PyroGenesis Canada Inc. (TSX:PYR, NASDAQ:PYR) has announced the successful completion of the high-temperature operational testing phase at its Gen3 PUREVAP Quartz Reduction Reactor (QRR) pilot plant.
An operational test phase, which consisted of a series of optimization and repeatability tests of the production process, were conducted over the past several weeks. The QRR pilot plant, the first state-of-the-art prototype of its kind, includes multiple systems that must operate at extremely high temperatures, under vacuum and under harsh conditions, the company said.
The system was operated at increasingly higher temperatures (more than 2,000 degrees celsius), with each test examining the impact on a carbon liner substance within the reactor. Essentially, if during the test the carbon liner substance was combusted and eliminated, that meant the system was not maintaining vacuum, as oxygen had entered the internal atmosphere and caused a burn of the material.
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However, if the carbon liner substance remained intact after testing, despite the ultra-high temperatures, the internal atmosphere was correct, the vacuum maintained, and the reactor performed as desired, the company said.
Notably, the carbon liner substance remained intact, even through a continuous operational period of 72 hours at high power, signifying that the system performed beyond expectations. Based on these results, reactants can now be introduced into the pilot plant for the purpose of creating high purity silicon test and sample batches for distribution to potential buyers.
“Advancing the PUREVAP project to this stage has been one of the great achievements of the company,” CEO Peter Pascali said in a statement. “From initial idea to lab tests, to design and build, and now with the successful operational testing of the pilot plant, our efforts to introduce plasma technology to the high-purity silicon industry is yet another example of how we are putting our scientific and engineering expertise to use in solving some of heavy industry’s most pressing issues.”
He continued: “We firmly believe that the PUREVAP process will prove to be a game changer in the production of a metal as strategically important to future energy goals as silicon.”
The PUREVAP process is designed to facilitate the one-step transformation of quartz into high-purity silicon at significantly reduced costs, energy input, and carbon footprint. PyroGenesis is developing the technology with its partner HPQ Silicon Inc, and PyroGenesis benefits from a royalty payment representing 10% of client sales, with set minimums.
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