Thickness control manifold for molten lithium dip coating

A thickness control manifold for molten lithium dip coating, the thickness control manifold comprising:

• a plurality of rollers positioned to guide a current collector from a feed roller to a molten lithium bath, the plurality of rollers further positioned to provide a vertical current collector pull such that the current collector is pulled from the molten lithium bath in a direction that is orthogonal to a major surface of the molten lithium bath;
• a gas knife positioned after the vertical current collector pull and against a side of the current collector, the gas knife comprising one or more material overflow passageways to allow excess lithium pulled up with the current collector to return to the molten lithium bath;
• a cold gas tip comprising a first gas port and a first gas channel, the cold gas tip positioned to eject a cooled fluid to the side of the current collector;
• a hot gas tip comprising a second gas port and a second gas channel, the hot gas tip positioned to eject a heated fluid to the side of the current collector, and the hot gas tip arranged between the cold gas tip and the molten lithium bath;
• and
• a first servo-controlled arm and a second servo-controlled arm, wherein the first servo-controlled arm can dynamically adjust, horizontally or vertically, a relative position of the cold gas tip with respect to the current collector, and wherein the second servo-controlled arm can dynamically adjust, horizontally or vertically, a relative position of the hot gas tip with respect to the current collector.