Electrolytic cell for producing aluminum

Claim 1

IN AN ELECTROLYTIC CELL FOR PRODUCING ALUMINUM, IN COMBINATION, A CONTAINER FOR HOLDING MOLTEN ALUMINUMPRODUCING ELECTROLYTIC; AND A SERIES OF CONTINUOUS BAKED ELONGATED CARBON ANODES OF SUBSTANTIALLY RECTANGULAR CROSS-SECTION AND OF SUBSTANTIALLY THE SAME DIMENSIONS EACH HAVING A CAPACITY OF 10,000 AMPERES, A WIDTH OF BETWEEN 200 AND 700 MILLIMETERS AND A LENGTH OF BETWEEN 1400 AND 300 MILLIMETERS, SAID CARBON BLCOK BEING ARRANGED IN SAID CONTAINER IN A ROW EXTENDING IN ONE DIRECTION WITH THEIR LATERAL ELONGATED FACES ADJACENT AND SPACED FROM EACH OTHER, WHEREBY UPON OPERATION OF THE CELL A FROZEN CRUST OF THE ELECTROLYTE IS FORMED BETWEEN ADJACENT ANODES AND SPACED FROM THE MOLTEN ELECTROLYTE IN THE CELL, SAID ADJACENT ANODES BEING SPACED FROM EACH OTHER A MAXIMUM OF 150 MILLIMETERS SO THAT THE CHANNELS DEFINED BETWEEN ADJACENT ANODES BY THE UPPER LEVEL OF THE MOLTEN ELECTROLYTE AND THE LOWER LEVEL OF THE FROZEN CRUST ARE OF SUBSTANTIALLY SMALL CROSS-SECTION TO ACT AS DISCHARGE PASSAGES FOR RAOID WITHDRAWAL OF GASES REACHING SAID CHANNELS DURING OPERATION OF THE CELL.