Theoretical Analysis and Experimental Study on Natural Settlement of Silicon Particles in Static Water AITranslate
Abstract AITranslate
Diamond wire cutting technology，as a new type of technology，is more efficient，environmentally friendly，and cost-effective compared to mortar cutting technology. Traditional mortar cutting technology has been rapidly replaced by diamond wire cutting technology，becoming the mainstream process for cutting photovoltaic silicon wafer. However，this process will cause 30% to 40% of high-purity silicon to be lost while cutting silicon wafer. This loss of silicon，along with impurities from diamond wire loss，will enter the cutting waste liquid to forming a slurry of silicon wafer cutting waste，the solid content of the slurry is usually 2% to 5%，make it difficult to separate the solid silicon material from the waste slurry. To separate and recover silicon from cutting waste slurry，this paper analyzed the force and settling behavior of silicon in static water under multi particle conditions based on the mechanical mechanism of single particle solid settling and Stokes settling theory. By correcting the settling rate of particle groups in water，the main factors affecting the settling of silicon particles in water were clarified，including particle size，sphericity，and solid content. The silicon particle size range used in the experiment was 0.59 to 3.72 μm，the particle shapes were all irregular，with a sphericity range of 82.2% to 89.4%，and the difference was small. Through empirical formula calculation，various factors were corrected and substituted into the ideal settling velocity formula for a single particle. The research results showed that the sphericity of silicon particles increased the settling time by about 10%，and Reynolds number range of particles was between 1×10−6 and 1×10−4，which was lower than the division range of laminar flow zones. The fluid state was not laminar，and the influence of the fluid on the solid was minimal. The settling of the solid under gravity traction would actually affect the fluid state，and the influence of viscous force in the suspension system was greater than that of inertial force，which was not within the application range of Stokes ideal settlement formula. Therefore，the correction of Reynolds number was not sufficient to reflect the actual settlement situation，and further analysis was needed on the force distribution of particle clusters. The change in solid content could significantly affect the settlement efficiency. When the solid content increased，the settlement speed decreased significantly，and the time required for complete settlement increased rapidly. Moreover，as the solid content increased，the increase in settlement time became larger and larger，the difference in settling time between single particles and 5% solid content was about 20%. When 5% solid content increased to 20% solid content，the settling time increases by about 12 times. However，when the solid content increased from 20% to 32%，the settling time increased by about 100 times. The solid content was the main factor affecting the sedimentation of silicon particles. At the same time，the experimental results showed that the final sedimentation volume of silicon particles was generally larger than their initial solid content due to the influence of porosity，and the sedimentation change of silicon particles was stable at low solid content，and the sedimentation volume change amplitude was large at high solid content. The stable state was achieved more quickly at low particle size and low solid content，and the sedimentation behavior was affected. Within 0~10 d，all particles of silicon particles underwent significant sedimentation changes，due to the relatively small influence of gravity and other forces in the initial stage，a stable suspension was formed. However，as stirring stops and time passed，the influence of gravity became dominant，pulling particles to sink and breaking the stable dispersed system. At this time，the number of suspended particles was the highest，and particles formed agglomerations when sinking，making it easier for these agglomerated particle groups to sink and accumulate. Therefore，in the early stages of the experiment，most of the particles had completed sedimentation，forming a phenomenon where the lower part was sediment and the upper part was suspension. But when most of the particles had completed sedimentation，the remaining small portion of particles were difficult to aggregate and had a smaller particle size. They were uniformly suspended above again，forming a new stable suspension system. The particle group underwent a change in sedimentation form during sedimentation，from initial agglomeration and sedimentation in the middle to uniform dispersion and sedimentation in the middle，ultimately resulting in only particle sedimentation in the initial stage of the experiment，and no obvious particle sedimentation in the subsequent stage. Therefore，In the process of solid-liquid separation and extraction of silicon from silicon wafer cutting waste slurry，reasonable control of its solid content，low solid content，and high agglomeration rate could significantly improve the overall particle size，increase solid gaps，and reduce particle interaction forces，thereby improving the solid-liquid separation efficiency.
