The Effect of Calcium Oxide Addition on the Removal of Metal Impurities from Metallurgical-Grade Silicon by Acid Leaching

The removal of metal impurities from metallurgical grade silicon (MG-Si) by acid leaching has been investigated with the addition of CaO. Prior to adding CaO, Fe is the main impurity in the MG-Si sample, and the 2nd-phase precipitates in silicon are Si-Fe-based alloys, such as Si-Fe, Si-Fe-Ti, Si-Fe-Al, Si-Fe-Mn, and Si-Fe-Ni. The phases of Si-Fe and Si-Fe-Ti are not appreciably soluble in HCl. After the introduction of CaO, Ca becomes the dominant impurity, and the 2nd-phase precipitates become Si-Fe-based alloys, such as Si-Ca, Si-Ca-(Fe, Ti, Ni, Al), and Si-Ca-Fe-Al. These are effectively leached with HCl. Therefore, the HCl leaching effect on the removal of metal impurities has been improved. The optimum content of Ca in the MG-Si samples after adding CaO is in the range of 1 pct to 4 pct, the contents of Fe, Al, Ti, and Ni have been decreased to a minimum of less than 5 ppmw (ppm by weight) each, and the acid leaching results do not show a dependence on Ca content at this range.