Jul 9 2010
Pall Corporation (NYSE: PLL), a global leader in filtration, separation and purification, today announced that its Pall Aria water reclaim system has been selected as a finalist for SEMICON West’s Sustainable Technologies Award.
These fully-automated, membrane filtration systems, which typically recover over 90% of spent process water from silicon processing operations, have been installed at customer sites throughout the world. The award recognizes equipment, materials or services that contribute to sustainable improvement of the environment.
The Pall Aria water reclaim system typically recovers 90% of spent process water from silicon processing operations.
Pall Aria systems reclaim water from silicon processing operations such as backgrinding of patterned wafers in semiconductor production and shaping of silicon ingots prior to wafering in crystalline solar cell manufacturing. Large quantities of water (up to 68 m3/h or 300 gallons per minute) are required for these sawing and grinding applications. By decreasing water consumption, these systems not only reduce wastewater discharge volumes, but lower operating costs as well.
The Pall Aria reclaim system enables solar cell wafer manufacturers to economically switch from tap water to high purity deionized (DI) water by reutilizing 90% of the water and requiring only a small make-up unit. When using DI water, sawing and grinding tools produce smoother wafer surfaces and operate more efficiently and at higher speeds. Another benefit of using low conductivity water is that silicon particles remain in suspension, minimizing settling in tanks and pipes, which can cause scaling and fouling of machine tools. As a result, cleaning chemicals and maintenance can be sharply reduced and longer equipment service life can be achieved.
A 15% or more decrease in greenhouse gas emissions and a reduction in energy costs are achievable using Pall Aria reclaim systems. Savings on utility, chemical and discharge costs, along with greater manufacturing efficiencies, typically enable a return on investment in 1-1.5 years.
“We’re gratified to be chosen as a finalist for the Sustainable Technologies Award for our Pall Aria water reclaim systems, which help conserve water and raw materials used in silicon processing. These systems enable manufacturers to reduce their cost-of-ownership and lower their energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions,” said Jon Weiner, president, Pall Microelectronics.
Source: http://www.pall.com/