- Insight
Water shortages and the semiconductor industry
How are fabricators preparing for peak demand?
Increasing demand for semiconductors means fabricators are looking to rapidly expand capacity. To maintain this pace of growth, processes such as wastewater treatment need to be efficient, durable and sustainable.
Semiconductors power the digital world in almost every sector. Worldwide demand is forecast to hit some 1.14 trillion units in 2021, according to the McClean Report 2021. 1
However, a shortage of semiconductors is creating challenges for the supply chain in industries from video gaming to cars. This can, in part, be related to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has changed global patterns of consumption of electronic goods, but it is not the only factor.
Peter Singer, editor-in-chief of Semiconductor Digest, says the shortage of semiconductor wafers is expected to last a couple of years, but the outlook for the sector overall is very positive.
“The variety of applications continues to drive semiconductor technology,” he says, “with agriculture, datacentres, cyber technology, quantum computing, AI, IoT, medicine all needing more. There is huge demand and developers will continue to bring semiconductor sizes down.”
Recognising the need to be sustainable
Semiconductor production requires significant water and energy, much of which is treated and discharged as wastewater. As manufacturers seek to upscale production and build new facilities to meet unprecedented levels of demand, it is important to remind the industry about the importance of efficient wastewater treatment.
Semiconductor fabrication involves a wide and complex range of slurries and chemicals that require tough wastewater separation, treatment and reclamation systems. The challenge of handling these sludges, that include metals and other hazardous waste substances, can involve significant cost from implementing environmental regulations such as the China Wastewater Discharge Standards.
Compounds involved in semiconductor production include hydrofluoric acid for cleaning and etching photosensitive components and ammonia, ammonium fluoride, hydrogen peroxide and hydrochloric, sulfuric and phosphoric acids, which are used for rinsing. Washing the semiconductor wafers is the most water intensive part of the process and produces fluorine-rich wastewater that requires neutralising with lime.
A new semiconductor fab in China, which is a joint venture with Wuxi City, produces semiconductors for domestic appliances and uses a range of Watson-Marlow Fluid Technology Group (WMFTG) Bredel hose pumps for pumping calcium hydroxide/lime. The pumps are effective for this application where the highly abrasive solution is transferred some distance through pipelines at a 4-5 bar discharge pressure in a continuous 24/7 operation.
The Bredel hose pump advantage
In Bredel hose pumps, which are both dry running and self-priming, the fluid being transported is only in contact with the hose, making it ideal for handling abrasive chemicals, such as lime. Consistent flow rates are guaranteed over the life of the hose, even with varying viscosities and temperatures.
Furthermore, these pumps include a rotor design which does not rely on the gearbox shaft for support. Heavy duty bearings within the pump rotor itself, plus a unique buffer zone, protect gearing from overhung loads and even contamination by the pumped fluid, should a hose failure take place. With such a design, these pumps provide trouble-free operation in continuous processes such as those in the semiconductor wastewater treatment plant where equipment failures are not acceptable.
The global expansion of semiconductor production and the risk water scarcity poses to production in this water intensive industry means a focus on sustainable operations is essential. The high quality of rinse-water means it can be recovered for reuse and the industry trend is towards closing the cycle on wastewater and process water.
One leading fabricator aims to reclaim an average of 62,000m3/d of water from its operations in South Korea by channelling treated wastewater discharged from older facilities into an advanced integrated wastewater treatment facility. While US technology company Intel has plans to become net-positive on water by 2030, according to its sustainability plan.
The scale of the challenge on water and wastewater facing the semiconductor industry is great, but with peristaltic pumps, precise chemical dosing is becoming easier, leading to savings on chemical consumption. As processes scale and become more complex for water reuse, it becomes more important than ever to install robust equipment that optimises efficiency and greatly reduces maintenance and downtime.
In a separate process, semiconductors are tested extensively using specialised equipment which subjects them to high temperatures and vibration. High volumes of hydrofluoroether (HFE) at -60oC is used as a coolant. At one test centre, the hoses used to transfer the coolant were showing signs of chemical attack and were cracking, with further issues of the end fittings detaching from the hoses inside the equipment, leading to leaks and stoppages.
Equipment designers subsequently installed Aflex Hyperline transfer hoses to handle the HFE coolant. These long life and extremely durable chemical-resistant hoses now form an essential component in the test equipment, minimising disruption to the semiconductor testing.
A 2020 report from the US Semiconductor Industry Association says that of the six semiconductor fabrication facilities that opened globally in 2019, four were built in China. Last year the Government of China made its biggest investment into the sector yet with some 204 billion yuan (£22.6 billion) – put into the National Integrated Circuits Industry Investment Fund.
As the world’s biggest consumer of semiconductors, China is determined to transform its domestic fabrication capability by prioritising semiconductors in its industrial strategy and to become a global leader in all segments of the industry by 2030.