[sswee]

Look at it this way and see if it makes any more sense. When building a motor for a car, all the parts need to be matched to work together to get the maximum benefit as a whole. The CD would be the carburetor. Carbs come in all different sizes rated in CFM. Basically how much air/fuel it will flow for the engine. This needs to be matched with heads, cam, CID, and exhaust flow so they all work together on the same level. The lower CFM carbs are no better or worse than the higher CFM carbs. The size of carb has to be matched to the engine it it used on, the same as a CD needs to be matched to the setup being used. IE: tank size, PS, acid concentration, agitation and cooling that can be achieved.

As for the calculations, there have been numerous posts on how to calculate all the needed information. It has been awhile since I have made or seen one giving them all together. It may just be no one has asked lately.

LCD (Low Current Density) anodizing is considered using current densities between 3 to 6 ASF (amps per square foot). It has been determined that using a CD below 3 ASF does not produce a suitable coating for dyeing or durability.

720 rule
Anodic coating will grow to a 1 mil thickness in 720 amp minutes at a current density of 1 amp per square foot

Anodize time
720 / CD * desired coating thickness from .1 to 1 mil
Ex. 720 / 4.5A CD = 160 minutes 160 * .7 = 112 minutes of anodize time

CD to amp setting on PS
4.5 CD is 4.5 amps per square foot
4.5 / 144" (inches in a square foot) = .03125A per square inch
.03125 * SA of the part in square inches = amp setting on the PS for the run.
Ex. Widget part with 30" of SA
4.5 \ 144 = .03125 .03125A * 30" = .94 amp (rounded off) setting on the PS to anodize a widget. If you have 3 widgets, multiply .94 by 3 to get the amp setting.

SS