One way to withstand this price pressure is significantly to reduce nitrogen consumption and the energy required to produce it. Nitrogen is the most commonly used medium in the semiconductor manufacturing process. In large FABs, nitrogen consumption can be up to 50,000 cubic meters per hour. Among other things, nitrogen is used to purge FOUPs to create a controlled, contamination-free environment for wafers that are transported from one machine to the next for processing.
By carefully analyzing those areas in a factory where nitrogen is used, you could make considerable savings in a short space of time. Especially when rinsing FOUPs, there are many opportunities to use nitrogen more effectively by dispensing it using closed-loop control. Compared to conventional valves, piezoelectric flush valves feature highly precise dispensing, and at the same time consume extremely little power. With appropriate systems, the nitrogen consumption of a large FAB and the associated energy consumption and CO2 emissions can be significantly reduced.
