Textured substrate and method for the direct, continuous casting of metal sheet exhibiting improved uniformity
AssigneeRibbon Technology Corporation
InventorThomas A. Gaspar
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An improved heat extracting chill block roll and method for use in the continuous casting of ribbon-like metal sheet directly from the melt by means of rapid solidification techniques. The resulting product is considerably thicker and more uniform than previously possible by such techniques. A textured chill surface is formed on the roll by multi-sided protrusions having intermediate valleys between the protrusions. This provides a plurality of discontinuous surfaces on the sides of the protrusions. The preferred surface texture is that formed by a conventional knurling tool.
Claims6
A method for forming ribbon-like metal sheet directly from molten metal by rotating the surface of a rotating, heat extracting substrate in contact with molten metal to solidify it upon the surface of the substrate, the method comprising:
- (a) forming a friction enhancing textured chill surface upon a substrate, the chill surface having multi-sided protrusions with interconnected valleys between the protrusions to provide a plurality of discontinuous surfaces which face obliquely toward the direction of travel of the substrate surface;
- and
- (b) rotating the substrate upwardly across an edge of the upper surface of the molten metal at a surface velocity sufficiently fast to prevent complete chill surface replication and thereby causing the melt surface which interfaces the chill surface to bridge between the protrusions and leave a space into which boundary gas can escape and a depth below the surface of the molten metal greater than the height of the protrusions.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.