JP2004288493A - Solid electrolyte fuel cell assembly - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a solid electrolyte fuel cell assembly preventing or restraining generation of cracks at an area where a cell (26) of cell stacks (24a, 24b, 24c, and 24d) and a gas manifold (8) are jointed. <P>SOLUTION: A housing (2) is divided into a power generating/combustion chamber (54) and a gas manifold chamber (56) by a heat insulating separation board (52), and the gas manifold is arranged in the gas manifold chamber. A main part of the cell is installed inside the power generating/combustion chamber, while one end part of the cell is extended into the gas manifold chamber through the separation board. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

[0001]
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a solid oxide fuel cell assembly, more specifically, a cell stack configured by arranging cells in a predetermined direction and a gas manifold for supplying gas to each of the cells are disposed in a housing. And a solid oxide fuel cell assembly.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In recent years, various types of fuel cell power generation systems such as solid polymer type, phosphoric acid type, molten carbonate type, and solid electrolyte type have been proposed as next-generation energy. In particular, the electrolyte fuel cell power generation system has an operating temperature as high as about 1000 ° C., but has advantages such as high power generation efficiency and utilization of waste heat, and research and development are being promoted.
[0003]
In a typical example of a solid oxide fuel cell power generation system, as disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2 below, a gas manifold is provided at a lower portion of a housing, and a cell stack is arranged on the gas manifold. And a fuel cell assembly. The gas manifold to which a gas that is a fuel gas is supplied has a hollow box shape, and a plurality of gas outlets are formed on an upper surface thereof. The cell stack is configured by arranging a plurality of cells elongated in the vertical direction in the horizontal direction. Each of the cells usually includes an electrode support substrate that is elongated in the vertical direction, and the fuel electrode layer, the solid electrolyte layer, the oxygen electrode layer, and the interconnector are mounted on the electrode support substrate. A gas passage extending through the electrode support substrate in the vertical direction is formed. A lower end of the electrode support substrate is connected to an upper surface of the gas manifold, and a gas outlet formed in the gas manifold is communicated with a gas passage formed in the electrode support substrate.
[0004]
[Patent Document 1]
JP-A-6-349514 [Patent Document 2]
Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-149976
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
The conventional solid oxide fuel cell assembly described above has the following problems to be solved. One end or lower end of the cell and the electrode support substrate, in the case of the form including the electrode support substrate, and one surface or upper surface of the gas manifold are airtight enough to reliably prevent leakage of gas, for example, a fuel gas. It is necessary to connect them, and they are usually joined to each other using an inorganic cement having heat resistance or an appropriate ceramic adhesive. However, when the fuel cell assembly is operated, the inside of the housing in which the cell stack and the gas manifold are disposed is heated to a high temperature, and the junction area between the cell and the gas manifold is also heated to about 700 to 800 ° C. Therefore, when the operation and the stop of the fuel cell assembly are repeated, the junction area between the cell and the gas manifold is repeatedly heated and lowered. There must be some difference between the coefficient of thermal expansion of the cement or adhesive used to join the cell to the gas manifold and the coefficient of thermal expansion of the cell. If the temperature of the cement or adhesive is raised and lowered repeatedly due to the brittleness of the cement or the adhesive, cracks occur in the joint area between the cell and the gas manifold, and the gas (eg, fuel gas) in the gas manifold is generated. Often, gas leaks into the housing or gas (eg, an oxygen-containing gas) supplied into the housing enters the gas manifold, thereby significantly reducing power generation performance.
[0006]
The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned facts, and a main technical problem thereof is that a new and improved solid is sufficiently prevented or suppressed from generating cracks in a joint region between a cell and a gas manifold. It is an object of the present invention to provide an electrolyte fuel cell assembly.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
According to the present invention, the inside of the housing is partitioned into a power generation / combustion chamber and a gas manifold chamber by a heat insulating partition plate, the gas manifold is disposed in the gas manifold chamber, and the main part of the cell in the cell stack is located in the power generation / combustion chamber. The main technical problem is achieved by disposing, but by extending one end of the cell through the partition plate and extending into the gas manifold chamber.
