Edwards develops upgraded gas abatement system for PV production February, 2010: UK-based Edwards Ltd. has upgraded its Spectra Z series for exhaust treatment solutions in solar cell and flat-panel display production with the Spectra ZW. © Edwards Ltd.  Upgraded system: The Spectra ZW, which includes a wet scrubbing system for treating process gasses, is an upgraded version of the Spectra Z, pictured here. The new version has an integrated wet scrubber that eliminates the need for a dust filter and secondary scrubber. Instead, process gasses such as nitrogen trifluoride (NF3) and fluorine (F2) are converted into hydrofluoric acid (HF) waste. In addition to cell production, the tool is also designed to handle gas exhausted from equipment used to produce flat-panel displays above generation 8. Stewart Davidson, product manager for the Spectra line, claims that the Spectra ZW can attain up-times of 99 percent. Davidson adds that the machine can handle gas flow rates up to 800 standard liters per minute (slm) and under certain circumstances up to 1,000 slm, depending on the process gas recipe. The chambers are made of corrosion-free stainless steel material to increase the life of the system. The machine, equipped with up to six process gas inlets, uses methane gas as its fuel, consuming 50 to 90 l per minute, depending on the number of inlets and processes. It also has a very nominal consumption of nitrogen gas used to activate the valves. The Spectra ZW is equipped with a powder handling system that eliminates most of the clogging issues. Depending on the powder removal efficiency required, Davidson says that the standard product can eliminate from 40 to 60 percent of the powder. However, the company can also build a wet electrostatic precipitator (WESP) – approved under the German air quality regulation, TA LUFT – into the unit for capturing 99 percent of the silica powder produced during abatement. Edwards’ new model is also equipped with a four-stage combustion system, which ensures that the oxidation of silane occurs in the middle of the combustion zone away from the inlets, thus preventing the deposition of silica powders on the combustor nozzles. The Spectra ZW, which comes with a large touchscreen display for monitoring and controlling, is designed for easy communication between the vacuum pumps, process tool and factory monitoring system. To ensure quick maintenance, all of the mechanical components are easily accessible on the left side of the system, while the electrical components are located at the front. Edwards has priced the Spectra ZW at €160,000 ($229,900). Edwards Ltd. Manor Royal Crawley, West Sussex, RH10 9LW, UK phone +44/8459/212223, fax 534149 info@edwardsvacuum.com www.edwardsvacuum.com Dennis Richard © PHOTON International, February 2010 Duplicate only with allowance of PHOTON Europe GmbH, Aachen, Germany  back