Method for the continuous fluid treatment of running web material

Claim 1

A METHOD OF CONTINUOUSLY TREATING OPEN-WIDTH WEB MATERIAL WITH FLUID OF A HIGH SPEEDS AND WITHOUT DISTORTION AND WRINKLING, COMPRISING: INTRODUCING THE WEB MATERIAL INTO AN ELONGATE UPRIGHT TREATMENT CHAMBER HAVING OPEN UPPER AND LOWER ENDS IN SUBSTANTIAL VERTICAL ALIGNMENT, THE WEB MATERIAL BEING INTRODUCED INTO THE UPPER END OF THE TREATMENT CHAMBER IN A SUBSTANTIALLY RELAXED, OPENWIDTH AND TENSIONSLESS CONDITION; CIRCULATING TREATMENT FLUID DOWNWARDLY THROUGHT THE TREATMENT CHABMER AND FROM THE LOWER END THEREOF AT A HIGH VELOCITY AND IN ENGAGEMENT WITH THE FULL WIDTH OF THE OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE WEB MATERIAL TO FEED THE WEB MATERIAL RAPIDLY DOWNWARDLY THROUGH THE TREATMENT CHAMBER, WHILE SIMULTANEOUSLY DIRECTING COMPONENTS OF THE DOWNWARDLY-CIRCULATING TREATMENT FLUID TRANSVERSELY TOWARD AND AWAY FROM OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE WEB MATERIAL TO PRODUCE TURBULENCE IN THE FLUID AND FACILITATE ITS PENETRATION AND TREATMENT OF THE WEB MATERIAL; THE WEB MATERIAL BEING FED THROUGH THE TREATMENT CHAMBER AND FROM THE LOWER END THEREOF SOLELY BY THE DOWNWARDLYCIRCULATING TREATMENT FLUID AND THE VELOCITY OF THE DOWNWARDLY-CIRCULATING TREATMENT FLUID FROM THE TIME OF ITS INITIAL ENGAGEMENT WITH THE WEB MATERIAL UNTIL THE WITHDRAWAL OF THE WEB MATERIAL THEREFROM BEING AT ALL TIMES GREATER IN THE DIRECTION OF MOVEMENT OF THE WEB MATERIAL THAN THE RATE OF TRAVEL OF THE WEB MATERIAL ENGAGED THEREBY; AND WITHDRAWING THE WEB MATERIAL FROM THE DOWNWARDLY-CIRCULATING TREATMENT FLUID DIRECTLY AFTER PASSAGE THEREOF FROM THE LOWER END OF THE TREATMENT CHAMBER BY CONVEYING THE SAME UPWARDLY ALONG A PATH OF TRAVEL AND AT A SPEED CAUSING THE WEB MATERIAL TO FORM A SLACK, GENERALLY CATENARY LOOP EXTENDING FROM AND DISPOSED CLOSELY ADJACENT THE LOWER END OF THE TREATMENT CHAMBER.

Claim 2

A METHOD OF CONTINUOUSLY TREATING OPEN-WIDTH WEB MATERIAL WITH FLUID OF A HIGH SPEEDS AND WITHOUT DISTORTION AND WRINKLING, COMPRISING: INTRODUCING THE WEB MATERIAL INTO AN ELONGATE UPRIGHT TREATMENT CHAMBER HAVING OPEN UPPER AND LOWER ENDS IN SUBSTANTIAL VERTICAL ALIGNMENT, THE WEB MATERIAL BEING INTRODUCED INTO THE UPPER END OF THE TREATMENT CHAMBER IN A SUBSTANTIALLY RELAXED, OPENWIDTH AND TENSIONSLESS CONDITION; CIRCULATING TREATMENT FLUID DOWNWARDLY THROUGHT THE TREATMENT CHABMER AND FROM THE LOWER END THEREOF AT A HIGH VELOCITY AND IN ENGAGEMENT WITH THE FULL WIDTH OF THE OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE WEB MATERIAL TO FEED THE WEB MATERIAL RAPIDLY DOWNWARDLY THROUGH THE TREATMENT CHAMBER, WHILE SIMULTANEOUSLY DIRECTING COMPONENTS OF THE DOWNWARDLY-CIRCULATING TREATMENT FLUID TRANSVERSELY TOWARD AND AWAY FROM OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE WEB MATERIAL TO PRODUCE TURBULENCE IN THE FLUID AND FACILITATE ITS PENETRATION AND TREATMENT OF THE WEB MATERIAL; THE WEB MATERIAL BEING FED THROUGH THE TREATMENT CHAMBER AND FROM THE LOWER END THEREOF SOLELY BY THE DOWNWARDLYCIRCULATING TREATMENT FLUID AND THE VELOCITY OF THE DOWNWARDLY-CIRCULATING TREATMENT FLUID FROM THE TIME OF ITS INITIAL ENGAGEMENT WITH THE WEB MATERIAL UNTIL THE WITHDRAWAL OF THE WEB MATERIAL THEREFROM BEING AT ALL TIMES GREATER IN THE DIRECTION OF MOVEMENT OF THE WEB MATERIAL THAN THE RATE OF TRAVEL OF THE WEB MATERIAL ENGAGED THEREBY; AND WITHDRAWING THE WEB MATERIAL FROM THE DOWNWARDLY-CIRCULATING TREATMENT FLUID DIRECTLY AFTER PASSAGE THEREOF FROM THE LOWER END OF THE TREATMENT CHAMBER BY CONVEYING THE SAME UPWARDLY ALONG A PATH OF TRAVEL AND AT A SPEED CAUSING THE WEB MATERIAL TO FORM A SLACK, GENERALLY CATENARY LOOP EXTENDING FROM AND DISPOSED CLOSELY ADJACENT THE LOWER END OF THE TREATMENT CHAMBER.