[0008]
That is, according to the present invention, as a solid oxide fuel cell assembly which achieves the main technical problem, a housing, at least one cell stack provided in the housing, and a cell stack provided in the housing are provided. At least one gas manifold, wherein the cell stack is configured by arranging a plurality of cells elongated in a first direction in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction. Each of the cells has a gas passage formed at one end thereof, and a plurality of gas discharge ports formed at one side of the gas manifold. A solid oxide fuel cell assembly, wherein the gas passage is communicated within the gas manifold by connecting to the one side of the gas manifold.
A heat insulating partition plate is provided in the housing, the housing is partitioned into a power generation / combustion chamber and a gas manifold chamber, and the gas manifold is disposed in the gas manifold chamber. A solid electrolyte type wherein a main part of the cell is disposed in the power generation / combustion chamber, but one end of the cell extends through the partition plate into the gas manifold chamber. A fuel cell assembly is provided.
[0009]
In the solid oxide fuel cell assembly of the present invention, the joint area between the cell and the gas manifold is located in the gas manifold chamber separated from the power generation / combustion chamber by the heat insulating partition plate, and the operation of the fuel cell assembly is performed. The temperature rise at that time is limited to a relatively low temperature, for example, 100 to 400 ° C., so that the occurrence of cracks in the joint region between the cell and the gas manifold is sufficiently prevented or suppressed.
[0010]
Each of the cells includes an electrode support substrate and a fuel electrode layer, a solid electrolyte layer, an oxygen electrode layer and an interconnector mounted on the electrode support substrate, wherein the gas passage is formed in the electrode support substrate, Preferably, the oxygen electrode layer is located only in the power generation / combustion chamber. In a preferred embodiment, the first direction is substantially vertical, the gas passage extends substantially vertically from a lower end of the cell to an upper end, and the partition plate extends the lower portion of the housing substantially horizontally. The gas manifold chamber is defined below the partition and the power generation and combustion chamber is defined above the partition. A plurality of the cell stacks are arranged in parallel at intervals in a third direction perpendicular to the first direction and the second direction, and the gas manifold is also arranged in the first direction and the second direction. It is convenient that a plurality of juxtaposed units are arranged in parallel at intervals in a third direction perpendicular to. Preferably, the partition plate is formed by pouring an inorganic cement into the porous ceramic. In a preferred embodiment, the gas manifold is supplied with fuel gas.
[0011]
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of a solid oxide fuel cell assembly constituted according to the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0012]
FIG. 1 illustrates a main part of a preferred embodiment of a solid oxide fuel cell assembly constructed according to the present invention. The illustrated assembly includes a housing 2 having a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape. The housing 2 includes an outer frame 4 formed of a heat-resistant metal and a heat insulating material layer 6 stretched on the inner surface of the outer frame 4. It is configured. The heat insulating material layer 6 can be formed from an appropriate ceramic.
[0013]
A plurality (four in the illustrated case) of fuel gas manifolds 8 are arranged below the housing 2. Each of the fuel gas manifolds 8, which can be made of a suitable heat-resistant ceramic, is made up of a rectangular parallelepiped hollow box extending in a direction perpendicular to the drawing in FIG. Each of the fuel gas manifolds 8 is connected to a fuel gas supply 10 via a fuel gas introduction pipe (not shown) extending through the housing 2.
[0014]
Above the housing 2, a horizontal wall 12 extending substantially horizontally and an upright wall 14 extending substantially vertically upward from four peripheral edges of the horizontal wall 12 (two of the four upright walls 14 are shown in FIG. 1). (Shown) is provided. A horizontal plate 18 is fixed between the upright walls 14 of the partition member 16 at a distance above the horizontal wall 12, and is fixed by the horizontal wall 12 of the partition member 16 and the four upright walls 14 and the horizontal plate 18. An oxygen-containing gas manifold 20 is formed. The oxygen-containing gas manifold 20 is connected to an oxygen-containing gas supply source 24 through a heat exchange means 22, as schematically shown in FIG.
[0015]
Above the fuel gas manifold 8, four cell stacks 24a, 24b, 24c and 24d are arranged in parallel at intervals in the left-right direction (third direction) in FIG. Continuing the description with reference to FIG. 2 together with FIG. 1, each of the cell stacks 24a, 24b, 24c and 24d is arranged in a vertical direction, that is, a vertical direction in FIG. 1), a plurality of cells 26 (five in the case shown) are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the sheet of FIG. 1 and in a vertical direction (second direction) in FIG. As clearly shown in FIG. 2, each of the cells 26 in the illustrated embodiment comprises an electrode support substrate 28, a fuel electrode layer 30, which is an inner electrode layer, a solid electrolyte layer 32, an oxygen electrode layer 34, which is an outer electrode layer, and It is composed of an interconnector 36.
