Reclaimed water for the semiconductor industry

The centerpiece of the UPW system is a permeate-staged reverse osmosis plant. The three-stage system ensures 3 x 50% redundancy. (Photo: Hager + Elsässer)

The water and wastewater treatment specialist Hager + Elsässer has been awarded the contract for the development and construction of a pure water system in Russia. The system for the treatment of pure water (English: Ultra Pure Water / abbreviated UPW) is one of the largest projects realized so far for the semiconductor industry in Russia. The UPW system, which is being built as part of a new facility for a state-of-the-art wafer manufacturer, is expected to produce 100 m³ of pure water per hour in the future. The water is needed for the production of around 15,000 wafer starts per month. Hager + Elsässer convinced the client with a system concept that requires significantly fewer chemicals for water treatment than other technologies. The multi-stage process also ensures the effective removal of boron to meet the recommended guidelines according to the ITRS Roadmap (ITRS = International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors). The commissioning of the plant is planned for mid-2014.

The semiconductor company will manufacture chips with a feature size between 65 and 90 nanometers in the future. For products of this size, the requirements for pure water are particularly high. Because: the smaller the nanometer range of the products being manufactured, the higher the purity of the water required for the manufacturing process. The quality of the pure water always has a decisive influence on product quality and manufacturing efficiency in the semiconductor industry.

The Hager + Elsässer system complies with the latest UPW standards and guarantees compliance with UPW specifications for ions in the ppt range, as well as the lowest limits for particles and total organic carbon (TOC).

Using several treatment stages, the water is brought to the required quality. For pretreatment of the raw water, a multi-media filter and an activated carbon filter are used. In the "Make-up" process step, the pre-treated water is freed from unwanted particles, organic and inorganic contaminants, and ions through a combination of reverse osmosis and electrodeionization (EDI). A special "Boron Polisher" is used to meet the boron specifications. Finally, the treated water is purified in a last cleaning stage, the so-called "Polishing" loop.

Hager + Elsässer is among the market leaders for UPW and wastewater systems for the microelectronics and semiconductor industry in Russia. In this highly demanding water treatment industry, the company offers system concepts for the entire water cycle – from pure water treatment to recycling, reclaim, and wastewater systems.