A method and apparatus used to achieve alignment during mold assembly and accommodate thermal expansion comprising employing a compressible region and a modified interface dimension.

A gas pressure controlled casting mold is disclosed having a hot-top introducing a molten metal of aluminum or aluminum alloy, and a mold body which passes the molten metal of aluminum or aluminum alloy introduced from the hot-top through a molten metal passage portion for cooling and solidification and semi-continuously or continuously casting a billet of aluminum or aluminum alloy. A wall surface of the molten metal passage portion of the mold body is provided with a plurality of lubricating oil blow-out holes for blowing out a lubricating oil. A lubricating oil supply passage is communicatively connected to each lubricating oil blow-out hole and is independently formed at least in a range of a heat affected portion in the mold body. This allows the mold body to be reliably cooled regardless of the difference in the temperature and casting speed conditions and thus can achieve favorable continuous casting.

The invention provides rotating a submerged nozzle during casting to arbitrarily change the discharge angle of molten metal, causing the molten metal in the mold for slab to be rotated and stirred. A slab continuous casting apparatus according to the invention supplies molten metal from a tundish to a water-cooled mold for slab through at least an upper nozzle, a slide valve and a submerged nozzle and solidified the molten metal and provided with a submerged-nozzle quick replacement mechanism. The slab continuous casting apparatus further includes a discharge-direction changing mechanism capable of arbitrarily changing discharge angle of the molten metal as viewed in a horizontal cross section, during casting, the discharge-direction changing mechanism being provided between a slide valve device for opening and closing the slide valve and the submerged nozzle.

A method and apparatus used to achieve alignment during mold assembly and accommodate thermal expansion comprising employing a compressible region and a modified interface dimension.