Silicon Carbide Boat Supports for Photovoltaic Manufacturing
Release time:
2026-07-15
Source:
Introduction
In the manufacturing process of photovoltaic cells, high-temperature thermal processes such as diffusion, LPCVD (Low-Pressure Chemical Vapor Deposition), and PECVD (Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition) require silicon wafers to be smoothly loaded into and unloaded from furnace tubes. The material properties of the load-bearing components responsible for this task—boat supports and cantilever paddles—directly affect process stability and production yield. In recent years, silicon carbide ceramic boat supports have been rapidly replacing traditional quartz boat supports, becoming a key initiative for cost reduction and efficiency improvement in the photovoltaic industry.
Why Silicon Carbide?
Traditional quartz boat supports face three major challenges in processes such as LPCVD:
- Thermal stress cracking:Boat supports frequently enter and exit high-temperature furnace tubes; the thermal expansion coefficient of quartz material is inconsistent with that of coated silicon, leading to micro-cracks and fracture.
- Short service life:Ordinary quartz boat supports typically last only 2–3 months in LPCVD processes, requiring frequent shutdowns for cleaning and replacement.
- Raw material shortage:The supply of high-purity quartz sand is tight and prices remain high.
Silicon carbide ceramic boat supports offer overwhelming advantages:
- More than 5 times longer service life:Significantly reducing downtime for maintenance.
- No deformation at high temperatures:Thermal stability superior to quartz.
- Higher strength:Greater resistance to accidental impact and mechanical vibration.
- Widely available raw materials:Not constrained by the supply of high-purity quartz sand.
Materials and Manufacturing
Reaction-bonded silicon carbide (RBSC) has become the ideal process route for manufacturing large-size boat supports and cantilever paddles, owing to its low sintering temperature, near-net-shape forming capability, and controllable production costs. Silicon carbide small boats are manufactured using an integrated molding and overall machining process, with stringent geometric tolerance requirements. This enables more precise and reliable coordination with silicon carbide boat supports, eliminating the "boat wobbling" risk caused by thermal expansion mismatch between quartz and silicon carbide.
Industrial Applications
According to industry reports, leading photovoltaic companies such as LONGi Green Energy, JinkoSolar, and DAS Solar have begun using silicon carbide boat supports in bulk quantities. As for furnace tubes, although silicon carbide tubes outperform quartz tubes by more than 5 times in terms of thermal conductivity and thermal stability, they are still in the research and development stage due to manufacturing difficulties and yield issues, and have not yet achieved mass supply.
Conclusion
The application of silicon carbide ceramics in photovoltaic manufacturing is a typical case of material upgrades driving industrial cost reduction. As the cost of large-size, high-purity silicon carbide products continues to decline, their penetration rate in photovoltaic thermal processes is expected to further increase.
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