Cooling apparatus for cooling a metallic material and method for cooling a metallic material

A method for producing or selecting a cooling beam (110) of a cooling apparatus, comprising the following steps:

• determining a temperature distribution (T(y)) of a metallic material to be cooled (200) across its width (y) prior to entering under the cooling beam (110);
• evaluating the temperature distribution (T(y)) with respect to width sections (Δy) of the metallic material (200) in which the temperature rises, remains constant or falls by evaluating a slope of the temperature distribution;
• determining amounts of the slopes;
• and
• producing or selecting the cooling beam (110) for the cooling apparatus (100) with which a density of cross-sectional areas (112′) of outlet openings of coolant application elements in a width direction (y) of the cooling beam (110) is distributed according to the amount of the slope of the distribution of the temperature of the metallic material across its width before an inlet under the cooling beam (110);
• wherein the density of the cross-sectional areas (112′) of the outlet openings of the coolant application elements is represented by a gap (a) between two adjacent coolant application elements projected onto the width direction y of the cooling beam (110);
• and
• wherein the gap (a) between two adjacent coolant application elements in the width direction (y) of the cooling beam increases towards an edge of the cooling beam, if the temperature of the metallic material (200) decreases towards such edge of the cooling beam (100);
• or
• wherein the gap (a) between two adjacent coolant application elements (112) in the width direction (y) of the cooling beam (110) becomes smaller towards an edge of the cooling beam as the temperature of the metallic material (200) increases towards such edge of the cooling beam (100).