[0016]
The electrode support substrate 28 is a plate-like piece that is elongated in the vertical direction, and has flat both sides and semicircular side faces. A plurality (four in the illustrated case) of gas passages 38 penetrating the electrode support substrate 28 in the vertical direction are formed. The oxygen electrode layer 34 in the cell 26 is provided not in the entire longitudinal direction of the electrode support substrate 28 but in the longitudinally middle portion, that is, the main portion of the electrode support substrate 28. The oxygen electrode layer 34 does not exist in the portion.
[0017]
Continuing the description with reference to FIG. 2, the interconnector 36 is disposed on one side (the upper surface in FIG. 2) of the electrode support substrate 28. The fuel electrode layer 30 is provided on the other surface (the lower surface in FIG. 2) and on both side surfaces of the electrode support substrate 28, and both ends thereof are joined to both ends of the interconnect 36. The solid electrolyte layer 32 is disposed so as to cover the entire fuel electrode layer 30, and both ends are joined to both ends of the interconnector 36. The oxygen electrode layer 34 is disposed on a main portion of the solid electrolyte layer 32, that is, on a portion covering the other surface of the electrode support substrate 28, and is positioned to face the interconnect 36 with the electrode support substrate plate 38 interposed therebetween. I have.
[0018]
A current collecting member 40 is disposed between adjacent cells 26 in each of the cell stacks 24a, 24b, 24c, and 24d, and connects the interconnector 36 of one cell 26 and the oxygen electrode layer 34 of the other cell 26. Connected. In each of the cell stacks 24a, 24b, 24c and 24d, a current collecting member 40 is also provided on one side and the other side of the cell 26 located at both ends, that is, at the upper and lower ends in FIG. The current collecting members 40 disposed at one ends (upper ends in FIG. 2) of the cell stacks 24a and 24b are connected by conductive members 42, and disposed at the other ends (lower ends in FIG. 2) of the cell stacks 24b and 24c. The current collecting member 40 is also connected by the conductive member 42, and the current collecting member 40 disposed at one end (the upper end in FIG. 2) of the cell stacks 24c and 24d is also connected by the conductive member 42. Further, a conductive member 42 is connected to a current collecting member 40 provided at the other end (the lower end in FIG. 2) of the cell tack 24a, and a current collecting member provided at one end (the upper end in FIG. 2) of the cell stack 24d. The conductive member 42 is also connected to 40. Thus, all the cells 36 are electrically connected in series.
[0019]
More specifically, the cell 26 must be gas permeable to allow fuel gas to permeate the fuel electrode layer 40 and conductive to collect current through the interconnect 36. Is required, and can be formed from a porous conductive ceramic (or cermet) satisfying such a requirement. In order to manufacture the electrode support substrate 28 by co-firing with the fuel electrode layer 30 and / or the solid electrolyte layer 32, it is preferable to form the electrode support substrate 28 from an iron group metal component and a specific rare earth oxide. Preferably, the open porosity is in the range of at least 30%, in particular in the range of 35 to 50%, in order to provide the required gas permeability, and also its conductivity is at least 300 S / cm, especially at least 440 C / cm. Is preferred. The fuel electrode layer 30 can be formed of a porous conductive ceramic, for example, ZrO ₂ (referred to as stabilized zirconia) in which a rare earth element is dissolved, and Ni and / or NiO. The solid electrolyte layer 32 has a function as an electrolyte for bridging electrons between electrodes, and at the same time, has a gas barrier property to prevent leakage of a fuel gas and an oxygen-containing gas. It is necessary and is usually formed from ZrO ₂ in which ₃ to 15 mol% of rare earth element is dissolved. The oxygen electrode layer 44 can be formed from a conductive ceramic made of a so-called ABO ₃ type perovskite oxide. The oxygen electrode layer 34 needs to have gas permeability, and preferably has an open porosity of 20% or more, particularly preferably 50% within 30%. Although the interconnector 36 can be formed from a conductive ceramic, the interconnector 36 needs to have reduction resistance and oxidation resistance because it comes into contact with a fuel gas that may be hydrogen gas and an oxygen-containing gas that may be air. A lanthanum chromite perovskite oxide (LaCrO ₃ -based oxide) is preferably used. The interconnect 36 must be dense to prevent leakage of the fuel gas passing through the fuel passage 38 formed in the electrode support substrate 28 and the oxygen-containing gas flowing outside the electrode support substrate 28, and is 93% or more. In particular, it is desired to have a relative density of 95% or more. The current collecting member 40 may be formed of a member having an appropriate shape formed of a metal or alloy having elasticity, or a member obtained by performing a required surface treatment on felt made of metal fiber or alloy fiber. The conductive member 42 can be formed from an appropriate metal or alloy.
