Archive: Jan 2025

Check Valves in Semiconductor Fabrication

Semiconductors are highly sensitive electronic components that require precision and ultra-clean settings to produce. For creating and maintaining such high-purity conditions in semiconductor fabs, another name for fabrication facilities, manufacturers commonly utilize check valves in their fluid systems. Read on to learn more about the importance of dependable check valves in semiconductor fabrication operations as well as their specific benefits to the industry.

Importance of Check Valves in the Semiconductor Industry

To manufacture semiconductors, fabs require significant amounts of water and steam. Unidirectional check valves are critical components on a pump’s discharge in the fluid systems that deliver or transport these materials. These valves ensure tight seals, offering reliable protection against backflow while enabling smooth and efficient fluid flow. Without check valves, liquids and gases within these systems could flow backward, reverse-spin a pump’s impeller, and damage equipment.

Check valves are also responsible for preventing water hammer, or the surge in pressure that pipes experience as valves suddenly close or pumps shut down. When system fluids come to an abrupt halt, the impact force may cause the fluid to change direction. This is potentially very damaging to valves, pumps, and pipes, as water hammer can create pressure surges up to ten times that of a system’s working pressure. 

These valves also keep contaminants from being introduced into the system’s supplies of pure water. While the water in fab processes isn’t the ultra-filtered, ultrapure water, UPW1, that applications like cleanrooms use, the UPW2 that fabs utilize is still exceptionally pure and sufficient for industrial processes.

Check Valve Applications in Semiconductor Fabrication

Wherever you find a pump in semiconductor fabs, you’ll also find a check valve. They support numerous applications within semiconductor manufacturing, including:

• Generating ultra-pure water
• Controlling water input to cleanroom (WICR) systems
• Processing wastewater
• Operating recirculation pumps
• Running cooling towers
• Cooling
• Rinsing
• Etching

WLC® Wafer Check Valves: The Ideal Choice for Semiconductor Fabs

Since the 1990s, DFT® Inc. has been engineering reliable check valves for clients in the semiconductor industry. Our lightweight, low-maintenance WLC® Wafer Check Valves are an ideal choice for equipment in this sector. Applicable in UPW2 projects and processing the wastewater byproducts, our ASME Class 150 to 1500 check valves have center-guided/dual-guided stems. We offer them in wafer RF or RTJ ends. 

WLC® Wafer Check Valve Cut Sheet

WLC® Wafer Check Valves are advantageous for their:

• Leak-tight seal for contamination management. Our check valves maintain a tight seal that prevents leaks and removes process liquid and gas contamination risk. This ability is critical to semiconductor manufacturing operations.

• Axial flow design. DFT® engineers check valves for axial flow, which enables them to supply a non turbulent flow of process fluids with minimal pressure drop.

• Damage and downtime prevention. Our WLC® check valves prevent  reverse flow, water hammer, and pressure spikes that might otherwise damage equipment, causing costly downtime. As process fluids slow and come to a stop, the spring in the valves’ design quickly seats the internal disc as part of a rapid, reliable closing mechanism.

• Corrosion protection. At DFT®, we only utilize high-quality materials. Our check valves consist of stainless steel, titanium, Hastelloy®, and other such metallurgies to ensure optimal resistance to harsh chemicals and corrosion.

• Silent operation. With their non-slam spring-assisted silent closing, WLC® check valves operate silently, with no slamming or chatter. 

• Versatility. Our check valves are compatible with a diverse range of fluids, thermal conditions, and pressures involved in semiconductor fabrication.

• Flexible installation. A distinguishing feature of our check valves is the installation. Unlike a swing check valve, you can install these products vertically (flow up or flow down) or horizontally. This is particularly applicable to cooling tower installations.

• Longevity. These axial flow check valves are designed for long-lasting performance, with minimal maintenance required.

A benefit to partnering with DFT® is our proprietary sizing program. We can custom size our valves to your specific application. Other customization options involve material, pressure, temperature, and flow to support the system’s required cycle rate.

Supporting High-Quality Semiconductor Fabrication With DFT® Valves

Reliable check valves are vital to semiconductor fabrication operations, preventing reverse flow and water hammer while safeguarding equipment and process fluids. At DFT®, our team is backed by more than 80 years of experience helping clients solve their most complex fluid flow challenges. As evidence of our trusted expertise, DFT® has been badged at a major Semiconductor Manufacturer  since 1997. 

Our ISO 9001-certified company manufactures valves for quality, using methods like leakage rate and hydrostatic testing. Also, our valves are made of materials from certified sources to better create quality products. We balance off-the-shelf offerings with customized valves to ensure you have access to the ideal valve solution for your specific applications. DFT® also carries a significant amount of inventory, allowing us to commonly beat out the competition on lead times.

We take a client-focused, hands-on approach to business to form lasting partnerships with clients in the semiconductor industry and beyond. Contact us for more information on how our check valves support semiconductor fabrication or request a quote today.