By Shuchi Giridhar
New Delhi, Oct 2: Silicon, a metal made from Earth’s second- most abundant element, has become scarce resulting in stalled production of items ranging from car parts to computer chips. Owing to this scarcity, its price has gone up by 300%.
What is silicon?
Silicon is a hard, brittle crystalline solid chemical element, with a metallic blue grey shine. Silicon is a tetravalent metalloid and a semiconductor. It is found in group 14 in the periodic table, below carbon and above geranium, tin, lead and flerovium.
Silicon is used in many household objects and plays an important role in creating aluminium alloys by making it less brittle. The metal is made by heating sand and coke in a furnace. Coke is a solid black substance, which is made from coal.
Why is it scarce?
China, the largest producer of silicon in the world, is unable to produce ample quantities of silicon due to a power crunch. The power crunch has largely impacted the state of Yunnan – China’s second biggest producer of silicon. But it is to be noted that the state of Xinjiang, the top producer of silicon, has not faced any major power shortages yet.
Why is China facing a power crunch?
China is the largest consumer and producer of coal in the world. However, because of a dispute with Australia, China has stopped importing Australian coal. Since China’s main source of energy is coal, the coal shortage is causing frequent electricity blackouts. China has been forced to shut down many factories. Since production of silicon is dependent on coke, which in turn is made from coal, China is not able to produce much silicon.
What all is silicon used for?
From car parts to oven mitts, silicon is used for many things. The items that use silicon range from concrete, bricks, alloys for car parts, engine blocks to machine tools, which usually mix silicon with aluminium or iron. It is also used in computer chips, sim cards, household objects such as oven mitts, moulds, cylinder heads, and even the ceiling fan hanging above our head. Silicon is also used to make solar panels. As you can realize by now, silicon is one of mankind’s most used materials. This is the biggest reason why its price surge is affecting the economy.
Why is the scarcity in silicon a problem?
Since China started facing the power crunch, price of silicon has gone up across the world. A ton of silicon used to cost about 8,000 – 17,000 Yuan ($1,200- $2,600). However, after China started facing power curbs, producers in the state of Yunnan were ordered to lower production of silicon by 90%. From then to now, silicon price has shot up as high as 67,300 Yuan. The price of solar-grade polysilicon, used to make solar panels, has elevated by 13%. The current price is the highest since 2011. Owing to high and growing demand in the market, these prices are expected to remain elevated through next summer. Let us wait and watch if the production picks up again by next summer so as to contain any further price increase.
