Ultra-pure wet chemicals: Production route
How a commodity acid becomes fit for a chip fab
What this tab covers How it is made: the main production routes or, for product families, the main product types and technologies, compared on share of supply, inputs per tonne, plant scale, yield, co-products and unit cost.Each wet chemical starts from a commodity made by its normal route, then goes through dedicated purification and clean packaging. The main products are sulphuric acid, hydrogen peroxide, hydrofluoric acid and buffered oxide etch, ammonium hydroxide, hydrochloric acid, phosphoric and nitric acid, IPA and TMAH. Grades are set by SEMI standards, from Grade 1 (ppm) to Grade 5 (ppt). Leading-edge fabs need the top grades.
Routes compared
| Route | Share of supply | Inputs per tonne | Typical scale | Yield | Co-products | Unit cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electronic-grade sulphuric acid | one of the two largest volumes with H2O2 (indicative) | commodity acid or SO3 plus ultra-pure water (indicative) | tens of kt/yr per plant (indicative) | not published | off-spec acid sold as technical grade | several times commodity acid at about $100-400/t (indicative) |
| Electronic-grade hydrogen peroxide | 29.84% of 2025 market value | technical H2O2 (100% basis) and ultra-pure water (indicative) | 10-50 kt/yr (indicative) | not published | lower grades | not published |
| Electronic-grade HF and buffered oxide etch | a few percent of HF by volume, more by value (HF tile) | AHF and ultra-pure water | 5-30 kt/yr (HF tile, indicative) | not published | off-spec acid | several times AHF price (indicative) |
| Ammonium hydroxide, HCl, phosphoric and nitric acid | not published | commodity grades plus ultra-pure water | not published | not published | off-spec grades | not published |
| Electronic-grade IPA and TMAH developers | not published | IPA from propylene (isopropanol tile) | not published | not published | not published | not published |
How each route works
Electronic-grade sulphuric acidMade from sulphur-burner acid or by absorbing purified SO3 in ultra-pure water, then distilled or filtered to ppt metals. Used with peroxide in SPM cleans, the largest-volume wet clean.
Cheap base, simple chemistry; large volumes to ship and treat.
sulphuric acid tile; indicative Electronic-grade hydrogen peroxideAnthraquinone-process peroxide is purified by distillation, ion exchange and membranes to SEMI Grade 4-5. Largest product by value.
Essential oxidiser in almost all cleans; unstable and must be stored carefully.
Straits Research (2026); hydrogen peroxide tile Electronic-grade HF and buffered oxide etchAnhydrous HF is distilled and diluted with ultra-pure water; buffered oxide etch adds ammonium fluoride. Stella Chemifa and Morita (Japan) and Soulbrain (Korea) lead.
High margin and strategic; extremely hazardous.
hydrofluoric acid tile Ammonium hydroxide, HCl, phosphoric and nitric acidPurified from commodity grades; hot phosphoric acid is the nitride etchant for 3D NAND; ammonia and HCl go into SC1 and SC2 cleans.
Standard chemistry; purity and logistics are the barrier.
Indicative Electronic-grade IPA and TMAH developersIPA from propylene hydration or acetone hydrogenation is distilled to ultra-pure grades; TMAH is made from trimethylamine and purified for resist development.
Large-volume solvent; flammable; TMAH is very toxic.
isopropanol tile; indicative Unit economics are indicative ranges from the sources named; costs move with feedstock and energy prices, plant size and region.