Process and apparatus for coating and sintering of strip material for electrodes

Claim 1

IN THE PROCESS OF SINTERING A COATING TO A METAL STRIP OF MATERIAL, THE STEPS OF APPLYING A WET COATING OF SINTERABLE MATERIAL TO SAID STRIP, REGULATING THE THICKNESS OF THE APPLIED COATING BY PASSAGE OF THE COATING BEARING SSTRIP BETWEEN RIBBED ROLLERS WHOSE RIBS PENETRATE THE COATING AND MAKE DIRECT ELECTRICAL CONTACT WITH SAID STRIP, MOVING THE COATED STRIP ALONG A PATH HAVING AN ASCENDING PORTION AND A DESCENDING PORTION BY PASSAGE AROUND A CONDUCTIVE REVERSING DRUM, DRYING THE WET COATING ONTO THE STRIP IN SAID ASCENDING PORTION BY THE PASSAGE OF AN ELECTRIC CURRENT THERETHROUGH OF AMPERAGES SUFFICIENT TO DRY THE WET COATING UTILIZING THE RIBS AND DRUM TO ESTABLISH ELECTRICAL CONTACT WITH THE STRIP AND ITS COATING, BLOWING DRYING GAS ACROSS THE SAID ASCENDING PORTION OF THE STRIP DURING ITS DRYING BY SAID ELECTRIC CURRENT, SINTERING THE DRIED COATING TO THE STRIP IN ITS DESCENDING PORTION BY PASSAGE THROUGH A SELECTED LENGTH THEREOF OF A SECOND ELECTRIC CURRENT OF AMPERAGE SUFFICIENT TO RAISE SAID LENGTH TO THE SINTERING TEMPERATURE OF SAID COATING, SURROUNDING SAID LENGTH WITH A PROTECTIVE ATMOSPHERE AND THEREAFTER COOLING SAID SINTERED STRIP.