Silicon metal is the base material for so many products; hence, it has an important role in industrial and consumer sectors. Presently, the use of silicon metal for producing aluminum alloys holds the largest share in the total silicon metal production. Aluminum alloys are used in producing automotive components and aerospace products. Silicon improves the strength, castability, and brittleness of the alloy; thereby, enhancing the alloy’s use for an increasing range of high-performance parts. The demand for silicon in the transport sector has grown significantly as a result of increase in use of aluminum-based parts as replacements for heavier steel or iron parts in automotive applications. Further, increasing versatility of silicones, a key application of silicon metal, also drives the demand for silicon metal.

Silicon metal is used as the base material for silicone that has a diversified range of applications such as sealants, lubricants, gaskets & seals, food additives, and cosmetics. Polysilicon, a product of silicon metal, is the base material for solar cells and semiconductor wafers. Silicon Metal is known as a semi-metallic or metalloid, having several of the characteristics of metals. It is the second most abundant element in the Earth's crust after oxygen, naturally occurring in various forms of silicon dioxide or silicates and very rarely in its pure form in volcanic exhalations.

Most metallurgical silicon metal is used as an alloying agent in the aluminium industry due to its ability to increase the strength of aluminium. Demand from the aluminium industry has grown steadily in recent years due to increased usage of aluminium in structural engineering, aircraft manufacture and the automotive industry. Aluminium alloys are lighter and more resistant to corrosion than carbon-steel and can be made by addition of metals such as copper, zinc, magnesium, manganese as well as silicon.

What Is Silicon And Where Do I Use It?

• Silicon metal (symbol Si), in its pure form, is a grey metallically lustrous metalloid element. Metallurgical grade silicon is known as silicon metal because of its lustrous appearance.
• Silicon is used mainly in the manufacture of silanes and silicones, as a “hardener” or alloying element to produce aluminium alloys, and in the manufacture of micro-processors and solar cells.
• Silicon is also used as a secondary smelting additive in the manufacture of photonic devices and in the manufacture of industrial refractories.
• Silicon metal is commonly produced by smelting submerged electric arc furnaces, which is an energy-intensive process. Further processing of the material into different product grades makes it applicable in many industry processes.
• The industry is investing in R&D, a.o. for the development of high value silicon bound to the photovoltaic market, and in the battery applications.