Ferrosilicon

Ferro Silicon is an alloy for the manufacture of steel and cast iron, it is also a precursor for producing trichlorosilane and thus a precursor for the production of high-purity silicon for the photovoltaic and semiconductor market.

Use

Ferro silicon is widely used in ferrous metallurgy. In steelmaking ferrosilicon is employed because of the high affinity of silicon for oxygen as a deoxidizer (reducing agent). Furthermore, it is used for the alloy for the production of electrical steel sheets, and heat-resistant steel.

Even more important is ferro- silicon in the cast iron metallurgy. Here it is used for the production of master alloys for the treatment ( modification) of melting of cast iron with spheroidal graphite. These alloys contain from 3 to 42% magnesium and other additives from the family of rare earth metals. FeSi is also the basis for the production of vaccines, which are used to control the solidification process by increasing the number of bacteria in the melt.

In addition, ferro-silicon is used as the reducing agent for extracting metals, such as magnesium, of the oxides.

Production

Ferro Silicon is a derivative product of the electric smelting process of standard corundum. It contains 14-17 % silicon, about 80 % iron and about 2% other components. As another byproduct microsilica falls for the construction industry (see also: High-strength concrete).

Ferrosilicon with a silicon content up to about 15 % is produced in the acid-lined furnace of iron ore and quartz.

FeSi with higher silicon content is extracted from quartz, steel scrap and coke or charcoal in an electric arc furnace.

Commercially available ferrosilicon types contain 45 %, 75 % and 90% silicon, balance iron and about 2 % of other elements such as aluminum and calcium.

Properties

The density and the melting point of FeSi are strongly dependent on the silicon content. The higher Si content is, the lower melting point and density of the alloy.

• Mixture
• Silicon