Patent ID: 7074458

Claim:
A method of drying a solution coated on a web which is fed, said solution containing an organic solvent and forming a coated layer on said web after dried, said method comprising steps of: coating solution onto said web with a coating device; feeding said web with said solution through plural drying zones arranged in a feeding direction of said web, each of said drying zones being partitioned by a blow regulation member having plural holes, so as to form a passage chamber through which said web passes above said blow regulation member, and an exhausting chamber below said blow regulation member; loosing through said holes of said blow regulation member into said exhausting chamber a gas of said organic solvent that is evaporated from said solution with which the web is coated, such that said gas moves downwardly through said holes of said blow regulation member from said passage chamber; exhausting said gas of said organic solvent in said exhausting chamber through an exhausting pipe to an area outside of said drying zones; and feeding air into said exhausting chamber from a side of the exhausting chamber, separately from the holes of the blow regulation member, to form a stream of blowing air in a widthwise direction of said web in said exhausting chamber.