resistance and the increase in electric contact resistance due to the oxide film are suppressed, and the electric resistance is reduced, so that a water electrolysis tank having more excellent electrolytic properties can be obtained.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing the whole of a bipolar plate (9) which is a main part of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view showing a section taken along line aa in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view showing a section taken along line bb in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a cross-section along the line cc in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a partial sectional view showing a section taken along line dd in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged view of a main part of FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a schematic sectional view showing a conventional filter press type water electrolysis tank.

FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view showing a disassembled state of a conventional filter press type water electrolysis tank.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1: anode main electrode 2: cathode main electrode 3: electrode assembly membrane 4: ion exchange membrane 5: anode side catalyst electrode layer 6: cathode side catalyst electrode layer 7: anode power supply 8: cathode power supply 9: double electrode plate 37: Platinum (precious metal) plating layer 38: Platinum (precious metal) plating layer

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (73) Patentee 000004123 Nippon Kokan Co., Ltd. 1-2-1, Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo (74) The above two agents 100060874 Patent Attorney Enosuke Kishimoto (72) Inventor Chika Inazumi 1-7-89 Minami Kohoku, Suminoe-ku, Osaka Hitachi Zosen Corporation (72) Inventor Shoji Maezawa 1-7-89 Minami Kohoku, Suminoe-ku, Osaka Hitachi Zosen Corporation (72) Inventor Masayoshi Kondo Osaka City 1-7-89 Minami Kohoku, Suminoe-ku Hitachi Zosen Corporation (72) Inventor Naoya Yokoyama 1-1-2 Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo Nippon Kokan Co., Ltd. (72) Keisuke Oguro Midorioka, Ikeda-shi, Osaka 1-8-31 Examiner, Osaka Institute of Technology, Industrial Technology Research Institute Tomoko Hirono (56) References JP-A-8-260177 (JP, A) JP-A-11 256381 (JP, A) (58 ) investigated the field (Int.Cl. ^7, DB name) C25B 1/00 - 15/08

Claims (5)

(57) [Claims] 1. A method of manufacturing a bipolar plate for a water electrolysis tank using a solid polymer electrolyte membrane, comprising forming a titanium alloy with a noble metal plating and then forming the same by a superplastic working method. A method for manufacturing a bipolar plate for an electrolytic cell. 2. A water electrolysis tank comprising a polyelectrolyte plate using a solid polymer electrolyte membrane, which is obtained by superplastically processing a titanium alloy thin plate having a noble metal plated on one surface. Double pole plate for tank. 3. A water electrolysis tank comprising a bipolar plate of a water electrolysis tank using a solid polymer electrolyte membrane, which is obtained by superplastically processing a titanium alloy thin plate having both surfaces plated with noble metal. Double pole plate for tank. 4. An anode main electrode (1) and a cathode main electrode (2) arranged at both ends, a plurality of unit cells arranged in series between the main electrodes (1) and (2), and One cell is a titanium alloy double pole plate
The anode side of (9), the anode feeder (7), the electrode assembly film (3) composed of a solid polymer electrolyte membrane, the cathode feeder (8), and the cathode of the adjacent bipolar plate (9) A water electrolyzer comprising a solid polymer electrolyte membrane, wherein the bipolar plate (9) according to claim 2 is arranged such that its plating layer is in contact with the cathode feeder (8). , Water electrolysis tank using solid polymer electrolyte membrane. 5. An anode main electrode (1) and a cathode main electrode (2) arranged at both ends, a plurality of unit cells arranged in series between the main electrodes (1) and (2), and One cell is a titanium alloy double pole plate
The anode side of (9), the anode feeder (7), the electrode assembly film (3) composed of a solid polymer electrolyte membrane, the cathode feeder (8), and the cathode of the adjacent bipolar plate (9) In a water electrolysis tank using a solid polymer electrolyte membrane, the bipolar plate (9) according to claim 3 is arranged such that its plating layer is in contact with the anode current feeder (7) and the cathode current feeder (8), respectively. A water electrolysis tank using a solid polymer electrolyte membrane.