US2326624A - Electroplating apparatus - Google Patents

Description

0, 1943. H. CSANYI 2,326,624

ELEOTROPLATING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 16 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 ,INVENTOR. HENRY USA/V)? A TTORNEY.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Ill?! llllllll I INVENTOR. HENRY csA/vr v ATTbRNEY H. CSANYI ELECTROPLATING APPARATUS Filed Jan.

Aug. 10, 1943.

' troplating apparatus is that fumes and obnoxious gases almost invariably escape into the room,

Patented Aug. 10, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ELECTROPLAIING APPARATUS Henry Csanyi, Jamaica, N. Y., assignor of onehalf to Harry F. Wanvlg, New York, N. Y.

Application January 16, 1940, Serial No. 314,036

1 Claim. (Cl. 204-206;)

This inventionrelates to method and apparatus for treating sheet and strip material, more particularly sheet and strip metal. This application is a continuation-in-part of my application Serial No. 104,385, filed October 7, 1936, now Patent No. 2,212,588.

In the electro-plating of metal, especially sheet metal, as practiced heretofore, the sheets have been suspended in the electrolyte from clips and either held stationary for batch treatment, or

i moved about to operate the process continuously.

The sheets in this vertical position are frequently bent or curved as they move through or out of the tank and such bending or flexing disturbs the plating. In any event, the tanks used for continuous operation must be very large and even causing irritation to and impairing the health of workmen.

a One object of this invention is to provide a method and apparatus for electro-plating metal stock which overcomes the aforementioned dim-- culties.

Another object of this invention is the-provision of a method and apparatus for electroplating metal stock continuously by introducing the metal directly into and withdrawing the metal from a plating tank at a point below the level of electrolyte therein.

A further object is to provide for removing gases sticking to-metal while such metal is moving through an electroplating bath in a substantially horizontal path.

Another object is the provision of improved apparatus for continuously plating metal stock in an economic manner and with a minimum of fume annoyance.

of metal such as continuous strip or short lengths of stock with suitable modification.

In'the drawings, numeral .lll indicates an electroplating tank which may be made of any suit-' able material such as metal lined with asphaltum, designed to contain a quantity of electrolyte ll. Sheet or strip material to be plated may be introduced into the tank It) below the level of liquid II, and without substantial leakage thereof, through a stuffing box 12, and may be removed therefrom through a similar stuffing box iii in the opposite wall of thetank l0. Suitable feed rolls suchas pusher rolls i l, I5 at the inlet and'pliller rolls l6, 11 at the outlet may be provided near the stufflng boxes 12 and I3, and are preferably driven by power means such as the motor it. One suitable form ofdrive is illustrated in Fig. 1 in which the motor 18 drives roll I! directly, through the reduction gearing i9 and gear train 20. Roll 14 in turn drives the other upper feed roll l6 by means of sprockets and the chain 2|. Upperrolls l4 and I6 are geared directly tolower rolls l5 and II, by the gears 22 and 23, respectively. Thus all four feed rolls are driven at the same, or a substantially synchronized speed. Each pair of feed rolls may be suitably mounted in adjustable hearings or journal blocks, for adjustment toward or away from each other as is well understood in the art, and each roll is preferably connected to the negative pole of a source of electric current (not shown).

exhaust fan (not shown). Fixed to cover 24, or

merely overlying openings in the cover if desired,

are two pairs of plates 21, 21 and28, 28 made of suitable insulating material such as Bakelite orhard rubber. Eachpair of these plates supports a pair of anodes 29 for suspension in the electrolyte II, the composition of the anodes depending on the kind of plating to be performed. The ends 01' anodes 29 are fixed to rods 30, the anodes of each pair being spaced from each other a suitable distance to allow passage therebetween of the metal to be plated. Each of the anodes 291s preferably encased within a cup-like insulating member 29a constructed of Bakelite, hard rubber, or the like and covering all of the anodesurfaces except the surface facing thegpetal to be plated. The upper ends of rods 30 project the invention is also applicable to other forms through their respective plates 21, 2 8.and the ex- 2 I posed lengths these rods below the plate are protected by tubular insulating members 3|, 32

made of suitable material such as hard rubber. Nuts 33, 34 may be threaded of the ends of rods 30 and tightened to hold plates 2]; 28, anodes 29, and insulating members 3|, 32 in fixed-relation. Nuts 35 may be employed for connecting rods 30 and anodes29 to the positive-pole of a suitable source otelectric current (not shown). An elec- I tric motor 36 may be mounted on a bracket 31 fixed to one of the plates 21, for driving shaft 38 15 then be dried, cleaned, buffed,

ity to make a good electrical contact with the sheet being treated. The sheet which is thus the cathode, should always be in contact with one of the pairs of feed rolls so as not to int rrupt 5 the plating operation, or the movement or the sheet through the tank. If desired, pieces of some porous material such as cheese cloth may .be interposed between the sheet 55 and the anodes 29, to prevent the possibility of the sheet contacting one of the anodes and causing a short I circuit. As the sheet 55 emerges through stufflng box l3, the surplus electrolyte is wiped off by-the action of the soft rubber of the pneumatic containers of thestufling box I3. The sheet may and or finished in any suitable manner.

