Slashdot Mirror
Silicon Seduced From Silica
Roland Piquepaille writes "Making silicon is an expensive process, which conventionally involves carbothermal reduction, in which the oxygen is removed from silica by a heterogeneous-homogeneous reaction sequence at approximately 1,700 C. Now, Japanese researchers have developed a new technique which uses electricity to remove the oxygen from silica. Their technique is based on the immersion of silica in a bath of molten calcium chloride salt at 850 C, which should reduce the costs of making silicon -- and other elements, like zirconium. Check this column for a summary or read this article from Nature for additional details."
So, like, when do the divorce proceedings begin? How could he DO that to poor Silica?
My journal has hot
I was going to ask if this was going to make the price of breast implants drop low enough so that the procedure would be available to all the women that would want it; for example, to the point where one could simply hand out gift certificates. Then I realized that modern boobs are now just saline solution, and the high price must come from the "doctors" performing the procedure itself.
Mmmmm... Brine. Delicious brine.
Small potatoes make the steak look bigger.
I am seduced by silicon babes too!
Silly Slashdot, silicon seldom slides off silica in a salt steam salon!
reduce the costs of making silicon -- and other elements, like zirconium
Fake diamonds and fake racks drop in price, the pr0n wars begin! Scratching and clawing for territory, kicking for market share, it is an all girl-on-girl cage match!
Eve Fairbanks says I drive a hybrid!LOL
Right, that is how the semiconductor world typically works. This has kept computer prices at the same level since the seventies and ensured the current situation where there are only a few thousand computers in the world. Imagine if prices on IC's had been allowed to fall - there might have been a computer in front of me now. Or maybe someone would even have managed to create a digital watch!
Finally! A year of moderation! Ready for 2019?
Actually, the Japanese had similar oxygen destroying technology since 1954, unfortunately, the discoverer Dr. Serizawa chose to commit suicide rather than risk having the technology made into a weapon. The technology was rediscovered in the 1990s, unfortunately, the manner in which it was re-revealed to the world led to unfavorable publicity. Only now has the furor died down enough for oxygen destroying technology to finally realize its potential.
Hehe.. unless you find pure silicon somewhere, you will have to extract it from silicon oxide.. so, you don't make elements, you just extract them. BTW, 'making elements' is no longer called alchemy, it's called nuclear physics nowadays. :)
"It's too bad that stupidity isn't painful." - Anton LaVey
At last a solution to all the trolling problems on slashdot.
t ml.
;-)
you see trolls are made of silica and other elements found in igneous rocks(the stuff mountains are made of).
75% to 45% of the average igneous rock is silica http://www.geog.ouc.bc.ca/physgeog/contents/10e.h
therefore trolls are more than 45% (and maybe as much as 75%) silica.
turn the heat up on trolls, and create the raw materials for more computers.
sparkes
PS. or alternativly lets just contine to ignore them
blog and junk
There's something ironic about that... ;)