A continuous casting machine solidifies molten metal directly into a semifinished billet, bloom or slab for later rolling, replacing the older method of pouring steel into stationary molds to form individual ingots; the metal passes from a ladle through a buffer reservoir called a tundish into an oscillating water-cooled copper mold, then through spray chambers and withdrawal rolls that guide and cool the solidifying strand before cutting equipment sizes the finished piece. Sir Henry Bessemer patented the basic idea of casting metal between two counter-rotating rollers in 1857, but continuous casting was not implemented commercially until the 1950s. The machine lowered the cost of producing metal sections while improving quality and consistency, and it is now the standard method used to cast the great majority of the worlds steel.
Facts
YearBessemer's 1857 patent for casting between rollers predates practical industrial continuous casting, which was not adopted until the 1950s. SignificanceContinuous casting replaced the older practice of pouring steel into stationary molds to form ingots, allowing lower-cost, higher-quality and more automated production, and is now the method used to cast the majority of the world's steel by tonnage. 1 FAQs
Did Henry Bessemer invent continuous casting?
Bessemer patented the basic idea in 1857 but not the modern machine.
Bessemer took out a patent in 1857 for casting metal between two counter-rotating rollers. Grace's Guide describes that patent as a forerunner of today's continuous casting processes, so he is credited with the basic idea rather than with the modern machine, which uses a mold, a tundish and a cooled strand.
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Source Continuous Casting (Wikipedia)Wikipedia contributors
Invented By
Patented the basic idea of casting metal between two counter-rotating rollers in 1857, but continuous casting was not commercially implemented until the 1950s.
Sources
1. Continuous Casting (Wikipedia)
Wikipedia contributors, Wikimedia FoundationLead section, Bessemer patent sentence
Sir Henry Bessemer, of Bessemer converter fame, received a patent in 1857 for casting metal between two counter-rotating rollers.
Lead section, pre-1950s comparison sentence
Prior to the introduction of continuous casting in the 1950s, steel was poured into stationary molds to form ingots.
In Field: Materials Engineering, Introduction
Continuous casting, also called strand casting, is the process whereby molten metal is solidified into a "semifinished" billet, bloom, or slab for subsequent rolling in the finishing mills.
In Group: Metal Casting and Forming Processes, Lead paragraph
is the process whereby molten metal is solidified into a
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