441 Silicon Metal

【Uses of Silicon】:

Adding industrial silicon to metals such as aluminum and iron can improve or enhance the excellent properties of the metal. The demand for industrial silicon in the automotive (including motorcycles) aluminum industry is quite significant, so the development of the automotive industry in a region directly affects the market prosperity or decline of industrial silicon.

Industrial silicon serves as an additive in non-ferrous alloys. It is also used as an alloying agent for high-grade silicon steel and as a deoxidizer in the smelting of special steels and non-ferrous alloys. After a series of processes, industrial silicon can be drawn into monocrystalline silicon for use in the electronics industry. In the chemical industry, it is used to produce organic silicon, among other applications. Therefore, it is known as the "magic metal" and has a wide range of uses.

【Definition of Silicon】:

Metallic silicon, also known as crystalline silicon or industrial silicon, is primarily used as an additive in non-ferrous alloys. Silicon is a non-metallic element, gray in color with a metallic luster, hard and brittle. Silicon accounts for approximately 26% of the Earth's crust by mass; its atomic weight is 28.80; density is 2.33 g/cm³; melting point is 1410°C; boiling point is 2355°C; resistivity is 2140 Ω·m. Grades of metallic silicon: Based on the content of iron, aluminum, and calcium, metallic silicon can be classified into different grades such as 553, 441, 3303, and 2202. By-products of metallic silicon: include silicon micro powder and metallic silicon slag. Among them, silicon micro powder, also known as silica fume or microsilica, is widely used in the refractory and concrete industries.

【Properties of Silicon】:

Silicon is a semi-metal, formerly known as "silicium." Its melting point is 1420°C, and its density is 2.34 g/cm³. It is hard and brittle. At room temperature, it is insoluble in acids but soluble in alkalis. The properties of metallic silicon are similar to those of germanium, lead, and tin, exhibiting semiconductor characteristics. Silicon is extremely abundant in the Earth's crust, second only to oxygen, accounting for more than a quarter of the crust's total mass, existing in the form of silicon dioxide or silicates. Pure silicon minerals are quartz or silica. Silicon has two allotropes: one is a dark brown amorphous powder, which is reactive and can burn in air; the other is a stable crystalline form (crystalline silicon). Generally, silica and quartz are used in glass and other building materials, while high-quality quartz is used to produce alloys, metals, and monocrystals.