Process for removing deposits from the flow channel of a tundish during continuous casting

In a process for pouring a metallic melt from a metallurgical vessel into a continuous casting mold having a pull-off driver for pulling off the cast strand via a flow channel and a controlled valve having a variable aperture, comprising the steps of:

• measuring the level of melt in the casting mold;
• measuring the aperture of the controlled valve;
• measuring the pull-off rate of the cast strand leaving the casting mold;
• an improved process for removing obstructions from the flow channel which narrow the flow channel while continuing the pouring of the melt into the mold wherein, when the narrowing in the flow channel is detected on the basis of the measured value of the aperture increasing to a predetermined value, a throttling operation is first effected by controlling the valve so as to reduce the aperture in the valve and thereby lower the level of melt in the mold and then, when the level of the melt in the mold reaches a predetermined lower level, a widening the aperture of the valve to its maximum value is effected so as to cause a surge of metallic melt to flow through the flow channel and thereby remove the obstructions therefrom until such time that the level of the melt in the mold reaches a predetermined upper value and then the aperture of said valve is controlled so as to maintain the level of melt in the mold at the upper value.