Method for cleaning vaporizer and vaporization apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11772006-B2
Application number	US-202117445973-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 26, 2021
Priority date	Mar 7, 2019
Publication date	Oct 3, 2023
Grant date	Oct 3, 2023

Abstract

A method for cleaning a vaporizer that vaporizes, at normal temperature and pressure, a source material in a liquid state, and supplies the vaporized source material to a reactor through a supply pipe, includes a cleaning step of passing the source material to the vaporizer while maintaining the source material in a liquid state to clean the vaporizer.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for cleaning a vaporizer that vaporizes, at normal temperature and pressure, octamethylcyclostetrasiloxane (OMCTS) in a liquid state as a source material, and supplies the vaporized OMCTS to a reactor through a supply pipe, the method comprising
a cleaning step of passing the OMCTS to the vaporizer while maintaining the OMCTS in a liquid state to clean the vaporizer by discharging a polymer of the OMCTS in a gel state, and
a mixing step of mixing the OMCTS with a carrier gas to generate a mixed fluid, wherein
the cleaning step is performed after the mixing step, and
the cleaning step includes passing the mixed fluid to the vaporizer while maintaining, in a liquid state, the OMCTS contained in the mixed fluid to clean the vaporizer by discharging the polymer of the OMCTS in a gel state.

2. The method for cleaning the vaporizer according to claim 1 , wherein the cleaning step includes delivering at least part of the OMCTS in a liquid state used in the cleaning to the vaporizer again to clean the vaporizer by discharging the polymer of the OMCTS in a gel state.

3. The method for cleaning the vaporizer according to claim 1 , wherein the cleaning step includes passing the OMCTS to the supply pipe while maintaining the OMCTS in a liquid state to clean the supply pipe by discharging the polymer of the OMCTS in a gel state.

4. The method for cleaning the vaporizer according to claim 3 , wherein the cleaning step includes passing the OMCTS in a liquid state from the vaporizer to the supply pipe, wherein the supply pipe is located vertically downward of the vaporizer.

5. The method for cleaning the vaporizer according to claim 1 , wherein the OMCTS in a liquid state is pressure-fed to the vaporizer using a pump.

6. A vaporization apparatus comprising:
a reservoir configured to store octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (OMCTS) in a liquid state as a source material at normal temperature and pressure;
a mixing chamber configured to mix the OMCTS in a liquid state and a carrier gas;
a vaporizer configured to vaporize the OMCTS in a liquid state supplied with the carrier gas from the mixing chamber;
a supply pipe through which a mixed fluid of the OMCTS vaporized in the vaporizer and the carrier gas is supplied to a reactor; and
a recirculation pipe configured to return the OMCTS in a liquid state from the vaporizer to the reservoir.

7. The vaporization apparatus according to claim 6 , wherein the recirculation structure is located vertically downward of the vaporizer.

8. The vaporization apparatus according to claim 6 , further comprising a pump configured to pressure-feed the OMCTS in a liquid state from the reservoir to the vaporizer without passing the OMCTS through the mixing chamber.

Assignees

• Furukawa Electric Co Ltd

Inventors

• Otani Hiroki
• Kawasaki Mitsuhiro
• Asai Toshiyuki

Classifications

• B01D1/0064 Primary

  Feeding of liquid into an evaporator · CPC title

• B01D1/06

  Evaporators with vertical tubes · CPC title

• B01L13/00

  Cleaning or rinsing apparatus · CPC title

• C03B37/01413 Primary

  Reactant delivery systems (C03B37/01807 takes precedence; devices therefor in general B01D1/00, B01J4/00) · CPC title

• C03B2207/32

  Non-halide · CPC title