Method of heating and melting metal and apparatus for melting metal

Abstract

A metal material such as scraps of metal is directly heated by electromagnetic induction, and the resulting molten metal is fed to a heatup zone where the molten metal is further heated to a required temperature. More specifically, the metal material to be melted, which has been charged into a heat and melt zone, is preheated and melted by an induction coil, and the molten metal is passed via a connection portion to the heatup zone, and is stored there. The thus accumulated molten metal is further heated by an induction coil to a necessary temperature. The molten metal is taken out of the furnace by opening a tap hole when this is desired. Various kinds of gases can be selectively introduced into the apparatus via an gas inlet. By keeping the tap hole in an open condition, the molten metal can be continuously taken out of the furnace. With the induction heating method which has heretofore enabled only an intermittent melting operation, the metal material can be continuously melted and taken out. Furthermore, the atmosphere in which the melting operation is effected can be freely controlled, and therefore the melting operation can be carried out highly efficiently. Moreover, zinc in a zinc-coated steel sheet can be separated and recovered by placing cooling plates in the heat and melt zone.