Edge-DAM blocks having abuttable upstream and downstream faces meshing with each other in mating relationship for continuous casting of molten metals--methods and apparatus

An endless looped edge dam for providing a moving boundary of a moving mold casting region in a continuous casting machine wherein the edge dam has at least one unifying tensile member, further comprising:

• a multiplicity of edge-dam blocks mounted on and being slidable along said tensile member;
• each edge-dam block mounted on said tensile member having an abuttable upstream face meshable in mating relationship with an abuttable downstream face of an adjacent block;
• each edge-dam block mounted on said tensile member having an abuttable downstream face meshable in mating relationship with an abuttable upstream face of an adjacent block;
• and
• the meshing in mating relationship between abuttable upstream faces and abuttable downstream faces resists slippage of the blocks relative to adjacent blocks laterally toward and away from the moving mold casting region.

The method of shaping edge-dam blocks for improving their alignment when they are slidably strung upon a flexible tension member to form an endless looped flexible edge dam for use in a continuous-moving-belt metal-casting machine, comprising the steps of:

• shaping abuttable upstream and abuttable downstream surfaces of said edge-dam blocks for providing meshing interengagement between adjacent blocks when adjacent blocks are pushed together against one another, and shaping smooth inside surfaces of said blocks, followed by steps of:
• stringing such shaped edge-dam blocks upon a flexible tension member with said abuttable upstream and abuttable downstream surfaces facing each other and with said smooth inside surfaces all facing in a same direction;
• fastening together ends of said flexible tension member to complete an endless looped flexible edge dam;
• while a portion of said endless looped flexible edge dam is travelling along a casting region in the metal-casting machine with said smooth inside surfaces facing toward the casting region, pushing together in meshing interengagement a succession of the edge-dam blocks in said portion, thereby:
• mutually aligning said succession of meshing edge-dam blocks to be free from intervening tilts, offsets, or twists, for
• presenting their aligned inside surfaces as a smooth boundary extending along said portion of said endless looped flexible edge dam for the casting of smooth-sided metal product against it.

A method of continuously casting metal in a continuous-moving-belt metal-casting machine having a moving mold region and employing a pair of endless edge dams for defining opposite side boundaries of the moving mold region wherein each of the endless edge dams comprises a multiplicity of edge-dam blocks slidably strung upon a flexible tensile member, the method comprising steps of:

• shaping mateable upstream and downstream surfaces of said edge-dam blocks with mutually complementary shape for being interengageable in mating relationship between adjacent blocks when pushed against one another and shaping smooth inside surfaces of said edge-dam blocks, followed by steps of;
• stringing such shaped edge-dam blocks upon a flexible tensile member with said mateable upstream and downstream surfaces facing each other and with said smooth inside surfaces all facing in a same direction and fastening together ends of said flexible tensile member for completing an endless flexible edge dam;
• assembling the pair of such endless edge dams into a continuously-moving-belt casting machine with said smooth inside surfaces of the edge-dam blocks of both of the pair of endless flexible edge dams facing toward the casting region;
• and
• during casting of molten metal in said moving mold region, moving portions of the pair of endless edge dams along opposite sides of the moving mold region and pushing together in mating relationship the mateable upstream and downstream surfaces of the edge-dam blocks in said portions of the endless edge dams for mutually aligning said edge-dam blocks in such interengaged mating relationship for presenting said smooth inside surfaces as smooth side boundaries extending along opposite sides of the moving mold for casting smooth-sided product.

A flexible edge dam for use in a belt-type continuous metal-casting machine for use as a boundary of a moving mold for retaining molten metal being cast in the moving mold, said flexible edge dam comprising:

• a flexible tensile member;
• a multiplicity of edge-dam blocks strung on said tensile member and being slidable along said tensile member;
• adjacent edge-dam blocks in said edge dam having adjacent mateable surfaces facing each other;
• one adjacent mateable surface of the edge-dam blocks having at least one protrusion;
• another adjacent mateable surface of the edge-dam blocks having at least one recess for snugly receiving said protrusion therein;
• and
• said adjacent mateable surfaces being engageable together in mating relationship for preventing slippage between adjacent blocks toward and away from the metal being cast.

A flexible edge dam for providing a movable boundary of a mold movable from upstream to downstream for continuous casting of molten metal in the movable mold, said flexible edge dam comprising:

• a multiplicity of edge-dam blocks;
• such edge-dam blocks having a mateable upstream surface and a mateable downstream surface;
• the mateable upstream surface of such edge-dam blocks being mateable in key and keyway meshing relationship with the mateable downstream surface of adjoining abutting edge-dam blocks;
• the mateable downstream surface of such edge-dam blocks being mateable in key and keyway meshing relationship with the mateable upstream surface of adjoining abutting edge-dam blocks;
• each functional point on the mateable upstream surface of such edge-dam blocks is equidistant from each functional point on the mateable downstream surface of such edge-dam blocks as measured in a direction parallel with said movable boundary of the movable mold;
• and
• the key and keyway meshing relationship between mateable upstream and downstream surfaces of such edge-dam blocks is located away from the molten metal in the movable mold.

A method of continuously casting metal in a continuous-moving-belt metal-casting machine having a moving mold region and employing a pair of endless edge dams for defining opposite side boundaries of the moving mold region wherein each of the endless edge dams comprises a multiplicity of edge-dam blocks slidably strung upon a flexible tensile member, the method comprising steps of:

• providing said edge-dam blocks with mateable upstream and downstream surfaces for meshing together in mating relationship between adjacent blocks when pushed together;
• providing said edge-dam blocks with guide-facing outside surfaces;
• guiding edge-dam blocks in said pair of endless edge dams moving along opposite sides of the moving mold region by meshing such edge-dam blocks together in mating relationship by pushing them together and sliding their guide-facing surfaces along a pair of cooled stationary side guides extending along opposite sides of the moving mold region and being positioned outside of the respective guided edge-dam blocks,
• thereby mutually aligning said edge-dam blocks in pushed together mating relationship presenting their guide-facing surfaces with reliable contact sliding along the respective side guides for enabling faster and more uniform cooling of the freezing cast metal product.