What are the uses of silicon metal?

Silicon is used in large quantities to be smelted into ferrosilicon alloy as an alloying element in the iron and steel industry, and as a reducing agent in the smelting of many metals. Silicon is also a good component in aluminum alloys, and most cast aluminum alloys contain silicon. Silicon is the raw material of ultra-pure silicon in the electronics industry. Electronic devices made of ultra-pure semiconductor monocrystalline silicon have the advantages of small size, light weight, good reliability and long life.

High-power transistors, rectifiers and solar cells made of silicon single crystals doped with specific trace impurities are better than those made of germanium single crystals. Research on amorphous silicon solar cells is progressing rapidly, with a conversion rate of over 8%. The silicon molybdenum rod electric heating element can be used at a maximum temperature of 1700°C, with resistance to aging and good oxidation resistance. The trichlorosilane produced from silicon can be formulated with hundreds of silicone resin lubricants and waterproof compounds.

In addition, silicon carbide can be used as an abrasive, and quartz tubes made of high-purity silicon oxide are important materials for high-purity metal smelting and lighting fixtures. Paper in the 1980s—Silicon People call silicon "paper in the 1980s." This is because paper can only record information, while silicon can not only record information, but also process information to obtain new information.

The world's first electronic computer manufactured in 1945 is equipped with 18,000 electron tubes, 70,000 resistors, and 10,000 capacitors. The entire machine weighs 30 tons and covers an area of 170 square meters, equivalent to the size of 10 houses. However, today's electronic computers, due to technological progress and improvements in materials, can hold tens of thousands of transistors on a silicon chip the size of a fingernail; and have a series of functions such as input, output, calculation, storage and control of information. Microporous calcium silicate thermal insulation material Microporous calcium silicate thermal insulation material is an excellent thermal insulation material.

It has the characteristics of small heat capacity, high mechanical strength, low thermal conductivity, non-combustible, non-toxic, tasteless, cuttable, and convenient transportation. It can be widely used in various thermal equipment and pipelines such as metallurgy, electric power, chemical industry, and ships. After testing, the energy-saving benefits are better than thermal insulation materials such as asbestos, cement, vermiculite and cement perlite. Special calcium silicate materials can be used as catalyst carriers and are widely used in petroleum refining and automobile exhaust purification.