PERMIONICS

In wafer fabrication, yield is everything. A small percentage change can decide whether a fab is profitable or under pressure. While advanced tools, materials, and process recipes get most of the attention, one of the most powerful yield drivers often operates quietly in the background — ultrapure water. Water touches the wafer more than almost any other substance during manufacturing. It cleans, rinses, and prepares surfaces hundreds of times before a chip is complete. When this water is truly pure, it protects yield. When it is not, yield suffers — sometimes in ways that are difficult to trace. Yield Starts With a Clean Surface Every process step in wafer fabrication depends on a perfectly clean surface. Before a new layer is deposited or patterned, the wafer must be free from particles, ions, and residues. Ultrapure water is used after etching, chemical cleaning, CMP, and lithography to ensure nothing unwanted remains behind. If contaminants are present in the rinse water, they ...

 The push toward zero-chemical operations in water treatment is accelerating across the textile, dye, and pigment sectors. Traditional brine recovery systems rely heavily on coagulants, antiscalants, oxidants, and pH-adjusting chemicals to keep membranes stable and protect downstream ZLD assets. While these chemicals are necessary, they add to operational costs, create sludge, and introduce process variability. Today, the industry is asking a bold question: Can we recover brine with minimal or even zero chemicals without compromising performance? Thanks to emerging technologies, this is no longer a distant possibility—it’s becoming a practical pathway, especially for facilities adopting advanced Brine Recovery in Dye & Pigment Plants . The Drivers Behind the Shift Chemical costs in ZLD systems have increased by 20–35% over the past three years, according to multiple plant OPEX audits. At the same time, regulators are tightening norms around sludge disposal and secondary wa...