[0020]
Continuing the description with reference to FIG. 3 together with FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, a hollow plate-like member 44 constituting an oxygen-containing gas supply means is disposed between the cell stacks 24a, 24b, 24c and 24d. The hollow plate-like member 44 can be formed from a heat-resistant material such as an appropriate ceramic. The hollow plate member 44 is disposed between the cell stacks 24a, 24b, 24c and 24d, and extends in a substantially vertical direction (first direction). As clearly understood by referring to FIG. 3, an oxygen-containing gas inlet 46 is formed at one end, that is, the upper end of the hollow plate-shaped member 44. In the illustrated embodiment, the oxygen-containing gas inlet 46 is formed by a slit extending vertically at the upper end of the hollow plate-like member in the vertical direction in FIG. A flange 48 projecting substantially horizontally is formed at the upper end of the hollow plate-shaped member 44, and the oxygen-containing gas inlet 46 is surrounded by the flange 48. Oxygen-containing gas outlets 50 are formed at the other ends of the side walls of the hollow plate-like member 44, that is, at the lower ends thereof. In the illustrated embodiment, the oxygen-containing gas outlet 50 is formed by extending the lower end portions of both side walls of the hollow plate-shaped member 44 from a slit extending in the width direction (that is, the direction perpendicular to the paper in FIG. 1 and the vertical direction in FIG. 2). Is formed. If desired, an oxygen-containing gas outlet can be formed from a plurality of holes formed at the lower end of both side walls of the hollow plate-shaped member 44 at intervals in the width direction. As can be understood by referring to FIG. 1, the upper end of the hollow plate-shaped member 44 is located in a corresponding opening formed in the horizontal wall 12 of the partition member 16, and thus the oxygen-containing gas inlet 46 is provided. Is open into the oxygen-containing gas manifold 20 (as will be further mentioned below, the lower end of the hollow plate-like member 44 is located slightly above the partition plate described below, and therefore at the lower end of the power generation and combustion chamber. ing).
[0021]
Continuing with FIG. 4 in conjunction with FIG. 1, in the solid oxide fuel cell assembly constructed according to the present invention, a heat insulating partition plate 52 is provided inside the housing 2 and It is important that the power generation / combustion chamber 54 and the fuel gas manifold chamber 56 are preferably airtightly partitioned. In the illustrated embodiment, a partition plate 52 extending substantially horizontally is provided at a lower portion of the housing 2, and the inside of the housing 2 is a power generation / combustion chamber 54 above the partition plate 52 and a partition plate 52. Is also partitioned into a lower fuel gas manifold chamber 54.
[0022]
Each of the above-described fuel gas manifolds 8 is disposed in a fuel gas manifold chamber 56. On the other hand, the main part of each of the cells 26 constituting the cell stacks 24a, 24b, 24c and 24d is located in the power generation / combustion chamber 54. One end, that is, the lower end of the fuel electrode layer 30, the solid electrolyte layer 32, and the interconnector 36) extends through the partition plate 52 into the fuel gas manifold chamber 56. The oxygen electrode layer 34 is not provided at the lower end of the electrode support substrate 28, and does not extend through the partition plate 52 into the fuel gas manifold material 56. The partition plate 52 is formed of a plate-like body having a plurality of openings through which the electrode support substrate 28 in each of the cells 26 penetrates, from porous ceramics such as porous zirconia and having excellent heat insulation and heat resistance. After the lower end of the electrode support substrate 28 is made to penetrate through, the inorganic cement is poured into the solid to form a solid body.
