'Apex' rolling ingot casting technology benefits casthouses and rolling mills

摘要

Apex casting moulds focus primarily on eliminating butt swell with a continuously adapting mould bore opening. Wagstaff defines butt swell as a thick butt section on a rolling ingot. This defect results from a lack of shrinkage away from the Mould Bore Opening (MBO) - when the molten metal sump develops with increasing casting speed. The butt portion of the ingot rolling face becomes convex, and the swell will extend into the ingot's steady state portion. If this defect occurs, the thicker ingot butt (along with the ingot shell) will need to be removed through butt sawing and scalping prior to rolling operations. The Apex casting system's unique features can change the ingot's final shape with a constantly adapting mould bore, adjustable for a specific alloy and size combination.