This process eliminates the need for hot-mill rolling, thus saving energy and capital costs. The savings are greater for stainless because it often is cast at one place, transported elsewhere for rolling, and perhaps transported again for finishing. Carbon steel often is cast, rolled, and finished at the same facility. Gage control in strip casting is difficult because molten steel is poured through a very thin space. Maintaining precise control over the roll gap is vital.
Rolls also expand as they become hotter.
Operators of strip casters also must overcome surface cracks and wrinkles. In thick-slab casting, the first millimeter might be removed by oxidation. The first milliseconds of contact between molten steel and the casting roll are critical in preventing cracks in the strip. The council is the research arm of Projet Bessemer, a consortium of six Canadian steel producers that's studying strip casting. These can cause surface defects or cracks.