Method and apparatus for preparing a metal or metal-alloy product for a casting process

The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for preparing a metal or metal-alloy product for a casting process-wherein the product is brought into a partly solidified (semi-solidified) state before casting-in which the product contains crystallization nuclei uniformly distributed throughout its volume. The method involves introducing an amount of a chosen alloy (in pulverized form) and an amount of a chosen melt, which is at a temperature above the liquefaction temperature of the alloy, into a crystallization vessel, which is heated to below the liquefaction temperature of the alloy, and mixing the melt and the alloy together in the crystallization vessel by means of electrical and/or magnetic forces to create the desired product.