KeyWords AITranslate
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Basic Information:
DOI：10.13373/j.cnki.cjrm.XY23120018
Chinese Library Classification Number:TF09
Citation Information:
Diamond wire cutting technology，as a new type of technology，is more efficient，environmentally friendly，and cost-effective compared to mortar cutting technology. Traditional mortar cutting technology has been rapidly replaced by diamond wire cutting technology，becoming the mainstream process for cutting photovoltaic silicon wafer. However，this process will cause 30% to 40% of high-purity silicon to be lost while cutting silicon wafer. This loss of silicon，along with impurities from diamond wire loss，will enter the cutting waste liquid to forming a slurry of silicon wafer cutting waste，the solid content of the slurry is usually 2% to 5%，make it difficult to separate the solid silicon material from the waste slurry. To separate and recover silicon from cutting waste slurry，this paper analyzed the force and settling behavior of silicon in static water under multi particle conditions based on the mechanical mechanism of single particle solid settling and Stokes settling theory. By correcting the settling rate of particle groups in water，the main factors affecting the settling of silicon particles in water were clarified，including particle size，sphericity，and solid content. The silicon particle size range used in the experiment was 0.59 to 3.72 μm，the particle shapes were all irregular，with a sphericity range of 82.2% to 89.4%，and the difference was small. Through empirical formula calculation，various factors were corrected and substituted into the ideal settling velocity formula for a single particle. The research results showed that the sphericity of silicon particles increased the settling time by about 10%，and Reynolds number range of particles was between 1×10−6 and 1×10−4，which was lower than the division range of laminar flow zones. The fluid state was not laminar，and the influence of the fluid on the solid was minimal. The settling of the solid under gravity traction would actually affect the fluid state，and the influence of viscous force in the suspension system was greater than that of inertial force，which was not within the application range of Stokes ideal settlement formula. Therefore，the correction of Reynolds number was not sufficient to reflect the actual settlement situation，and further analysis was needed on the force distribution of particle clusters. The change in solid content could significantly affect the settlement efficiency. When the solid content increased，the settlement speed decreased significantly，and the time required for complete settlement increased rapidly. Moreover，as the solid content increased，the increase in settlement time became larger and larger，the difference in settling time between single particles and 5% solid content was about 20%. When 5% solid content increased to 20% solid content，the settling time increases by about 12 times. However，when the solid content increased from 20% to 32%，the settling time increased by about 100 times. The solid content was the main factor affecting the sedimentation of silicon particles. At the same time，the experimental results showed that the final sedimentation volume of silicon particles was generally larger than their initial solid content due to the influence of porosity，and the sedimentation change of silicon particles was stable at low solid content，and the sedimentation volume change amplitude was large at high solid content. The stable state was achieved more quickly at low particle size and low solid content，and the sedimentation behavior was affected. Within 0~10 d，all particles of silicon particles underwent significant sedimentation changes，due to the relatively small influence of gravity and other forces in the initial stage，a stable suspension was formed. However，as stirring stops and time passed，the influence of gravity became dominant，pulling particles to sink and breaking the stable dispersed system. At this time，the number of suspended particles was the highest，and particles formed agglomerations when sinking，making it easier for these agglomerated particle groups to sink and accumulate. Therefore，in the early stages of the experiment，most of the particles had completed sedimentation，forming a phenomenon where the lower part was sediment and the upper part was suspension. But when most of the particles had completed sedimentation，the remaining small portion of particles were difficult to aggregate and had a smaller particle size. They were uniformly suspended above again，forming a new stable suspension system. The particle group underwent a change in sedimentation form during sedimentation，from initial agglomeration and sedimentation in the middle to uniform dispersion and sedimentation in the middle，ultimately resulting in only particle sedimentation in the initial stage of the experiment，and no obvious particle sedimentation in the subsequent stage. Therefore，In the process of solid-liquid separation and extraction of silicon from silicon wafer cutting waste slurry，reasonable control of its solid content，low solid content，and high agglomeration rate could significantly improve the overall particle size，increase solid gaps，and reduce particle interaction forces，thereby improving the solid-liquid separation efficiency.
quote
| GB/T 7714-2015 | [1] Yang Yang, Yongze Zhu, Shicong Yang, et al. Theoretical Analysis and Experimental Study on Natural Settlement of Silicon Particles in Static Water[J]. Chinese Journal of Rare Metals, 2025, 49(5): 713-725. DOI:10.13373/j.cnki.cjrm.XY23120018. |
| MLA | [1] Yang Yang, et al., "Theoretical Analysis and Experimental Study on Natural Settlement of Silicon Particles in Static Water." Chinese Journal of Rare Metals, vol. 49, no. 5, 2025, pp. 713-725, https://doi.org/10.13373/j.cnki.cjrm.XY23120018. |
| APA | [1] Yang Yang, Yongze Zhu, Shicong Yang, Keqiang Xie, Kuixian Wei, & Wenhui Ma. (2025). Theoretical Analysis and Experimental Study on Natural Settlement of Silicon Particles in Static Water. Chinese Journal of Rare Metals, 49(5), 713-725. https://doi.org/10.13373/j.cnki.cjrm.XY23120018 |
| IEEE | [1] Yang Yang, Yongze Zhu, Shicong Yang, Keqiang Xie, Kuixian Wei, and Wenhui Ma, "Theoretical Analysis and Experimental Study on Natural Settlement of Silicon Particles in Static Water," Chinese Journal of Rare Metals, vol. 49, no. 5, pp. 713-725, 2025, doi: 10.13373/j.cnki.cjrm.XY23120018. keywords: {silicon wafer cutting waste slurry;high purity silicon separation;particle settling;theoretical analysis and experimental research} |