JP2002348619A - Method for discharging, storing, and transporting gallium, and storage container - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method for discharging Ga stored in a container, with constantly high purity. SOLUTION: This method comprises melting gallium stored in the container 10, settling it in the state, concentrating impurities in the top part by gradually solidifying it from the bottom of the container 10 to the top thereof, then, melting gallium again by heating it in the settled state, and discharging the molten gallium from the bottom of the container 10.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for removing gallium from a container and a storage container, and further relates to a method for storing and transporting gallium in a storage container.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, compound semiconductor crystals containing gallium, such as GaAs, GaAlAs, and GaP, are used as materials for light emitting diodes, laser diodes, field effect transistors, integrated circuits, and the like. Usually, these compound semiconductor crystals have a purity of 99.9.
Gallium purified to a high purity of 999% or more (6N or more) is used.

As described above, high-purity gallium used for manufacturing compound semiconductor crystals and the like has a purity of 99.99% (4%).
N) of raw material gallium to a predetermined high purity (for example, 6N
Above) and cast into rod-shaped ingots or disc-shaped discs and supplied to customers. In this case, in order to prevent impurities from being mixed in the atmosphere, each process such as refining and casting is individually performed in a clean room or the like.

When transporting gallium from the refining process to the casting process, it is possible to send the molten gallium having undergone the refining process to the casting process through a pipe or the like, but the entire pipe is heated to a temperature at which the gallium does not solidify. Due to the necessity to maintain the state, gallium is rarely transported from the refining process to the casting process using piping.

Therefore, in order to store and transport high-purity gallium, if the above-mentioned piping is not used, the gallium is once stored in a container and then removed from the container.
Conventionally, a container for storing purified high-purity gallium is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-118569 and
240745 is disclosed. JP-A-9-11859
No. 6 discloses a method of storing purified high-purity gallium as a melt and transporting it to the next step, and a container used for the method. Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-240745 discloses a container for discharging high-purity gallium from a lower part of the container in a molten state and weighing the same.

[0006]

However, in order to keep the gallium contained in the container in a molten state, it is necessary to surround the container with a heat insulating material or the like.
Since gallium must be continuously heated to above the melting point by a heater or the like, equipment costs and energy costs are incurred.

When gallium is transported in a molten state, vibrations are inevitably applied to the gallium during transportation. However, when vibrations are applied to the molten gallium, dross composed of oxides is generated on the surface. For example, see
When all the gallium in the container is discharged as in -240745, there is a problem that the dross is mixed into the gallium.

Further, in the conventional storage and transportation methods,
Simply storing and transporting the gallium contained in the container did not add any added value to the gallium through this process.

The method of removing gallium from a container is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 9-118569 and 9-240745.
It is common practice to provide a discharge port at the bottom of the vessel and discharge the molten gallium by its own weight, as in (1). In this method, dross on the surface of the molten gallium may be involved during the discharge, and the vessel itself Must be installed in a high place,
When the size of the container is increased, there are problems in strength required for the installation location, energy for lifting heavy objects having a high specific gravity such as gallium to a high place, and, in turn, safety in work.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a means for storing, transporting, and removing gallium contained in a container with a stable and high purity, and to provide a method for further reducing impurities in gallium. It is in.

[0011]

In order to achieve this object, gallium contained in a container is allowed to stand still in a molten state, and is gradually solidified upward from the bottom of the container. The gallium is collected above, stored and transported in a solidified state, and then heated to melt the gallium again. The molten gallium is taken out from the bottom of the container, and a certain amount of gallium is left in the container before taking out.

Further, in the present invention, the gallium contained in the container is stirred in a molten state, and is gradually solidified from the bottom to the top of the container, for example, in a still state. The impurities are collected upward, stored and transported in a solidified state, and then heated to melt the gallium again. The molten gallium is taken out from the bottom of the container, and a certain amount of gallium is left in the container before taking out.

