Oxidizer Head Assembly Porous Diffuser Plate SiF4 Abatement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional fluorine abatement processes for silicon tetrafluoride (SiF4) are costly and produce unsuitable liquid waste, requiring additional processing or storage, increasing operating costs and posing challenges for environmental discharge.
Innovation Solution
An oxidizer head assembly with a porous diffuser plate that combusts SiF4 with fuel and shield gas, producing hydrogen fluoride and silicon dioxide, and utilizing a shield gas to thermally insulate and bias resultants away from the oxidizer head assembly, reducing downtime and costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If conventional wet treatment processes are used to abate SiF4, then SiF4 can be treated, but liquid waste is produced requiring further processing or storage, increasing operating costs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the fundamental parameter of the treatment process from wet chemical treatment to dry combustion treatment. By altering the physical-chemical state and mechanism of SiF4 abatement, the system eliminates liquid waste production entirely, converting the process into a dry oxidation reaction that produces solid or gaseous products suitable for direct discharge.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent converts the harmful SiF4 gas into beneficial products through combustion treatment. The SiF4 reacts with oxygen and fuel to produce hydrogen fluoride and silicon dioxide, transforming the hazardous substance into less harmful compounds that can be safely discharged, thereby converting the harm of SiF4 release into a beneficial treatment process.
2Ease of manufacture
If conventional wet treatment processes are used to abate SiF4, then SiF4 can be treated, but additional processing or storage is required, increasing operating costs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the problematic liquid waste step from the treatment process. By using combustion treatment instead of wet treatment, the system removes the need for subsequent liquid waste processing, storage, or discharge treatment, thereby eliminating the time and cost associated with these additional steps.
Solution Approach 2:
The combustion treatment process provides continuous abatement of SiF4 without interruption for waste processing steps. The process continuously converts SiF4 into harmless products as it is released, eliminating the intermittent nature of wet treatment processes that require stopping for waste handling operations.
3Productivity
If oxidizer head assembly with porous diffuser plate is used, then SiF4 can be effectively abated with reduced downtime, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a porous diffuser plate as a key component of the oxidizer head assembly. This porous material distributes the fuel stream uniformly across multiple nozzles, ensuring complete combustion and effective SiF4 abatement. The porous structure provides reliable fuel distribution that maintains continuous operation and reduces downtime despite the added component complexity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The oxidizer head assembly effectively abates SiF4, reducing operational downtime and costs by thermally insulating and redirecting combustion byproducts, facilitating efficient and environmentally compliant waste treatment.
Implementation Method 1
combusting the fuel and the process gas to form resultants including hydrogen fluoride and silicon dioxide
Implementation Method 2
utilizing a shield gas to thermally insulate and bias resultants away from the oxidizer head assembly
Data Source
AI summary
An oxidizer head assembly includes a head body defining an inlet flange, an outlet flange, and a wall, where the inlet flange, the outlet flange, and the wall define a cavity positioned between the inlet flange and the outlet flange, a plurality of nozzles extending through the cavity, a fuel inlet in communication with the plurality of nozzles, where a fuel passes through the fuel inlet and the plurality of nozzles, a shield gas inlet in communication with the cavity, and a porous diffuser plate extending across the outlet opening, the porous diffuser plate including apertures for the plurality of nozzles and a plurality of pores, where a shield gas passes through the shield gas inlet, through the cavity, and through the plurality of pores of the porous diffuser plate around the plurality of nozzles.