JP7452466B2 - Fuel cell separator manufacturing equipment - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an apparatus for manufacturing a fuel cell separator.

Conventionally, as described in Patent Document 1, for example, as described in Patent Document 1, a technology for fuel cells in which a metal film is formed by a PVD (Physical Vapor Deposition) method on a metal base material arranged along the direction of gravity. Separator manufacturing apparatuses are known.

JP2008-277287A

In the fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus described above, the metal base material is fixed by covering a part of the metal base material using a frame member. However, if a part of the metal base material is covered with a frame member, heat treatment during PVD film formation may cause heat to be applied to the metal base material in some areas and areas not to be applied to the metal base material, resulting in thermal deformation of the metal base material. occurs.

In order to prevent such problems, it is required to fix the metal base material without covering it, for example, by using the manifold (i.e. hole) provided in the metal base material and hooking it on a hook member. Hanging it down is being considered. However, in this case, the metal base material is likely to shake due to vibrations or the like during PVD film formation, and there is a possibility that the metal base material may come off the hook.

The present invention has been made to solve these technical problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus that can suppress the metal base material from coming off the hook member.

The fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention suspends a plate-shaped metal base material provided with holes at least on one end with the other end hanging naturally, and A fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing a fuel cell separator by forming a film on the metal substrate, the apparatus comprising: an open end that can be inserted into the hole of the metal base material; and a fixed end that is opposite to the open end. and a hook member located on the other end side of the metal base material and on the fixed end side of the hook member, and arranged with a gap from the metal base material so as to restrict swinging of the metal base material. and a first regulating member.

In the fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention, the hook member is located on the other end side of the metal base material and on the fixed end side of the hook member, and is spaced apart from the metal base material so as to restrict the shaking of the metal base material. Since the first regulating member is provided, the first regulating member can be used to prevent the metal base material from coming off the hook member. Moreover, since the first regulating member is arranged with a gap between it and the metal base material, it is possible to suppress the influence of the arrangement of the first regulating member on the film formation of the metal base material.

In the fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention, the metal substrate is located on the other end side of the metal base material and on the open end side of the hook member so as to correspond to the first regulating member. It is preferable to further include a second regulating member disposed with a gap from the material. In this way, the first regulating member and the second regulating member cooperate to regulate the swinging of the metal base material from both the fixed end side and the open end side of the hook member, so that the metal base material can be moved away from the hook member. You can more reliably prevent it from coming off. Moreover, since the second regulating member is arranged with a gap between the second regulating member and the metal base material, it is possible to suppress the influence of the arrangement of the second regulating member on the film formation of the metal base material. As a result, it is possible to reliably form a film on the metal base material.

Further, in the fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus according to the present invention, the fixed end of the hook member is fixed to the first regulating member, and in the direction of gravity, the open end of the hook member and the second It is preferable that a gap be provided between the regulating member and the regulating member. In this way, the open end of the hook member can be smoothly inserted into the hole in the metal base material, so that the metal base material can be easily hooked onto the hook member.

According to the present invention, it is possible to suppress the metal base material from coming off the hook member.

FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a metal base material of a fuel cell separator. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus according to an embodiment. 3 is a sectional view taken along line AA shown in FIG. 2. FIG. FIG. 2 is a schematic side view showing the relevant dimensions of the fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus. It is a figure for demonstrating the rising distance when a metal base material hits a right side horizontal member.

Hereinafter, embodiments of a manufacturing apparatus for a fuel cell separator will be described with reference to the drawings. In the following description, the vertical, horizontal, and horizontal directions and positions are merely for convenience of explanation, and do not limit the posture or arrangement of the fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus.

The fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus 10 of the present embodiment is for manufacturing a fuel cell separator by forming a film on the surface of a thin metal base material 1 while the metal base material 1 is suspended in the direction of gravity. This is the device. Here, first, a fuel cell separator and its metal base material will be briefly explained.

A fuel cell separator is a member that is stacked together with members such as an electrolyte membrane and electrodes to form a fuel cell, and is a member for forming a flow path for a reactive gas such as a fuel gas or an oxidizing gas. Fuel cell separators are required to have sufficient electrical conductivity and sufficient corrosion resistance in the environment inside the fuel cell. For this reason, fuel cell separators are produced by sequentially forming a metal oxide film such as titanium and a conductive film such as carbon on the entire surface (both sides) of a conductive metal base material using the PVD method. It is necessary to. The PVD method is not particularly limited, but any physical vapor deposition method using sputtering, vacuum evaporation, ionized evaporation, ion plating, or the like may be used.

