Semiconductor firms, data centres in Singapore step up efforts to cut water use

By segregating different wastewater streams, the wafer foundry is able to recover nearly 70 per cent of the water it uses.

Its water efficiency and recycling initiatives recover 3.9 million cubic metres of water annually – enough to fill about 1,560 Olympic-sized swimming pools.

“We actually do a precise segregation of the wastewater,” said Mr Tey.

“We have almost 20 channels of wastewater pipeline, and every pipeline we use different kinds of water treatment systems, so we actually can come out with different kinds of grades of water, and we reuse it for different operations,” he added.

“Some of them can go to process steps, some of them can go to auxiliary operations such as cooling towers.”

The company is exploring membrane-based treatment technologies, including reverse osmosis, which removes contaminants, and electrodeionisation, which uses electricity to remove dissolved impurities.

It said combining advanced filtration and polishing technologies could further increase the amount of water that can be reused at higher quality standards.