A two step process for the destruction of a precursor material using a steam plasma in a three zone reactor wherein the precursor material is hydrolyzed as a first step in the high temperature zone of the reactor, followed by a second step of medium temperature oxidation of the reactant stream in the combustion zone of the reactor where combustion oxygen or air is injected and immediate quenching of the resulting gas stream to avoid the formation of unwanted by-products. A related apparatus includes a non transferred direct current steam plasma torch, an externally cooled three zone steam plasma reactor means for introducing the precursor material into the plasma plume of the plasma torch, means for introducing the combustion air or oxygen into the combustion zone, means for exiting the reactant mixture from the reactor and means for quenching the reactant mixture located at the exit end of the reactor.

The present invention provides a method of treating an exhaust gas stream 12 from a processing chamber 10. The method comprises the steps of: conveying the exhaust gas from the processing chamber using a vacuum pumping arrangement 11, 22 or atmospheric line; abating the exhaust gas in an abatement region 18 of an abatement device 14; and injecting a cooling agent, such as a liquid 26, downstream of the abatement region to cool the abated gases in a cooling region 24 by phase change of the cooling agent.

A two step process for the destruction of a precursor material using a steam plasma in a three zone reactor wherein the precursor material is hydrolyzed as a first step in the high temperature zone of the reactor, followed by a second step of medium temperature oxidation of the reactant stream in the combustion zone of the reactor where combustion oxygen or air is injected and immediate quenching of the resulting gas stream to avoid the formation of unwanted by-products. A related apparatus includes a non transferred direct current steam plasma torch, an externally cooled three zone steam plasma reactor means for introducing the precursor material into the plasma plume of the plasma torch, means for introducing the combustion air or oxygen into the combustion zone, means for exiting the reactant mixture from the reactor and means for quenching the reactant mixture located at the exit end of the reactor.

A detoxification device has an inlet nozzle capable of reducing an amount of a deposit of an adhering metallic product and elongating a maintenance cycle and a detoxification device including the inlet nozzle. The inlet nozzle includes a portion adjacent to a combustor, that is cut (removed) in advance. Consequently, in the portion, an insulator made of a ceramic material is exposed. Since the ceramic material supplies a small number of electrons, even when the insulator is exposed to heat from the combustor to reach a high temperature, a reductive reaction is less likely to occur. Accordingly, even when a metallic exhaust gas is allowed to flow, the metallic exhaust gas is prevented from being precipitated as the metallic product and gradually deposited with time.

An operating method of an exhaust gas treatment facility, which is a method for operating an exhaust gas treatment facility that treats exhaust gas from an electronic component manufacturing process, the operating method comprising: the exhaust gas treatment apparatus being provided with a wet exhaust gas treatment apparatus including a water sprinkling mechanism; and setting a pH of water in the wet exhaust gas treatment apparatus within 5 to 8. The exhaust gas may contain a tungsten compound.

A method of optimising operating conditions in an abatement apparatus configured to treat an effluent stream from a processing tool and an abatement apparatus are disclosed. The method of optimising operating conditions in an abatement apparatus configured to treat an effluent stream from a processing tool comprises: determining a concentration of carbon monoxide produced by the abatement apparatus when treating the effluent stream; and adjusting an operating parameter of the abatement apparatus in response to the concentration of carbon monoxide. In this way, the performance of the abatement device can be controlled by simply adjusting the operating parameters of the abatement device in response to the amount of carbon monoxide being produced to create conditions within the abatement apparatus which improve the removal of compounds being treated within the abatement device, while reducing undesirable by-products and without requiring advanced knowledge of the content of the effluent stream.

An abatement apparatus and method are disclosed. The abatement apparatus is for treating an effluent stream from a semiconductor processing tool and comprises: a first abatement device configured to receive the effluent stream and operable to run in an active mode to treat the effluent stream; a second abatement device operable to run in an idle mode; and control logic operable, on receipt of an indication of an alarm condition associated with the first abatement device, to run the second abatement device in the active mode. In this way, a first or primary abatement device is provided which treats the effluent stream and a second or back-up abatement device is provided, should the first abatement device malfunction. However, by only causing the second abatement device to operate in the active mode when the first abatement device malfunctions, significant energy savings can be made.

An inlet assembly for an abatement apparatus includes: an effluent stream conduit configured to convey an effluent stream along a major direction of flow within the effluent stream conduit; an inlet nozzle fluidly coupled with the effluent stream conduit and configured to convey the effluent stream received from the effluent stream conduit to an abatement chamber of the abatement apparatus; and a baffle interposed between the effluent stream conduit and the inlet nozzle, the baffle being shaped and configured to redirect flow of the effluent stream from the effluent stream conduit into the inlet nozzle by inhibiting effluent stream flow along the major direction of flow into the inlet nozzle. A line-of-sight flow from the effluent stream conduit into the inlet nozzle is prevented by the baffle and the effluent stream instead follows a non-line-of-sight or diversionary path from the effluent stream conduit into the inlet nozzle, which improves DRE.

The present invention presents a scrubber burner composed of a preheating spray ring that is formed with a porous material with certain thickness, and that preheats and sprays the fuel gas in the preheating combustion space formed inside, a preheating guide ring equipped with multiple preheating guide holes that wrap the outer circumference of the aforementioned preheating spray ring, and that penetrates from the outer circumference to the inner circumference, and a preheating burner module equipped with a housing that forms a ring shaped gas channel that is separated from the outer circumference of the aforementioned preheating guide ring and through which the aforementioned fuel gas flows.

A method of cooling an abatement apparatus for abatement of an effluent stream from a semiconductor processing tool includes: providing at least one modular cooling assembly having a cooling capacity; determining a cooling requirement of an abatement apparatus; and incorporating into the abatement apparatus a number of the modular cooling assemblies whose cumulative cooling capacity at least matches the cooling requirement of the abatement apparatus. In this way, multiple modular cooling assemblies may be incorporated into the abatement apparatus, each of which provides cooling capacity. The number of modular cooling assemblies can be selected to suit the cooling requirement of the abatement apparatus.