Refining of Silicon by Fractional Melting Process

Fractional Melting에 의한 Si 정련에 관한 연구

Fractional melting process involves heating an alloy within its liquid-solid region simultaneously ejecting liquid from the solid-liquid mixture. The extent of the purification obtained is comparable to that obtained in multi-pass zone refining. The new fractional melting process in which centrifugal force was used for separating the liquid from the mixture has been developed and applied to the purification of the metallic grade. Refining ratio depends on partition ratio, cake wetness and diffusion in the solid, and it was controlled by various processing parameters such as rotating speed and heating rate. The new parameter called "refining partition coefficient" has been suggested to estimate the effects of processing variables on the refining ratio. Because major impurities in MG-silicon such as Fe, Al, Ni have a low segregation coefficient, good purification effect is expected. The results of refining MG-silicon(98%) showed that 3N-Si was obtained in refined solid of 50% of the original sample.