Silicothermic reactions are thermic

chemical reaction A chemical reaction is a process that leads to the IUPAC nomenclature for organic transformations, chemical transformation of one set of chemical substances to another. Classically, chemical reactions encompass changes that only involve the pos ...

s using

silicon Silicon is a chemical element with the symbol Si and atomic number 14. It is a hard, brittle crystalline solid with a blue-grey metallic luster, and is a tetravalent metalloid and semiconductor. It is a member of group 14 in the periodic tab ...

as the

reducing agent In chemistry, a reducing agent (also known as a reductant, reducer, or electron donor) is a chemical species that "donates" an electron to an (called the , , , or ). Examples of substances that are commonly reducing agents include the Earth meta ...

at high temperature (800-1400°C). The most prominent example is the

Pidgeon process The Pidgeon process is one of the methods of magnesium metal production, via a silicothermic reduction. Practical production requires roughly 35–40 MWh/ton of metal produced, which is on par with the molten salt electrolytic methods of producti ...

for reducing

magnesium Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg and atomic number 12. It is a shiny gray metal having a low density, low melting point and high chemical reactivity. Like the other alkaline earth metals (group 2 of the periodic ta ...

metal from

ore Ore is natural rock or sediment that contains one or more valuable minerals, typically containing metals, that can be mined, treated and sold at a profit.Encyclopædia Britannica. "Ore". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved 7 Apr ...

s. Other processes include the Bolzano process and the magnetherm process. All three are commercially used for magnesium production. The silicothermic process for magnesium production was developed commercially in Canada during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

''Encyclopedia of materials, parts and finishes'', 2nd edition, Mel M. Schwartz, 2002, p. 371, by

Lloyd Montgomery Pidgeon Lloyd Montgomery Pidgeon, (December 3, 1903 – December 9, 1999) was a Canadian chemist who developed the Pidgeon process, one of the methods of magnesium metal production, via a silicothermic reduction. He is considered the "father" of acad ...

References

Metallurgy Metallurgical processes Inorganic reactions Silicon {{reaction-stub

See also

References