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a metal base material of a fuel cell separator. As shown in FIG. 1, the metal base material 1 has a rectangular plate shape and is made of a metal material such as stainless steel, titanium, aluminum, or niobium that has excellent conductivity and gas impermeability. A plurality of recesses are formed in the central portion of the metal base material 1 to form flow paths for the reactant gas, but the recesses are omitted in FIG. 1.

Three holes 2 are formed at both ends of the metal base material 1 in the longitudinal direction, respectively. More specifically, a fuel gas inlet hole 2a, a refrigerant outlet hole 2b, and an oxidizing gas outlet are provided at one longitudinal end 1a (upper end 1a in FIG. 1) of the metal base 1. Oxidant gas inlet holes 2d and refrigerant inlet holes 2e are provided at the other longitudinal end 1b (lower end 1b in FIG. 1) of the metal base 1 in this order. and a fuel gas outlet hole 2f are provided in this order. Below, these holes are collectively referred to as holes 2. These holes 2 are also called manifold holes, and are each formed in a rectangular shape.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus according to the embodiment, and FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line AA shown in FIG. 2. In FIGS. 2 and 3, the metal base material 1 is also shown in order to make the structure of the fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus 10 easier to understand. As shown in FIG. 2, the fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus 10 mainly includes a rack 11 formed by assembling a plurality of elongated members, and a plurality of hooks attached to the rack 11 for suspending the metal base material 1. member 12.

The rack 11 includes a truck 111 serving as a base, two columns 112 and 113 that are erected on the truck 111 at a predetermined distance apart, and two columns 112 and 113 at the upper ends of the columns 112 and 113. An upper cross beam 114 is installed between the upper cross beam 114 and a plurality of pairs of left and right horizontal beams (left side cross member 115, right side cross member 115, right side cross member 115, right side cross member 116).

The plurality of sets of left side horizontal members 115 and right side horizontal members 116 are located below the upper side crossbeam 114 and are arranged at predetermined intervals along the vertical direction (in this embodiment, the vertical direction is the direction of gravity). ing. As a result, the rack 11 is divided into multiple stages. In this embodiment, there are three sets of left side horizontal members 115 and right side horizontal members 116, which are arranged at equal intervals in the vertical direction. Therefore, the rack 11 has an upper and lower three-tier structure.

As shown in FIG. 3, the hook member 12 is formed in the shape of a hook by, for example, a metal wire, and has a fixed end 121 fixed to the rack 11 and an empty space in the metal base material 1 on the opposite side of the fixed end 121. It has an open end 122 that can be inserted into the hole 2. Such hook members 12 are arranged in a set of three hook members 12 in each stage of the rack 11 so as to correspond to the three holes 2 provided in the upper end portion 1a of the metal base material 1. There is.

More specifically, in the first stage, which is the highest stage, the fixed end 121 of each hook member 12 is fixed to the lower end of the upper cross beam 114 by welding, adhesive, etc., and the open end 122 of each hook member 12 is the same. direction (leftward in FIGS. 2 and 3).

In the second stage, which is an intermediate stage, the fixed end 121 of each hook member 12 is fixed to the lower end of the right side horizontal member 116 by welding, adhesive, etc., and the open end 122 of each hook member 12 is fixed to the lower end of the right side horizontal member 115. is directed towards. A gap is provided between the open end 122 and the left horizontal member 115 in the vertical direction.

In the third stage, which is the lowest stage, the fixed end 121 of each hook member 12 is fixed to the lower end of the right side horizontal member 116 by welding, adhesive, etc., and the open end 122 of each hook member 12 is fixed to the lower end of the left side horizontal member 115. is directed towards. A gap is provided between the open end 122 and the left horizontal member 115 in the vertical direction.

When forming a film on the surface of the metal base material 1 using such a fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus 10, first, the hook member 12 is opened in the hole 2 provided in the upper end portion 1a of the metal base material 1. With the end 122 inserted through and the lower end 1b of the metal base 1 naturally hanging down, the metal base 1 is hooked onto the hook member 12 and suspended. Next, the rack 11 with the metal base material 1 suspended thereon is placed on the line of in-line equipment, and subjected to evacuation, heating, ion etching, formation of a metal oxide film such as titanium, formation of a conductive film such as carbon, cooling, etc. A fuel cell separator is manufactured by sequentially performing the following processes.

