Energy-efficient and low emission silicon carbide recycling
June 1, 2023 – Silicon carbide (SiC) is an very hard material widely used for grinding and polishing, in the form of grinding wheels, polishing and grinding powders and as a coating of sandpaper, but also for the armor of armored vehicles, ceramic plates in bulletproof vests. The extremely hard, heat-resistant material is used for refractory components and semiconductors, for instance. But its production is energy-intensive and emits a lot of carbon dioxide, as well as producing large amounts of by-products and waste products. Researchers at Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems IKTS have developed RECOSiC, an especially environmentally friendly recycling process that turns these by-products and waste products back into high-quality silicon carbide. According to IKTS, this new process improves yields and also reduces the dependency on suppliers of raw materials.
Illustration IKTS
