Silica to high purity silicon production process

An apparatus for producing silicon from silica, comprising:

• a vacuum electric arc furnace receive a feedstock,
• a vacuum system for providing a vacuum in the vacuum electric arc furnace,
• a plasma arc is created in the vacuum electric arc furnace which provides energy to reduce silica to silicon,
• at least one moveable hollow electrode provided for carrying current to an electrically conductive plate provided in the vacuum electric arc furnace,
• an electric arc forming directly between the moveable hollow electrode and the electrically conductive plate at a beginning of producing the silicon from the silica, thereby producing a silicon melt wherein the silicon melt contains the silicon,
• wherein the moveable hollow electrode allows for an introduction of (1) arc stabilizing gases in the vacuum electric arc furnace and (2) various volatilizing chemical agents, which produce volatile species by reacting with impurities and enhance a volatilization rate of impurities from the silicon melt,
• wherein to enhance the volatilization rate of the impurities, the various volatilizing chemical agents are provided for injection through the moveable hollow electrode into the silicon melt,
• wherein the volatilizing chemical agents are provided for enhancing the volatilization rate of the impurities by reacting with the impurities producing at least one new compound with a greater volatility and/or by becoming volatile in the silicon melt.