Installation for manufacturing a metal wire by continuous casting

Claim 1

An installation for manufacturing wire by projecting a jet of electrically conductive molten metal through a die and subsequently through a cooling devie, said installation comprising: a crucible adapted to contain molten metal and formed of an electrically insulating refractory material, said crucible being equipped with a heating device and provided with at least one passageway extending through a wall of said crucible; a die for forming wire, associated with said crucible, and adapted to shape molten metal received from said crucible; a closure member associated with said crucible to define an enclosure adapted to contain a gas under pressure; means associated with said closure member for providing gas under pressure to said defined enclosure; a cooling device associated with said crucible and said die and located to receive and cool said shaped metal exiting from said die and means for establishing and maintaining electrical contact with the metal throughout the manufacture, comprising: (a) at least one hot piece, said hot piece being a conductor of heat and electricity, provided in said at least one passageway and sized so as to create a gap between said hot piece and walls defining said at least one passageway, said hot piece including two ends, one end of which extends at least to an interior wall of said crucible; (b) means associated with said hot piece to cool said hot piece, said means to cool said hot piece being located to cool the other end of said hot piece remote from said end which extends at least to said interior wall of said crucible causing said hot piece to function as a heat sink to solidify molten metal which has entered said gap to produce a gas-and-metal-tight seal; (c) a source of electrical current; (d) means associated with said source and attaching one pole of said source with hot piece; (e) means associated with said hot piece for holding said hot piece immobile with respect to said crucible against the pressure created by the presence of any pressurized metal in said crucible; (f) at least one cold piece, said cold piece being a conductor of electricity, connected to another pole of said source of electricity and of a shape and arrangement suitable for assuring electrical contact with said shaped metal; and (g) means provided between said hot piece and said cold piece to electrically insulate said hot piece from said cold piece.