Húsavík (Iceland)/Duisburg, May 2018. The official start of production of the new silicon metal plant of PCC BakkiSilicon hf, Húsavík, took place on May 11, 2018 with the first tapping. Silicon metal is extracted from quartzite at very high temperatures in electric arc furnaces with the addition of wood chip and coal. The new plant was initially commissioned last week when an arc was struck between the electrodes of the first of two smelting units. The temperature was then continuously raised, with the furnace then receiving its mixed charge of quartzite, low-ash coal, wood chip and limestone. Eleven days later, after reaching the operating temperature of 2,000 degrees Celsius, the first tapping of liquid silicon metal took place.
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