Patent ID: 8617457

Claim:
An apparatus for condensing metal vapors comprising: at least one inlet conduit for receiving a mixture of metal vapor and carrier gas; a holding tank for liquid metal operatively connected to the at least one inlet conduit for receiving the mixture of metal vapor and carrier gas from the at least one inlet conduit; at least one outlet conduit operatively connected to the holding tank for receiving the mixture of metal vapor and carrier gas from the holding tank; at least a first cooling device operatively connected to the at least one outlet conduit to cause at least a portion of the metal vapor entering the at least one outlet conduit to condense to solid metal; at least one heater operatively connected to the at least one outlet conduit for causing at least a portion of the solid metal to melt and subsequently flow in to the holding tank; and at least one sealing mechanism located at a distal end of the at least one outlet conduit for sealing the distal end of the at least one outlet conduit and preventing remaining metal vapor and carrier gas from exiting the distal end of the outlet conduit when the outlet conduit is being heated.