Method and apparatus for vapor coating

Claim 1

A PROCESS FOR COATING A SUBSTRATE WITH ALUMINUM BY VACUUM-EVAPORATING SAID ALUMINUM AND CONDENSING SAID ALUMINUM ON SAID SUBSTRATE, SAID PROCESS COMPRISING THE STEPS OF PROVIDING A SOURCE OF SAID ALUMINUM IN A VACUUM CHAMBER, EVACUATING SAID CHAMBER, MELTING AT LEAST A PORTION OF SAID ALUMINUM IN SAID SURCE OF ALUMINUM, PROVIDING A WICK ELEMENT WHICH IS WETTABLE BY SAID ALUMINUM, SAID WICK ELEMENT BEING SUBSTANTIALLY INERT TO MOLTEN ALUMINUM AND HAVING AT LEAST A SURFACE STRATUM COMPRISING A COMPOUND SELECTED FROM THE CLASS CONSISTING OF THE NITRIDES AND CARBIDES OF THE METALS TITANIUM, ZIRCONIUM, HAFNIUM, VANADIUM, COLUMBIUM AND TANTALUM, CONFINING SAID MOLTEN ALUMINUM IN A POOL IN CONTACT WITH SAID WICK ELEMENT, HEATING SAID WICK ELEMENT TO A TEMPERATURE HIGHER THAN THE TEMPERATURE IN SAID POOL BY PASSING AN ELECTRIC CURRENT IN SERIES THROUGH SAID WICK ELEMENT AND SAID ALUMINUM IN SAID POOL, SAID WICK ELEMENT HAVIING A HIGH RESISTIVITY AS COMPARED TO SAID ALUMINUM, EVAPORATING, BY SAID HIGH TEMPERATURE, THAT ALUMINUM WHICH WETS SAID WICK ELEMENT, AND MOVING SAID SUBSTRATE PAST SAID WICK ELEMENT TO COAT ALUMINUM ON SAID SUBSTRATE.