Electrolytic shaping

Claim 1

IN THE METHOD OF ELECTROLYTICALLY SHAPING AN ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE AND ELELCTROCHEMICALLY ERODIBLE WORKPIECE BY PASSING AN ELECTROLYZING CURRENT BETWEEN THE WORKPIECE AND AN ELECTRODE HAVING AN ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE WORKING FACE CLOSELY SPACED THERETO IN THE PRESENCE OF AN ELECTROLYTE, THE WORKPIECE AND THE ELECTRODE WORKING FACE BEING RELATIVELY MOVABLE TOWARD EACH OTHER, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES MOVING THE WORKPIECE AND THE ELECTRODE WORKING FAC E TOWARD EACH OTHER AT A MOVEMENT RATE SUCH A TO MAINTAIN A SUBSTANTIALLY CONSTANT INTERPACE WORK GAP OF NOT MORE THAN ABOUT .012" BETWEEN THE WORKPIECE AND THE ELECTRODE WORKING FACE AS AN EQUILIBRIUM BETWEEN THE RATE OF MATERIAL REMOVAL AND THE INTERSPACE DISTANCE WITHOUT MAKING MECHANICAL CONTACT BETWEEN THE WORKPIECE AND THE ELECTRODE WORKING FACE, SIMULTANEOUSLY PUMPING A LIQUID ELECTROLYTE THROUGH A CLOSED PASSAGE TO THE INTERSPACE WORK GAP AT A REGULATED VOLUME AND PRESSURE SO AS TO MAINTAIN A STATIC PRESSURE OF NOT LESS THAN ABOUT 50 POUNDS PER SQUARE INCH ON THE ELECTROLYTE AT THE POINT OF ENTRY OF THE ELECTROLYTE INTO THE INTERSPACE WORK GAP, AND IMPRESSING A HIGH DENSITY DIREACT CURRENT HAVING A CLOSELY REGULATED SUBSTANTIALLY CONSTANT LOW VOLTAGE OF NOT APPRECIABLY GREATER THAN ABOUT FIFTEEN VOLTS BETWEEN THE ELECTRODE WORKING AND THE WORKPIECE IN A SENSE TO MAKE THE WORKPIECE ANIODIC, WHEREBY ERODED WORKPIECE MATERIAL IS FLUSHED AWAY AND THE FORMATION OF GAS BUBBLES IN THE ELECTROLYTE IS INHIBITED.