FUEL CELL SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR STOPPING OPERATION OF FUEL CELL SYSTEM

The deterioration of the catalyst can occur during prolonged storage, occasionally causing the deterioration of the durability of the fuel cell. There are provided a stack 38 which generates electric power from a fuel gas and an oxidizing agent, a fuel gas pipe 37 and an on-off valve 49 as fuel gas supplying unit of supplying the fuel gas into the fuel cell on the anode side thereof, an oxidizing agent supplying unit an oxidizing agent gas pipe 40a and an on-off valve 57 as oxidizing agent gas supplying unit of supplying the oxidizing agent into the fuel cell on the cathode side thereof, a raw material gas pipe 33, a bypass pipe 55 and dispensing valves 56, 60 as raw material gas supplying unit of supplying the raw material of the fuel gas into the fuel cell and a control portion 44 of controlling the supply of the fuel gas, the supply of the oxidizing agent and the supply of the raw material, wherein after the switching-off of the output of electric power of the fuel cell, the fuel gas supplying unit suspends the supply of the fuel gas into the fuel cell on the anode side thereof, the oxidizing agent gas supplying unit suspends the supply of the oxidizing agent into the fuel cell on the cathode side thereof and the raw material gas supplying unit supplies the raw material into the fuel cell from the inlet side of the cathode to purge the fuel cell on the cathode side thereof.