A method quenches a steel pipe and an apparatus quenches a steel pipe by which a steel pipe having excellent and uniform quality can be acquired by applying uniform rapid cooling to the steel pipe in a longitudinal direction as well as in a circumferential direction of the steel pipe using a simple unit. Movements of a heated steel pipe in a direction parallel to and in a direction perpendicular to a pipe axis of the steel pipe are stopped, and cooling water is jetted onto an outer surface of the steel pipe from four or more spray nozzles arranged spirally outside the steel pipe while rotating the steel pipe about the pipe axis.

Provided are a cooling method and a cooling apparatus that, in the cooling of a hot-rolled steel strip, regulates the amount of cooling water in a two-stage manner for each set of headers in the width direction and changes the rate at which the steel strip is cooled, in a multistage manner by a simple method, and that is effective particularly in cooling the lower surface of the steel strip, where space is narrow. The spray nozzles 5 are arranged in a row in the width direction of the steel strip at a predetermined pitch. Two systems of cooling headers 6 are arranged for one set so that spray nozzles 5 adjacent in the width direction can be supplied with cooling water from different pipe systems, and a spray valve 7 is attached to each cooling header 7 so that spraying/stop of spraying of cooling water can be individually performed.

A method for producing a metal strip, in which the strip is rolled in a multi-stand rolling mill, is removed behind the final rolling stand of the rolling mill in the direction of conveyance, and is cooled in a cooling device. The strip or metal sheet is subjected to additional rapid cooling immediately after passing the working rollers of the final rolling stand, wherein the strip or the metal sheet is cooled at least partially within the extent of the final rolling stand in the direction of conveyance, wherein rapid cooling is performed by applying a coolant to the strip or metal sheet from above and from below, wherein the volume flow of coolant that is applied to the strip or metal sheet from below measures at least 120% of the volume flow of coolant that is applied to the strip or metal sheet from above.

A device for discharging exhaust air from the surroundings of a metal strip. The device has air quantity boosters with an opposing suction device on the other side of the conveying path in the blowing direction in order to suction and discharge the airflow generated by the air quantity boosters together with the exhaust air. In order to reduce costs for the operation of the device, a sensor device is provided in order to detect whether the metal strip is present or not and at which speed the metal strip is being moved. Additionally, a controller is provided in order to adjust the delivery rate of the air quantity boosters and the suction device depending on the measured speed.

An apparatus line for manufacturing seamless steel pipes and tubes includes: a heating apparatus for heating a steel raw material; a piercing apparatus for piercing the heated steel raw material thus forming a hollow material; and a rolling apparatus for applying working to the hollow material to form a seamless steel pipe having a predetermined shape. A cooling apparatus is arranged on an exit side of the rolling apparatus. A heated steel raw material is worked by the rolling apparatus after being pierced by the piercing apparatus, and thereafter, using a surface temperature of a hollow piece before being cooled by the cooling apparatus as a cooling start temperature, the hollow piece is cooled to a cooling stop temperature differing by 50° C. or more from the cooling start temperature and being equal to or above 600° C. at an average cooling speed of 1.0° C./s or more in terms of an outer surface temperature.

An apparatus line for manufacturing seamless steel pipes and tubes includes: a heating apparatus for heating a steel raw material; a piercing apparatus for piercing the heated steel raw material thus forming a hollow material; and a rolling apparatus for applying working to the hollow material to form a seamless steel pipe having a predetermined shape. A cooling apparatus is arranged on an exit side of the rolling apparatus. A heated steel raw material is worked by the rolling apparatus after being pierced by the piercing apparatus, and thereafter, using a surface temperature of a hollow piece before being cooled by the cooling apparatus as a cooling start temperature, the hollow piece is cooled to a cooling stop temperature differing by 50° C. or more from the cooling start temperature and being equal to or above 600° C. at an average cooling speed of 1.0° C./s or more in terms of an outer surface temperature.

The invention relates to an aluminum alloy strip with improved surface optics, which is fabricated via hot and/or cold rolling, and consists of a type AA 3xxx, AA 5xxx, AA 6xxx or AA 8xxx aluminum alloy. The object of proposing an aluminum alloy strip that is suitable for attractive and precious surface optics despite the elevated percentage of alloy constituents is achieved in that, after degreasing, the finish-rolled aluminum alloy strip exhibits an increase in the luminance value L*(ΔL) in relation to the rolled-greasy state of more than 5 while measuring the color of the surface in the CIE L*a*b* color space using a standard illuminant D65 and a normal observation angle of 10°, excluding direct reflection in 45°/0° geometry.

A hot-rolled steel sheet for nitriding or a cold-rolled steel sheet for nitriding, in which a dislocation density within 50 μm in the sheet thickness direction from the surface is not less than 2.0 times nor more than 10.0 times as compared to a dislocation density at the position of ¼ in the sheet thickness direction; and a method of manufacturing the same. The manufacturing method comprises, on a hot-rolled steel sheet or a cold-rolled steel sheet, performing pickling, and then performing skin pass rolling under the condition that a reduction ratio is 0.5 to 5.0% and FIT, defined as a ratio of a line load F (kg/mm) of a rolling mill load divided by a sheet width of the steel sheet and a load T (kg/mm.sup.2) per unit area to be applied in the longitudinal direction of the steel sheet, is 8000 or more.

A fiber optic component cleaning device includes a body, a feed spool mounted for rotation in the body, a take-up spool mounted for one-way rotation in the body and a central support assembly. A plunger is mounted for movement in the central support assembly and a drive is operably connected to the take-up spool and to the plunger. A cleaning material is wound onto and fed from the feed spool and to the take-up spool. A reservoir assembly is mountable to the body to apply a cleaning solution to the cleaning material.

A fiber optic component cleaning device includes a body, a feed spool mounted for rotation in the body, a take-up spool mounted for one-way rotation in the body and a central support assembly. A plunger is mounted for movement in the central support assembly and a drive is operably connected to the take-up spool and to the plunger. A cleaning material is wound onto and fed from the feed spool and to the take-up spool. A reservoir assembly is mountable to the body to apply a cleaning solution to the cleaning material.