Leaching kinetic mechanism of iron from the diamond wire saw silicon powder by HCl

Abstract

The diamond wire saw silicon powder (DWSSP) is considered to be a harmful to the environment because of finer particles, the large specific surface area and flammability. Removal of Fe impurity is very essential for recovering Si from DWSSP due to the large amount of Fe introduced during the silicon powder generation process. In the study, the thermodynamics of Fe leaching with HCl was analyzed and determined iron was theoretically present as ions in solution. Furthermore, the effects of different concentrations, temperatures and liquid-solid ratios on Fe leaching from HCl were investigated. The leaching rate of Fe reached 98.37% at the optimal parameters (HCl concentration of 12 wt%, leaching temperature of 333 K, liquid-solid ratio of 15 ml/g) with 100 min. The leaching kinetics of Fe in HCl was analyzed by shrinking core model and homogeneous model, respectively. The study indicated the process of leaching Fe from DWSSP conforms to the secondary reaction model of homogeneous model which coincided with the porous structure of DWSSP due to agglomeration. The apparent activation energy required (49.398 kJ/mol) in the first stage is lower than that (57.817 kJ/mol) in the second stage because of the porous structure. In conclusion, this paper provided a suitable way to purify the diamond wire saw silicon powder. This work provides an important guide for the industrial recovery and preparation of high purity silicon from DWSSP by the most environment-friendly and low-cost approach.

Keywords: Diamond wire saw silicon powder; Fe removal; HCl leaching; Kinetic mechanism; Recovery and purification.