Silicon carbide commodity Critical Material
Manufactured silicon carbide (SiC) considered as an industrial and wide-bandgap semiconductor/abrasive commodity, distinct from elemental silicon (cmmmech:silicon), natural silica feedstocks, and the rare natural meteoritic or terrestrial mineral species moissanite. The 2023 US Department of Energy Final Critical Materials List (88 FR 51792-51798) designates silicon carbide as a critical material for energy on the basis of supply risk for wide-bandgap power-electronics wafers in electric vehicles and clean energy systems. USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 covers manufactured silicon carbide in its Abrasives (Manufactured) chapter (printed pp. 26-27, chapter PDF pp. 1-2; HTS 2849.20.1000 crude and 2849.20.2000 grain) and notes in its Silicon chapter (printed p. 171) that silicon carbide can substitute for ferrosilicon in some metallurgical applications. Trade and production statistics in the USGS abrasives chapter do not disaggregate semiconductor-wafer-grade boules from abrasive or metallurgical grades; this grade boundary is retained rather than conflated. No microbial synthesis, bioleaching, or biological recovery mechanism is asserted.
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Identifiers & Classification
| System | Identifier | Label |
|---|---|---|
| CHEBI |
CHEBI:29390
|
silicon carbide |
Criticality Designations
| Jurisdiction | List Name | Edition / Document | Classification | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | Department of Energy Final 2023 Critical Materials List (Critical Materials for Energy) | 2023 final notice, published 4 August 2023 (88 FR 51792-51798) | critical |
doe_2023_fr
|
Sources & References
-
doe_2023_fr: US Department of Energy, Notice of Final Determination on 2023 DOE Critical Materials List, 4 August 2023, Federal Register Vol. 88, No. 149, pp. 51792-51798 (Document 2023-16611): silicon carbide screening and assessment for wide-bandgap power electronics on pp. 51793-51794; Table 1 short-term and medium-term scores on p. 51796; final critical materials for energy list on p. 51797.
https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2023-08-04/html/2023-16611.htm (accessed 2026-10-18) -
usgs_mcs2026_abrasives: US Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026, Abrasives (Manufactured), printed pp. 26-27 (chapter PDF pp. 1-2): domestic production, imports, exports, apparent consumption, tariff codes (2849.20.1000 crude, 2849.20.2000 grain), recycling (~5%), and world production capacity for manufactured silicon carbide.
https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2026/mcs2026-abrasives.pdf (accessed 2026-10-18) -
usgs_mcs2026_silicon: US Geological Survey, Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026, Silicon, printed pp. 170-171 (chapter PDF pp. 1-2): substitution of silicon carbide for ferrosilicon and distinction from metallurgical silicon metal and polysilicon.
https://pubs.usgs.gov/periodicals/mcs2026/mcs2026-silicon.pdf (accessed 2026-10-18)
Curation History
| Timestamp | Curator | Action | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|
2026-10-19T05:22:00Z |
antigravity | CREATE | Created silicon-carbide commodity record from the 2023 US DOE Final Critical Materials List Federal Register notice and 2026 USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries Abrasives (Manufactured) and Silicon chapters, preserving grade distinctions between wide-bandgap semiconductor wafers and manufactured abrasive/metallurgical silicon carbide. |
Record source: data/records/silicon-carbide.yaml