[0023]
As shown in FIG. 4, each of the fuel gas manifolds 8 has a plurality of (five in the illustrated case) slits 58 extending in the left-right direction in FIG. 1 at intervals in a direction perpendicular to the paper of FIG. Is formed. One end of each of the electrode support substrates 28 extended into the fuel gas manifold chamber 56 is connected to the upper surface of the fuel gas manifold 8 at a portion where the slit 58 is formed, and formed on the electrode support substrate 28. The gas passage 38 communicates with the fuel gas manifold 8 through the slit 58. In the illustrated embodiment, the lower end of the electrode support member 28 is positioned above the upper surface of the fuel gas manifold 8 so as to cover the slit 58 formed in the upper surface of the fuel gas manifold 8 as understood with reference to FIG. It is located in. Then, an appropriate bonding material 60 is applied to the upper surface of the fuel gas manifold 8 in the boundary region with the outer peripheral edge of the lower end of the electrode support substrate 28, whereby the lower end of the electrode support substrate 28 is air-tight on the upper surface of the fuel gas manifold 8. It is joined to. The bonding material 60 may be an appropriate synthetic resin adhesive, inorganic cement or ceramic adhesive.
[0024]
The oxygen electrode layer 34 in each of the cells 26 is not disposed at the lower end of the electrode support substrate 28, but is located in the power generation / combustion chamber 54, and extends into the fuel gas manifold chamber 56. There is no. Therefore, power generation is performed in the power generation / combustion chamber 54 and is not performed in the fuel gas manifold chamber 56. Further, the lower end of the hollow plate-like member 44 constituting the oxygen-containing gas supply means is located slightly above the partition plate 52, and is therefore located in the power generation / combustion chamber 54, and the oxygen-containing gas is supplied to the fuel gas manifold chamber. There is no intrusion into 56.
[0025]
In the solid-electrolyte-chamber fuel cell assembly as described above, for example, city gas is reformed from the fuel gas supply source 10 through a fuel gas inlet pipe (not shown) in a suitable manner known per se. The resulting fuel gas, which may be hydrogen, is supplied to the fuel gas manifold 8. Then, the fuel gas is introduced from the fuel gas manifold 8 to the lower end of a gas passage 38 formed in each electrode support substrate 28 of the cell 26, and is caused to flow upward through the gas passage 28. On the other hand, the oxygen-containing gas supply source 24 supplies the oxygen-containing gas, which may be air, to the oxygen-containing gas manifold 20 through the heat exchange means 22. The oxygen-containing gas supplied to the oxygen-containing gas manifold 20 flows into the hollow plate-shaped member 44 from the oxygen-containing gas inlet 46, flows down the hollow plate-shaped member 44, and is discharged from the oxygen-containing gas outlet 50. You. The oxygen-containing gas outlets 50 are formed on both side walls of the hollow plate member 44, and are directed to the cell stacks 24a, 24b, 24c, and 24d. Therefore, the oxygen-containing gas is ejected toward the cell stacks 24a, 24b, 24c and 24d at the lower end of the power generation / combustion chamber 54, and then is raised inside the power generation / combustion chamber 54. In each of the cells 26, an electrode reaction represented by the following formula (1) is generated in the oxygen electrode layer 44, and an electrode reaction represented by the following formula (2) is generated in the fuel electrode layer 40 to generate electric power.
[0026]
Oxygen electrode: 1 / 2O ₂ + 2e ⁻ → O ²⁻ (solid electrolyte) (1)
Fuel electrode: ^{O 2-(solid} _{electrolyte) + H 2 → H 2 O} + 2e - ··· (2)
[0027]
Of the fuel gas flowing in the gas passage 38 of the electrode support substrate 28 in the cell 26, the fuel gas not used for the electrode reaction flows out of the upper end of the electrode support substrate 28 into the power generation / combustion chamber 54. The fuel gas discharged into the power generation / combustion chamber 54 is burned simultaneously with the flow. Appropriate ignition means (not shown) is provided in the power generation / combustion chamber 54, and when the fuel gas starts flowing out to the power generation / combustion chamber 54, the ignition means is operated to start combustion. . Oxygen in the oxygen-containing gas supplied to the power generation / combustion chamber 54 through the hollow plate member 44 and not used for the electrode reaction is used for combustion. The combustion gas is sent to the heat exchange means 22 through an appropriate flow path means (not shown), and is discharged from the housing 2 after the heat exchange means 22 exchanges heat with the oxygen-containing gas.
