Wohlwill process Wohlwill process The Wohlwill process is an industrial-scale chemical procedure used to refine gold to the highest degree of purity (99.999%). The process was invented in 1874 by Emil Wohlwill. This electrochemical process involves using a cast gold ingot, often called a Doré bar, of 95%+ gold to serve as an anode. Lower percentages of gold in the anode will interfere with the reaction, especially when the contaminating metal is silver or one of the platinum group elements. The cathode(s) for this reaction are small sheets of pure (24k) gold sheeting or stainless steel. Current is applied to the system,
Ultra-high-purity steam for oxidation and annealing and is both less expensive and safer. An effective passivation of the rear surface of industrial solar cells is a prerequisite to considerably improve the conversion efficiency. An excellent level of surface passivation on lowly doped p-type surfaces is provided by thermal grown silicon oxides. However, dry thermal oxidation processes require relatively high temperatures (>1000 °C) and, due to the low growth rate, long process times. To decrease both oxidation temperature and process time the dry oxidation process can be replaced by a wet oxidation followed by nitrogen annealing. Best cell performance requires a forming gas anneal after firing. Ultra-high-purity