An apparatus for surface treating a sheet-iron strip which continuously emerges in a substantially vertical direction from a galvanizing bath with a liquid galvanizing metallic coating thereon, by spraying finely divided material particles onto the liquid metallic coating before the coating crystallizes, said apparatus comprising:
- a housing formed by two identical casings disposed in spaced relation to each other to define therebetween a substantially vertically extending passage through which a coated strip is adapted to continuously pass;
- each said casing having therein an enclosed interior divided by partitions into separate upper and lower recovery passages and a central spraying passage positioned between said upper and lower recovery passages, said recovery and spraying passages extending in substantially horizontal directions across the width of the respective said casing;
- each said casing having therein a first substantially horizontally extending slot-shaped opening communicating the respective said spraying passage with said vertically extending passage between said casings, each said first slot-shaped opening forming a spraying nozzle disposed at substantially a right angle to and across the entire width of a strip adapted to pass through said vertically extending passage;
- each said casing having therein second and third substantially horizontally extending slot-shaped openings communicating the respective said upper and lower recovery passages with said vertically extending passage between said casings, said second and third slot-shaped openings forming respective upper and lower recovery slots at upper and lower portions of the respective said casing, said recovery slots being disposed at substantially right angles to and extending across the entire width of a strip adapted to pass through said vertically extending passage;
- means for distributing a supply of finely divided material particles;
- a single blower having a suction side and a delivery side;
- means connecting said suction side of said single blower to said distributor means such that said blower receives particles therefrom;
- first conduit means connecting said delivery side of said single blower to said spraying passages of both said casings, such that said blower blows an air stream suspending particles therein into said spraying passages and sprays said air stream and suspended particles outwardly therefrom through the respective said spraying nozzles against opposite sides of a strip adapted to pass through said vertically extending passage;
- the air throughput capacity of said blower being regulated with respect to the vertical dimension of said casings such that a liquid metallic coating on a strip adapted to pass through said vertically extending passage sets before the strip passes completely through said vertically extending passage;
- second conduit means connecting said suction side of said single blower to said upper and lower recovery passages of both said casings, such that said blower recovers said air stream and any particles remaining suspended therein by withdrawing said air stream into said upper and lower recovery passages through said respective upper and lower recovery slots;
- hood means, positioned above said housing, for collecting any portion of said air stream and any particles remaining suspended therein which escapes above said upper recovery slots, said hood means comprising a pair of hood casings, one each of said hood casings being positioned above a respective one of said casings of said housing, said hood casings being spaced from each other by said vertically extending passage, each said hood casing having therein a horizontally extending slot opening into said vertically extending passage;
- and
- third conduit means for connecting both of said hood casings to a discharge fan for withdrawing any escaped portion of said air stream through said hood casings and to a particle separator for separating particles from such escaped portion of said air stream.