Apparatus for continuously cooling heated metal plate

Claim 1

In an apparatus for continuously cooling a heated metal plate lying horizontally, which comprises: an upper cooling water ejecting means, arranged above said metal plate along at least one straight line parallel to the width direction of said metal plate, for substantially vertically ejecting cooling water onto the upper surface of said metal plate; an upper nozzle header for supplying cooling water to said upper cooling water ejecting means; at least one water tank, arranged below said metal plate, for receiving cooling water; a lower cooling water ejecting means having a lower cooling water ejecting bore, arranged in said water tank along at least one straight line parallel to the width direction of said metal plate, said lower cooling water ejecting bore being located under the surface of cooling water received in said water tank, said lower cooling water ejecting means ejecting, in the form of a jet stream, cooling water from said lower cooling water ejecting bore together with cooling water received in said water tank, substantially vertically onto the lower surface of said metal plate, said jet stream after ejection onto the lower surface of said metal plate being totally collected into said water tank; and, a lower nozzle header for supplying cooling water to said lower cooling water ejecting means; the improvement comprising: a jet stream guide duct (8, 8') arranged substantially vertically between said lower cooling water ejecting means and the lower surface of said metal plate (3) so as to surround said jet stream (7), the lower portion of said jet stream guide duct being immersed into cooling water received in said water tank (4), the lowermost end of said jet stream guide duct being close to said lower cooling water ejecting bore of said lower cooling water ejecting means, and the uppermost end of said jet stream guide duct being spaced apart from the lower surface of said metal plate (3).