When performing the above processing, the metal base material 1 may shake in its normal direction due to vibrations or the like. In particular, since the lower end portion 1b of the metal base material 1, which naturally hangs down, is in a free state, the range of sway is large. The normal direction here is a direction perpendicular to the surface of the metal base material 1, and refers to the left-right direction in FIGS. 2 and 3. This vibration causes a problem in that the distance to the PVD deposition source fluctuates, and the thickness and quality of the film formed on the surface of the metal base material 1 become unstable. Further, due to this shaking, the edge of the upper end 1a of the metal base material 1 in which the holes 2 are formed interferes with the hook member 12, causing a problem that the upper end 1a is deformed. If the shaking is even larger, there is a possibility that the metal base material 1 will come off the hook member 12 and fall.

In order to solve the above problem, in the fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus 10 of the present embodiment, the left side horizontal member 115 and the right side horizontal member 116 are used to restrict the shaking of the metal base material 1. Specifically, the right side horizontal member 116 corresponds to the "first regulating member" described in the claims, and is located on the lower end 1b side of the suspended metal base material 1 and on the hook member 12. It is located on the fixed end 121 side and is arranged with a gap between it and the surface of the metal base material 1 .

On the other hand, the left side horizontal member 115 corresponds to the "second regulating member" described in the claims. The left side horizontal member 115 is located on the lower end 1b side of the suspended metal base material 1 and on the open end 122 side of the hook member 12 so as to correspond to the right side horizontal member 116, and is located on the surface of the metal base material 1. They are arranged with a gap between them (see Figure 2).

As described above, in the second and third stages of the rack 11, the fixed end 121 of the hook member 12 is fixed to the lower end of the right horizontal member 116, and the open end 122 of the hook member 12 is fixed to the lower end of the right horizontal member 116. It is aimed at 115. As shown in FIG. 3, a gap is provided between the open end 122 of the hook member 12 and the left horizontal member 115 in the vertical direction. The gap here is set to such an extent that when the open end 122 is inserted into the hole 2 of the metal base material 1, it does not interfere with the upper end portion 1a of the metal base material 1.

In the fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus 10 configured as described above, the metal base material 1 is located on the lower end 1b side of the metal base material 1 and on the fixed end 121 side of the hook member 12 so as to restrict the shaking of the metal base material 1. Since the right side horizontal member 116 is arranged with a gap between the surface of the metal base material 1 and the right side horizontal member 116, by regulating the shaking of the metal base material 1 using the right side horizontal member 116, the metal base material 1 can be It is possible to prevent it from coming off the hook member 12. Moreover, since the right side horizontal member 116 is arranged with a gap between the surface of the metal base material 1 and the surface of the metal base material 1, the influence of the arrangement of the right side horizontal member 116 on the film formation of the metal base material 1 can be suppressed.

In addition, a left side horizontal member 115 is located on the lower end 1b side of the metal base material 1 and on the open end 122 side of the hook member 12 so as to correspond to the right side horizontal member 116, and restricts the swinging of the metal base material 1. It further includes: In this way, the right side horizontal member 116 and the left side horizontal member 115 cooperate to restrict the swinging of the metal base material 1 from both the fixed end 121 side and the open end 122 side of the hook member 12. The base material 1 can be more reliably prevented from coming off the hook member 12. Furthermore, since the left side horizontal member 115 is arranged with a gap between the surface of the metal base material 1 and the surface of the metal base material 1, the influence of the arrangement of the left side horizontal member 115 on the film formation of the metal base material 1 can be suppressed. As a result, the metal base material 1 can be deposited reliably.

Furthermore, the fixed end 121 of the hook member 12 is fixed to the right side horizontal member 116, and there is a space between the open end 122 of the hook member 12 and the left side horizontal member 115 in the vertical direction (in other words, in the direction of gravity). There is a gap. In this way, the open end 122 of the hook member 12 can be smoothly inserted into the hole 2 of the metal base material 1, so that the metal base material 1 can be easily hooked onto the hook member 12.

As shown in FIG. 4, in a side view of the fuel cell separator manufacturing apparatus 10, the left side horizontal member 115 and the right side horizontal member 116 are preferably arranged within a range of 30 mm each. That is, the shortest distance from the surface of the left horizontal member 115 facing the metal base material 1 to the center line L of the metal base material 1, and the shortest distance from the surface of the right side horizontal member 116 facing the metal base material 1 to the metal base material 1 is equal to the shortest distance to the center line L, the shortest distance X satisfies the relationship X≦30 mm. In this way, even if the metal base material 1 shakes due to vibration etc., the variation in the distance to the PVD deposition source can be suppressed within a permissible range, so that the coating formed on the surface of the metal base material 1 can be The stability of film thickness and film quality can be ensured.

