Continuous casting mold venting apparatus

Claim 1

CASTING APPARATUS COMPRISING: (A) AN ELONGATE MOLD HAVING A WALL DEFINING A MOLTEN METAL SOLIDIFICATION CAVITY THEREWITHIN, SAID MOLD HAVING (1) AN INLET AND AN OUTLET END AND (2) COOLING MEANS DISPOSED IN HEAT TRANSFER RELATIONSHIP WITH SAID CAVITY FOR RAPIDLY INDUCING SOLIDIFICATION OF MOLTEN METAL WITHIN SAID CAVITY, (B) A DISTRIBUTION NOZZLE ASSOCIATED WITH SAID INLET END OF SAID MOLD, (C) VAOR ESCAPE MEANS DISPOSED IN SAID MOLD AND COMMUNICATING BETWEEN SAID MOLD CAVITY AND AMBIENT ATMOSPHERE FOR REMOVING VAPOR OR GASES FROM SAID SOLIDIFICATION CAVITY FORMED DURING SOLIDIFICATION OF MOLTEN METAL THEREWITHIN WHEREBY SAID COOLING MEANS IS IN MORE EFFECTIVE HEAT TRANSFER RELATIONSHIP WITH SAID SOLIDIFYING METAL, AND (D) A COLLECTION PLENUM COMMUNICATING WITH SAID VAPOR ESCAPE MEANS AND MAINTAINED AT A SUBATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE, SAID COLLECTION PLENUM COMPRISING AN ELONGATE CHAMBER OVERLYING SAID VAPOR ESCAPE MEANS AND TRAVERSING THE LONGITUDINAL EXTENT TO SAID MOLD CAVITY, SAID CHAMBER BEING DEFINED BY INTEGRAL RADIAL EXTENSIONS OF SAID MOLD WALL.