The present invention provides a copper billet horizontal continuous casting apparatus with a vertical shaft furnace for smelting and a corresponding process. The copper billet horizontal continuous casting apparatus with a vertical shaft furnace for smelting includes: a vertical shaft, a refining furnace, a mixing furnace, a holding furnace, and a continuous casting furnace; wherein the refining furnace comprises a furnace body, and a gas flushing device disposed beneath the furnace body, a gas flushing brick is provided at the chamber bottom wall of the furnace body; a gas inlet device is provided on the vertical shaft furnace; the vertical shaft furnace further includes a detecting device and an adjusting device which are connected with the air inlet device.

Provided herein is a system, apparatus, and method for continuous casting of metal, and more particularly, to a mechanism for controlling the shape of a direct chill casting mold to dynamically control a profile of an ingot cast from the mold during the casting process. Embodiments may provide an apparatus for casting material including: first and second opposing side walls; first and second end walls extending between the first and second side walls, where the first and second opposing side walls and the first and second opposing end walls form a generally rectangular shaped mold cavity. At least one of the first and second opposing side walls may include two or more contact regions, where each of the two or more contact regions may be configured to be displaced relative to a straight line along the side wall.

A method for reducing target surface features in continuously cast articles is described. The method can remove a target surface feature, such as a compositional variation or casting defect, from the continuously cast article by removing, before cold rolling, material from the continuously cast article surface.

Described herein are 7xxx series aluminum alloys with unexpected properties and novel methods of producing such aluminum alloys. The aluminum alloys exhibit high strength and are highly formable. The alloys are produced by continuous casting and can be hot rolled to a final gauge and/or a final temper. The alloys can be used in automotive, transportation, industrial, and electronics applications, just to name a few.

Certain exemplary embodiments can provide a manufacturing method, process, machine, and/or system for continuously consolidating granular materials, creating new alloys and/or composites, and/or modifying and/or refining material microstructure, by using plastic deformation of feedstock(s) provided in various structural forms. Materials produced during this process can be fabricated directly and/or in forms such as, e.g., wires, rods, tubes, sheets, plate and/or channels, etc.

Certain exemplary embodiments can provide a manufacturing method, process, machine, and/or system for continuously consolidating granular materials, creating new alloys and/or composites, and/or modifying and/or refining material microstructure, by using plastic deformation of feedstock(s) provided in various structural forms. Materials produced during this process can be fabricated directly and/or in forms such as, e.g., wires, rods, tubes, sheets, plate and/or channels, etc.

An aluminum alloy for casting into a component, such as a vehicle component, is provided. The aluminum alloy includes silicon, zinc, magnesium, copper, manganese, iron, and strontium. After the casting step, the cast aluminum alloy has a yield strength of at least 105 MPa, ultimate tensile strength (UTS) of at least 180 MPa, and an elongation of 8% to 10%.

A sliding element, such as a bearing, and a method of manufacturing the sliding element, is provided. The sliding element is formed of an aluminum alloy material which includes zinc in an amount of 5 wt. % to 83 wt. %. The sliding element may also include silicon and/or magnesium. The sliding element is typically formed by casting, heat treating at a temperature of 400° C. to 577° C., and cooling at a rate of less than 50° C. per hour to a temperature ranging from 400° C. to 200° C. The aluminum alloy material is then heat treated at a temperature of 100° to 275° C. for at least 5 hours to form a soft phase consisting essentially of the zinc. The second heat treatment, or possibly both heat treatments, may not be required when the aluminum alloy material includes the magnesium.

A process for melting metal parts and casting the melt in at least one mould and a corresponding combined melting and casting furnace plant are described. In the process, metal parts to be melted are brought into a crucible furnace, and a molten metal is produced therein and made ready for casting. A riser tube integrated in a lid of the crucible furnace is heated in a position remote from the crucible furnace, and the lid with heated riser tube is brought into a position closing the crucible furnace, in which the riser tube projects into the molten metal. A mould is arranged on the lid in a casting position above the riser tube, and the molten metal is introduced into the mould from below by pressurising the melt in the crucible furnace. The combined melting and casting furnace plant is designed to carry out such a process.

A spot welded joint of at least two steel sheets is provided. At least one of the steel sheets presents yield strength above or equal to 600 MPa, an ultimate tensile strength above or equal to 1000 MPa, uniform elongation above or equal to 15%. The base metal chemical composition includes 0.05≤C≤0.21%, 4.0≤Mn≤7.0%, 0.5≤Al≤3.5%, Si≤2.0%, Ti≤0.2%, V≤0.2%, Nb≤0.2%, P≤0.025%, B≤0.0035%, and the spot welded joint contains a molten zone microstructure containing more than 0.5% of Al and containing a surface fraction of segregated areas lower than 1%, said segregated areas being zones larger than 20 μm.sup.2 and containing more than the steel nominal phosphorus content.