Next incident at Wacker’s U.S. polysilicon plant: fire extinguished
20 months after a severe hydrogen explosion, Wacker’s U.S. polysilicon plant near Charleston, Tennessee has experienced another incident: On Saturday, May 4, at 1:20 am a fire was reported on the 4th Floor of the factory’s waste water treatment building.
The same day at 9:38 am, the Bradley County Sheriff twittered: “Smoke and water vapor is present in the area. Air quality tests being done regularly have shown zero parts per million and no chemical residue in the air.” Half an hour later, he announced: “The fire has been extinguished.”
The fire adds to a list of incidents that happened at the factory since it started up in early 2016:
- Oct. 3, 2016: A faulty gasket at one of the distillation columns is discovered; no chemical spill occurrs.
- Aug. 30, 2017: A release of chlorosilanes causes burns to five workers.
- Sep. 7, 2017: Chlorosilanes escape from two leaks after a faulty piston has caused the explosion of a hydrogen compressor; 13 people are treated at hospitals.
The Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration has already charged Wacker with $45,400 in fines for nine violations of rules.
Get more information ...
- on the background and ranking of the world’s top ten producers: polysilicon manufacturers
- on the Siemens process, FBR technology and UMG silicon: polysilicon production processes
- on the application of polysilicon in semiconductors and solar cells: polysilicon uses
- on the size, shares and trends of the market and China’s role: polysilicon market analysis
- on the current polysilicon spot price, charts, price forecast and history: polysilicon price trend
Gain in-depth insight – with the Polysilicon Market Outlook 2024
- Benefit from 76 pages full of rich data, in-depth analyses and detailed forecasts on the polysilicon, solar and semiconductor industries
- Learn all about the latest developments of polysilicon manufacturing technologies (Siemens process, fluidized bed reactor, upgraded metallurgical-grade silicon)
- Obtain comprehensive data on production volumes and capacities of 42 solar-grade and electronic-grade polysilicon plants from 2016 through 2024
- Gain insight into decisive market trends, based on four sophisticated scenarios of supply and demand through 2024
- Get valuable guidance with cash cost data on 25 solar-grade polysilicon plants and spot price forecasts through 2024
Learn all about the polysilicon market
Comments
Add a comment