Hot crack is one of common defects in castings, which often results in failure of castings. This work studies the formation of hot crack during cold crucible continuous casting by means of experiments and theoretical analysis. The results show that hot crack occurs on the surface and in the circumference of ingots, where the solidified shell and the solidification front meet each other. The tendency of hot cracking decreases with the increase of withdrawal velocities in some extent. The hot crack is caused mainly by the friction force between the shell and the crucible inner wall, and it takes place when the stress resulting from friction exceeds the tensile strength of the shell. The factors of μ_m, η_t, η_s and η_m, affecting hot cracks are analyzed and verified. In order to decrease the tendency of hot cracks, technical parameters should be optimized by decreasing μ_m, η_t, η_s and η_m. This work studies the formation of hot crack during cold crucible continuous casting by means of experiments and theoretical analysis. The results show that hot crack occurs on the surface and in the circumference of ingots, where the solidified shell and the solidification front meet each other. The tendency of hot-cracking decreases with the increase of withdrawal velocities in some extent. The hot crack is caused mainly by the friction force between the shell and the crucible inner wall, and it takes place when the stress caused from friction exceeds the tensile strength of the shell. The factors of μ_m, η_t, η_s and η_m, affecting hot cracks are analyzed and verified. In order to decrease the tendency of hot cracks, The technical parameters should be optimized by decreasing μ_m, η_t, η_s and η_m.