In this case, the molten gallium may be taken out while being weighed. In addition, with the tip opening of the pipe inserted into the molten gallium in the vessel placed at the bottom of the vessel, gas is injected into the upper space in the vessel to lower the liquid level of the molten gallium, thereby opening the pipe. The molten gallium can be taken out of the pipe by flowing the molten gallium into the pipe. At this time, by removing a certain amount of gallium from the container without taking out all the molten gallium from the container, impurities collected at the time of previous solidification can be left in the container, and higher It becomes possible to take out as gallium of excellent purity grade.

A container used in such a storage, transportation and unloading method, wherein at least a bottom surface and side surfaces of the container are configured as heat conductive surfaces, and a tip opening is disposed near a bottom inside the container. A gallium storage container is provided, characterized in that the gallium storage container is provided with a pipe whose other end opening is arranged outside the container, and a means for injecting gas into an upper space in the container.

The storage container may have a window for looking inside the container. Further, a heater may be provided around the side surface of the container.

In the present invention, the gallium contained in the container has, for example, a purity of 99.9999% or more (6N or more).
Gallium purified to high purity, and may be either liquid or solid. In the present invention, gallium contained in a container is first left in a dissolved state. In this case, if necessary, the gallium may be melted by heating from around the container using a heater or the like. As the heater, an electric band heater, a hot water jacket, or the like may be used as appropriate, or a sufficient amount of heat enough to melt the gallium, such as applying hot air to the container, may be used.

Then, gallium is gradually solidified upward from the bottom of the container. In this case, for example, the bottom of the container may be cooled to a temperature lower than the melting point of gallium (about 30 ° C.). In this way, by solidifying the molten gallium in the container upward from the bottom of the container,
Impurities contained in gallium can be segregated and collected upward. At this time, the impurities are included in the upper metal much, and the light element impurities and the like float as dross on the surface of the gallium.

The solidified gallium with the impurities collected upward is stored and transported together with the container, so that the gallium can be easily transported from, for example, a refining process to a casting process, or from a certain point to a certain point. It is possible to do. At this time, since the gallium in the container is in a solidified state, generation of dross due to vibration received during transportation can be avoided, and gallium metal can be prevented from being reduced to dross.

Then, the gallium is melted again, and the molten gallium is taken out from the bottom of the container. The gallium thus removed from the bottom of the container does not contain impurities of gallium contained in the container above the average value (the average value of the content of impurities in all the gallium contained in the container), and the purity of the gallium is reduced. Not only does it not lower, but gallium with higher purity can be obtained by segregating impurities above gallium in the container. At this time,
It is desirable that the metal on the upper part where impurities are segregated and the dross that floats up remain in the container without being taken out. These contain segregated impurities, which can be prevented from being lost by separately collecting and purifying them and converting them into high-purity gallium again.

When removing molten gallium from the bottom of the vessel, a pipe is inserted into the molten gallium in the vessel, and the opening at the tip of the pipe is arranged near the bottom of the vessel.
It is advisable to inject gas into the upper space in the container. Then, the liquid level of the molten gallium is pushed down with the gas injection, and the molten gallium flows into the pipe from the opening at the end. This makes it possible to take out the molten gallium out of the vessel through the pipe.

When the molten gallium is taken out from the bottom of the container, the molten gallium can be weighed at the same time.
In this case, the amount of molten gallium taken out of the container through a pipe or the like may be measured and weighed, or the weight may be taken out while measuring the weight including the container, and the weight loss may be measured. The molten gallium may be weighed based on the amount of gas injected into the inside.

[0022]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view for explaining the structure of a storage container 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Gallium is stored inside a cylindrical container body 10 whose bottom is closed and whose top is open. Gallium is, for example, highly purified gallium having a purity of 99.9999% or more (6N or more), and may be a liquid or a solid. The container body 10 is made of a material having excellent thermal conductivity, such as stainless steel, and desirably does not react with gallium. Since the container body 10 is made of a material having excellent heat conductivity,
The gallium housed in the container body 10 can be heated and cooled from outside the container body 10. In order to prevent gallium contamination, a lining 11 made of a substance that does not react with gallium, such as a fluororesin, polyethylene, or polypropylene, is provided on the inner surface of the container body 10 as necessary. However, when the material of the container body 10 is a material that does not react with gallium, the lining 11 can be omitted.

