A European consortium is making an attempt to reuse discarded silicon powder from ingot and wafer manufacturing in a number of industrial functions, together with PV manufacturing. The group is now figuring out methods to decontaminate these supplies.
A world consortium led by the Norwegian analysis institute Sintef is making an attempt to reuse silicon powder, which is often thought-about waste, in ingot and wafer manufacturing for varied industrial high-end functions, together with photo voltaic panel manufacturing.
The group works below the umbrella of the EU-funded Icarus undertaking, which goals to develop modular processing options to get well 95% of high-value uncooked supplies from silicon ingot and wafer manufacturing by way of fluidized mattress (FBR) reactors primarily based on the so-called Siemens course of.
“It’s doable to get well this materials as a part of the manufacturing course of,” mentioned researcher Martin Bellmann. “And possibly it would allow us to construct a brand new solar-based trade in Europe.”
Bellmann describes the discarded sawdust silicon powder as “black gold” and says that about 35% of the silicon in ingot and wafer manufacturing is misplaced after the tempering course of. This powder might be saved in a liquid sludge combination containing contaminants from the sawing course of equivalent to oxygen, carbon, nickel, iron, and aluminum.
“Silicon contaminated with these metals isn’t good for photo voltaic panel manufacturing,” Bellmann mentioned, noting that the consortium is presently figuring out methods to decontaminate the fabric. “Some colleagues try alternative ways to separate the silicon from the contaminated combination.”
The consortium additionally desires to reuse the quartz crucibles used to soften silicon for the manufacturing of silicon carbide.
“Usually, we use so-called high-purity quartz to make silicon carbide, however it’s very costly,” Bellmann mentioned. “Our thought is that it is doable to switch high-purity quartz with crucible waste, which is actually high-purity quartz”
The consortium contains Norway’s Northern Silicon AS, French PV recycling specialist Rosi Photo voltaic, Italy’s Magneti Marelli Spa, and Germany’s bifa Umweltinstitut GmbH.
This content material is protected by copyright and is probably not reused. If you wish to cooperate with us and need to reuse a few of our content material, please contact: editors@pv-magazine.com.
