An electrode is made by depositing a mixture of particulate carbon and very fine thermoplastic binder on the surface of a fluid permeable dielectric web. The coated web is then passed between a pair of rollers that apply heat to at least the Vicat softening point of the binder and simultaneously apply pressure to fuse the carbon and binder to the web. Two of such electrodes are employed to manufacture a flow-through capacitor suitable for use in water treatment.