In addition, in the vertical direction, the length from the upper end of the hole 2 provided in the upper end 1a of the metal base material 1 to the lower end of the metal base material 1 is a (see FIG. 1), and the height of the left side horizontal member 115 is is d (see FIG. 4), it is preferable that the height d of the left horizontal member 115 satisfies the following formula (1).
a(1-(1-(X/a) ² ) ^0.5 )+3≦d≦a(1-(1-(30/X) ² ) ^0.5 )+20 (1)

In formula (1), This is the shortest distance to. The units of X, a and d are all mm. In addition, a(1-(1-(X/a) ² ) ^0.5 ) in equation (1) is, for example, when the metal base material 1 shakes and hits the right side horizontal member 116, as shown in FIG. is the distance Z that the lower end of the metal base material 1 has risen from the lowest point. Note that Z may be the distance that the lower end of the metal base material 1 rises from the lowest point when the metal base material 1 swings and hits the left side horizontal member 115.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, a is the length from the upper end of the hole 2 provided in the upper end 1a of the metal base 1 to the lower end of the metal base 1, and X is the length from the right side of the metal base 1. It is the shortest distance from the surface of the horizontal member 116 facing the metal base material 1 to the center line L of the metal base material 1, and θ is the distance from the position where the metal base material 1 naturally hangs and stands still to the right side horizontal member 116. This is the angle to the point of impact.

Then, the distance Z that the lower end of the metal base material 1 rises from the lowest point when the metal base material 1 hits the right side horizontal member 116 can be calculated based on the following formula (2).
Z=a(1-cosθ) (2)

Furthermore, cosθ can be calculated based on the following equation (3).
cosθ=(1-sin ² θ) ^0.5 =(1-(X/a) ² ) ^0.5 (3)

Then, by substituting equation (3) into equation (2), the following equation (4) is obtained.
Z=a(1-(1-(X/a) ² ) ^0.5 ) (4)

If the height d of the left side horizontal member 115 is too small, the left side horizontal member 115 may not sufficiently fulfill its role as a regulating member. On the other hand, if the height d of the left side horizontal member 115 is too large, the left side horizontal member 115 will become a shadow during film formation, and there is a possibility that it will not be possible to form a film on the entire surface of the metal base material 1. By satisfying the above formula (1), the left horizontal member 115 can sufficiently fulfill its role as a regulating member while suppressing the influence on the film formation of the metal base material 1.

Note that the height of the right side horizontal member 116 may be the same as the height of the left side horizontal member 115, and in order to ensure a gap between the open end 122 of the hook member 12 and the left side horizontal member 115. It may be made slightly larger than the horizontal member 115 (see FIG. 3).

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 4, when the metal base material 1 naturally hangs and stands still, the shortest distance from the center line L of the metal base material 1 to the fixed end 121 of the hook member 12 and the distance between the metal base material 1 and the fixed end 121 of the hook member 12 are When the shortest distance from the center line L to the open end 122 is equal, it is preferable that the shortest distance e satisfies the following formula (5).
e≧Xb/a (5)

In formula (5), a is the length from the upper end of the hole 2 provided in the upper end 1a of the metal base material 1 to the lower end of the metal base material 1, and X is the length of the metal of the right side horizontal member 116. This is the shortest distance from the surface facing the base material 1 to the center line L of the metal base material 1. b is the length from the upper end of the hole 2 provided in the upper end portion 1a of the metal base material 1 to the upper end of the metal base material 1.

Since the metal base material 1 is thin, it is easily deformed. If the upper end 1a of the metal base 1 in which the holes 2 are formed interferes with the hook member 12, the edge of the upper end 1a of the metal base 1 may be deformed. By satisfying equation (5), edge deformation can be suppressed.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various designs can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention as described in the claims. Changes can be made.

1 Metal base material 1a Upper end 1b Lower end 2 Hole 10 Fuel cell separator manufacturing device 11 Rack 12 Hook member 111 Carts 112, 113 Support 114 Upper cross beam 115 Left side cross member 116 Right side cross member 121 Fixed end 122 Open end

Claims (1)

A fuel cell separator is manufactured by suspending a plate-shaped metal base material provided with holes at least at one end with the other end hanging naturally, and forming a film on the surface of the metal base material. A battery separator manufacturing device,
a hook member having an open end that can be inserted into the hole of the metal base material and a fixed end that is opposite to the open end;
A first restriction located on the other end side of the metal base material and on the fixed end side of the hook member and spaced from the metal base material so as to restrict swinging of the metal base material. parts and
a second regulating member located on the other end side of the metal base material and on the open end side of the hook member so as to correspond to the first regulating member, and disposed with a gap from the metal base material; and,
Equipped with
The fixed end of the hook member is fixed to the first regulating member,
An apparatus for manufacturing a fuel cell separator , wherein a gap is provided between the open end of the hook member and the second regulating member in the direction of gravity .

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