Electronic Grade Chlorine (Cl₂) — 6N Grade Domestic Breakthrough Achieved as Korean Competitor Expands Capacity 50% to Meet NAND Surging Demand

Electronic grade chlorine (Cl₂) has emerged as one of the most strategically critical etch gases in semiConductor manufacturing during 2026. In a historic development for the domestic semiconductor gas industry, Associate Professor Wang Jun's team at Changzhou University achieved a key breakthrough in electronic chlorine purification and safety control in April 2026. Using an independently developed precision distillation purification process combined with an organic impurity directional adsorption technique, the team successfully produced 6N grade (99.9999%) high-purity electronic chlorine, breaking the long-standing foreign monopoly on high-end electronic specialty gas purification technology.

Prior to this breakthrough, China relied entirely on imports for 6N grade electronic chlorine required for advanced chip processes, resulting in high procurement costs and supply chain vulnerability. At advanced nodes of 28nm and below, the moisture and metallic impurity content in chlorine must be controlled at parts-per-billion levels – typically requiring 99.9999% or higher, making it one of the most difficult specialty gases to domesticate. The team integrated precision distillation and organic impurity directional adsorption technology, designing a multi-stage purification system that enhances product purity while significantly reducing energy consumption. Additionally, the team utilized computational fluid dynamics to simulate chlorine flow, vaporization, and temporal and spatial distribution of nitrogen trichloride concentration gradients in equipment and pipelines, developing a dedicated safety assessment method that addresses the "last mile" challenges of high-purity gas transportation and storage.

This development comes as demand for electronic chlorine surges in the global semiconductor industry. Korean chemical materials company PKC has commenced expansion of its semiconductor-grade high-purity chlorine production capacity by 50 percent, increasing annual capacity from approximately 1,400–1,500 tons to 2,100–2,200 tons. The expansion was planned in consultation with Samsung Electronics, driven primarily by increased etch gas demand as NAND flash memory manufacturers push toward 200-layer and above structures. NAND channel hole etching consumes significantly more chlorine than DRAM, while chlorine consumption is also substantial in advanced foundry processes such as GAA and FinFET. Manufacturers searching for "6N grade electronic chlorine supplier" or "high-purity semiconductor etch gas" have welcomed the domestic breakthrough, which promises to alleviate import dependence.

Sources: Changzhou University News, April 15–17, 2026; Securities Times, May 29, 2026; Semiconductor Industry Reporting, May 2026