Cabot Corporation

Haynes International, Inc.

Richard Allen Foster

Arthur H Griebel, Iii

An ingot mold has a body having an open top, a bottom with an opening, and a longitudinal cavity passing through the body. The cavity is defined by a cavity wall extending from the top to the bottom. The cavity wall has a recess adjacent the opening in the bottom of the body. A ceramic insert is positioned within the cavity such that the sidewalls of the ceramic insert are in the recess in the cavity wall.

Mold having ceramic insert

A process for refining metal in a crucible containing a layer of molten slag, wherein molten metal passes downwardly through the slag and resolidifies as an ingot thereunder. The slag is kept molten by passing electrical current through the slag layer and between a first electrode and a second electrode. The second electrode has liquid or gas cooling means as an integral part thereof. Current is passed between the first electrode and the second electrode through at least one electrically conductive member interposed between the slag and the second electrode. The electrically conductive member has a melting temperature above the melting temperature and below the bulk temperature of the slag. A portion of the surface of the electrically conductive member that is in contact with the slag has a temperature above the freezing temperature of the slag. The first electrode may be a consumable electrode which is partially immersed in the layer of molten slag such that it gradually melts, and drops of metal move downwardly therefrom. The second electrode is usually the crucible but may be a non-consumable electrode which is partially immersed in the layer of molten slag.

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Russiaville, IN, United States of America

Richard Allen Foster