CO₂ Recovery for the Semiconductor Industry
CO₂ is used in a growing range of semiconductor manufacturing and precision cleaning processes. Depending on the application, electronic-grade CO₂ may be used for dry etching, carbon deposition, supercritical CO₂ wafer cleaning and drying, CO₂ snow cleaning, and precision component cleaning.
At these purity levels, overall product quality depends not only on CO₂ concentration but also on the control of moisture, oxygen, hydrocarbons, particles, and other trace contaminants.
YTC designs the recovery and purification system around the customer’s specific gas source, process requirements, required purity, and facility conditions.
From Process Gas to Electronic-Grade CO₂
The YTC system integrates CO₂ recovery with multiple purification stages to convert CO₂-containing process gas into high-purity electronic-grade CO₂.
1. CO₂ Gas Collection
CO₂-containing process gas is collected from the designated process source and transferred to the recovery system under controlled operating conditions.
2. Gas Pretreatment
The incoming gas is pretreated to remove particles, moisture, aerosols, and other contaminants that could affect downstream purification equipment.
3. CO₂ Compression
The pretreated CO₂ gas is compressed to the required operating conditions, providing stable feed conditions for the subsequent purification and liquefaction stages.
4. Advanced Purification
A combination of purification technologies is selected according to the actual impurity profile. The system can target critical contaminants including moisture, oxygen, hydrocarbons, and other trace impurities.
5. Drying and Fine Purification
Advanced adsorption and fine purification processes further reduce residual contaminants to the required electronic-grade specification.
6. CO₂ Liquefaction
The purified CO₂ is cooled and liquefied through an integrated refrigeration and liquefaction system. Liquefaction provides an additional separation stage for non-condensable components.
7. Final Purification and Quality Control
Additional purification stages can be incorporated where required to achieve the customer’s specific product specification. Continuous online monitoring helps verify stable CO₂ quality during operation.
8. Electronic-Grade CO₂ Storage and Supply
The purified liquid CO₂ is stored under controlled conditions and supplied to the semiconductor facility according to production demand and process requirements.
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Critical Impurity Control
For electronic-grade CO₂, controlling trace impurities is as important as achieving high CO₂ purity.
YTC systems can be engineered to control:
• Moisture (H₂O)
• Oxygen (O₂)
• Total hydrocarbons (THC)
• Particles
• Other process-specific trace contaminants
The final impurity limits are determined according to the customer’s process specification and applicable standards.
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Why Recover Electronic-Grade CO₂ On Site?
- Improve Supply Security
On-site recovery can reduce dependence on external electronic-grade CO₂ suppliers and long-distance transportation, helping semiconductor facilities maintain a more secure and stable CO₂ supply.
- Reduce Contamination Risk
Recovering and purifying CO₂ on site can reduce the number of transportation, transfer, and handling steps associated with externally supplied high-purity gas.
- Support Sustainability Goals
Recovering and reusing CO₂ that would otherwise be discharged can reduce the need for newly produced and transported CO₂ while supporting fab sustainability and carbon management objectives.
- Improve Cost Efficiency
Reducing external CO₂ consumption can lower the long-term cost of electronic-grade CO₂ supply. Project economics depend on plant capacity, CO₂ consumption, operating conditions, and local gas prices.
- Ensure Consistent Quality
Integrated purification, automatic control, and continuous online monitoring help maintain stable and traceable CO₂ quality throughout operation.
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Engineered for Demanding Fab Environments
- Ultra-High Purity
CO₂ purity up to 99.99999% (7N), with critical impurities controlled according to the customer’s required specification.
- Continuous Online Monitoring
PLC-based automatic control and online purity monitoring provide continuous supervision of key operating and product-quality parameters.
- Customized Facility Integration
The system is engineered around the fab’s CO₂ demand, process conditions, available utilities, gas source, and existing gas supply infrastructure.
- Scalable Capacity
The system can be customized for different production requirements, from smaller pilot and R&D applications to large-scale semiconductor manufacturing facilities.
- Reliable Continuous Operation
Integrated process control, purification, and monitoring systems are designed for stable and reliable operation in demanding industrial environments.
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Electronic-Grade CO₂ Applications
Depending on the required product specification, recovered electronic-grade CO₂ can support applications including:
• Semiconductor dry etching
• Carbon deposition
• Supercritical CO₂ wafer cleaning and drying
• CO₂ snow and precision cleaning
• Optical and precision component cleaning
• Other advanced semiconductor and electronics manufacturing processes
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YTC Electronic-Grade CO₂ Solution
YTC combines 20+ years of experience in CO₂ recovery and purification with advanced process engineering to provide customized electronic-grade CO₂ solutions for demanding industrial applications.
From gas recovery and pretreatment to ultra-high-purity purification, liquefaction, storage, and online monitoring, YTC provides an integrated solution tailored to the customer’s process requirements.
With 200+ CO₂ projects completed worldwide, YTC provides engineering, equipment manufacturing, installation, commissioning, and technical support for projects across different markets and operating environments.
Our approach is focused on one objective: recover CO₂ efficiently, control critical impurities precisely, and provide a stable electronic-grade CO₂ supply for advanced manufacturing.