As a precautionary measure, I prefer to employ a trough 6i surrounding the outside of the tank below the stufflng boxes 12 and [3, in order to preferablyconstructed of some suitable material catch any electrolyte which may escape, if the which will not be plated, such as Bakelite or hard rubber. Two distinct pairs of anodes 29 have been illustrated, and, although I do not wish to be limited to this embodiment of my in-- vention, I have discovered that where metal being plated is subjected to the influence of two or more successive anodes, greatly improved results may be obtained by removing any gas accumulated on the metal surface during the first portion of the plating and subjecting the cleaned 30 surface immediately to the action of the plating instrumentalities. One way to accomplish this is to provide a pair of rolls 44, made vof soft rubber or the like between the pairs of anodes 29 and to. pass the metal between theserolls.

' These rolls 44 may be journaled in brackets 45 efixed to plates 28 in a manner similar to guide tially alike and mounted in the walls of'tank l0 ,extending in the same direction. The stuffing boxes are preferably composed of pneumatic containers suitably clamped or otherwise fixed in .position to seal openings in the tank walls. The metal stock that is plated is forced between fie'xible surfaces of these pneumatic containers" pneumatic containers of the stufilng boxes should be punctured or'defiated.

During the electro-plating process, a rapid circulation of the electrolyte greatly enhances the speed of plating. I have found that it-is preferable to operate the agitator fan 39 at such .a

' speed that thecirculationof electrolyte within the tank is at least 1 foot per second. That is,

the rate of now of a givenportion of electrolyte from one portion" of the tank to another should be at least l foot per second. to obtain thebes't 'results. A slower circulation can, vof course, be

employed but this proportionately decreases'the thickness of the plate for a given time, or in other words increases the time required to form a plate of a. given thickness.

The suspending of the anodes, guides, and agitating mechanism, from the cover of the tank greatly facilitates any repairs and replacements 0 which may be necessary. To install a fresh anode in place of a used one, the cover or other. member carrying the anodes may be lifted out of the tank, and the replacement effected without removing or interfering with the electrolyte or. the other parts of the tank. If desired, however, these members may be fixed to the' tank or mounted in anyother appropriate manner.

Many modifications of the apparatus shown in the drawings may be madewithout departin I from the scope of my invention. Any number of .anodes maybe employed and they may be arranged in otherways. 44 are not necessary to the operation of the proc-' ess, they remove any gas sticking to the sheet,

which automatically conform tothe shape of the which Otherwise Seriously hinders the Plating and smooth out any irregularities therein and push the sheet through'stuiling box I! into ,the

tank Hi. The sheet moves continuously along a path through guide rolls 4i, between one pair of action. Additional guide members and/or gas removing memhers may be employed-in the tank, and these members do not need to be rolls. For example, a fixed plate, or pair of plates, may be employed between the anodes, set at an angle to assist in guiding the'leading edge of the sheet 55;

, through the tank. a

The insulating casings 29a for the anodes 29, increase the efficiency of the plating operation.

becausethey minimize loose plating'of metal on making possible a higher rate of travel for the anodes 29,- through rolls '44 for wiping off gas stock passing through the tank.

.bubbles, between the second pair of anodes, and

-Rolls I4, 45, 16.; and n are preferably made of The terms and expressions which I have employed are used as terms of description and not of limitation, and I have no intention, in-the use of such terms and expressions, ofexcluding any a material whichj isagood conductor OIMOM 76 equivalents of the features .shown and described Although the rubber rolls or portions thereof, but recognize that various modifications are possible within the scope of the invention claimed.

I claim:

. Electroplating apparatus comprising a-tank for I electrolyte having means in the side walls thereof for passing metal stock therethrough along a. substantially horizontal path below the level of electrolyte therein; a cover for said tank completely enclosing the upper portion thereof, conduit-means for carrying away fumes collecting under said cover, a plurality of anodes-suspended in said tank from said cover in pairs at spaced intervals along the horizontal path of the stock and spaced substantially uniformly above and below said path, and means suspended from 'said cover and contacting the stock for removing as from the surface of stock after it has passed between one pair of anodes and before it passes between another pair of anodes.

'HE RYCSANYIK';

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