[0028]
The inside of the power generation / combustion chamber 54 is heated to a high temperature of, for example, about 1000 ° C. by the power generation and the combustion. However, the fuel gas manifold chamber 56 partitioned from the power generation / combustion chamber 54 by the heat insulating partition plate 52 is thermally isolated from the power generation / combustion chamber 54 and maintained at a relatively low temperature of, for example, about 100 to 400 ° C. Is done. Accordingly, the thermal shock applied to the joint region between the fuel gas manifold 8 and the electrode support substrate 28 is sufficiently suppressed, and the occurrence of cracks in such a region is sufficiently prevented or suppressed.
[0029]
Although the preferred embodiments of the solid oxide fuel cell assembly constituted according to the present invention have been described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, the present invention is not limited to such embodiments, and departs from the scope of the present invention. It should be understood that various changes and modifications can be made without doing so. For example, in the illustrated embodiment, the fuel gas flows through the gas passage formed in the electrode support substrate, but the oxygen-containing gas flows through the gas passage formed in the electrode support substrate (in this case, The present invention can also be applied to a solid oxide fuel cell assembly in which the oxygen-containing gas is supplied to a gas manifold disposed in a chamber partitioned below the heat insulating partition plate.
【The invention's effect】
ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to the solid oxide fuel cell assembly of the present invention, the occurrence of cracks in the joint region between the cell and the gas manifold is sufficiently prevented or suppressed.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a main part of a preferred embodiment of a solid oxide fuel cell assembly constituted according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view showing a main part of the solid oxide fuel cell assembly shown in FIG.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a hollow plate-shaped member in the solid oxide fuel cell assembly shown in FIG. 1;
FIG. 4 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing a joint region between a fuel gas manifold and an electrode support substrate and its vicinity in the solid oxide fuel cell assembly shown in FIG.
[Explanation of symbols]
2: Housing 8: Fuel gas manifold (gas manifold)
20: oxygen-containing gas manifold 24a: cell stack 24b: cell stack 24c: cell stack 24d: cell stack 26: cell 28: electrode support substrate 30: fuel electrode layer 32: solid electrolytic chamber layer 34: oxygen electrode layer 36: interconnector 38: gas passage 40: current collecting member 42: conductive member 44: hollow plate-shaped member (oxygen-containing gas supply means)
52: heat insulating partition plate 54: power generation combustion chamber 56: fuel gas manifold chamber (gas manifold chamber)

Claims (7)

A housing, at least one cell stack disposed within the housing, and at least one gas manifold disposed within the housing, wherein the cell stack elongates in a first direction. A plurality of cells are arranged at intervals in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction, and each of the cells has a gas passage formed at one end thereof. A plurality of gas outlets are formed on one side of the gas manifold, and the gas passage communicates with the gas manifold by connecting the one end of the cell to the one side of the gas manifold. In the solid oxide fuel cell assembly being operated,
A heat insulating partition plate is provided in the housing, the housing is partitioned into a power generation / combustion chamber and a gas manifold chamber, and the gas manifold is disposed in the gas manifold chamber. A solid electrolyte type wherein a main part of the cell is disposed in the power generation / combustion chamber, but one end of the cell extends through the partition plate into the gas manifold chamber. Fuel cell assembly. Each of the cells includes an electrode support substrate and a fuel electrode layer, a solid electrolyte layer, an oxygen electrode layer, and an interconnector mounted on the electrode support substrate, wherein the gas passage is formed in the electrode support substrate, 2. The solid oxide fuel cell assembly according to claim 1, wherein the oxygen electrode layer is located only in the power generation / combustion chamber. 3. The solid oxide fuel cell assembly according to claim 1, wherein the first direction is substantially vertical, and the gas passage extends substantially vertically from a lower end to an upper end of the cell. The partition plate extends substantially horizontally below the housing, the gas manifold chamber is defined below the partition plate, and the power generation and combustion chamber is defined above the partition plate. The solid oxide fuel cell assembly according to claim 3. A plurality of the cell stacks are arranged in parallel at intervals in a third direction perpendicular to the first direction and the second direction, and the gas manifold is also arranged in the first direction and the second direction. The solid oxide fuel cell assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein a plurality of the fuel cells are arranged in parallel at intervals in a third direction perpendicular to the fuel cell. 6. The solid oxide fuel cell assembly according to claim 1, wherein the partition plate is formed by pouring an inorganic cement into the porous ceramic. The solid electrolyte fuel cell assembly according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein a fuel gas is supplied to the gas manifold.

Images