The upper surface of the container body 10 is closed by a lid 15, so that the inside of the container body 10 is sealed. Lid 1
5 is provided with a gallium extraction pipe 16 and an air supply pipe 17 therethrough. The pipe 16 is made of a material that does not react with gallium, such as fluororesin, polyethylene, and polypropylene. Both ends of the pipe 16 are open, and the tip of the pipe 16 (the lower end in the illustrated example)
The opening 16a is located in the vicinity of the bottom of the container body 10 (inside the gallium housed in the container body 10. In the illustrated embodiment, the opening 16a at the tip of the pipe 16 is provided).
Is disposed slightly upward from the bottom surface of the container body 10. The opening 16 b at the other end (the upper end in the illustrated example) of the pipe 16 is arranged outside the container body 10.
The lower end of the gas supply pipe 17 is opened in an upper space 18 above the gallium housed in the container body 10, and gas is supplied from outside to the upper space 18 in the container body 10 through the gas supply pipe 17. I can do it.

The cover 15 is provided with a transparent window 19. The inside of the container body 10 can be peeped through the window 19, and the liquid level of the molten gallium can be detected as described later.

A heater 2 is provided around the side of the container body 10.
0 is detachably mounted. In the illustrated embodiment, the heater 20 is composed of a plurality of band heaters 21, 22, and 23 mounted so as to cover the entire periphery of the side surface of the container body 10, and the band heaters 21, 22, and 23 allow the container body 10 to be mounted. The entire side surface of 10 can be heated without gaps. When heating is not necessary, these band heaters 21, 22, 23 can be removed from the side surface of the container body 10.

The container body 10 is placed on a cooling plate 25. The cooling plate 25 includes a cooling pipe 26 through which a coolant such as cold water can pass.
Can be cooled from the outside.

In addition, a pair of magnets 27 to be described later for stirring the molten gallium housed in the container body 10 is provided. As will be described later, the band heaters 21, 22, and 23 are removed from the side of the container body 10 in a state where the gallium housed in the container body 10 is melted, and the magnet 27 is rotated around the container body 10. , The molten gallium can be stirred.

Now, the storage container 1 constructed as described above.
, The container body 1 placed on the cooling plate 25
The gallium is stored inside the inside of the “0” (the inside of the lining 11). In this case, the cooling pipe 2
No cooling is allowed to pass through the cooling medium 6. The gallium housed in the container body 10 has a purity of, for example, 9%.
Gallium purified to a high purity of 9.9999% or more (6N or more), and may be either liquid or solid.

When the gallium stored in the container body 10 is solid, the gallium is first heated by the heater 20 mounted around the container body 10 and stored in the container body 10 through the side surface of the container body 10. The gallium is heated to a temperature equal to or higher than the melting point to melt the gallium. Here, if hot water is passed through the cooling plate 25 through the cooling pipe 26, gallium can be more efficiently melted. Alternatively, heat may be applied by placing the container itself in an atmosphere at or above the melting point of gallium. After the melting, the gallium contained in the container body 10 is maintained in a molten state by continuing the heating by the heater 20 as necessary.

If the gallium contained in the container body 10 has already been melted and is a liquid, the gallium is heated by the heater 20 as necessary, so that the container body 10 is heated.
The gallium contained therein is maintained in a molten state.

Next, a coolant is passed through a cooling pipe 26 provided on the cooling plate 25 to perform cooling. This gives
The bottom surface of the container main body 10 is cooled to a temperature lower than the melting point of gallium (about 30 ° C.), and the molten gallium in the container main body 10 is gradually solidified from the bottom of the container main body 10 upward. The cooling temperature at the bottom of the container body 10 is preferably 25
It is good that it is below ° C. By this operation, the molten gallium in the container body 10 is solidified upward from the bottom, and the impurities contained in the gallium are segregated (distributed) upward. Thus, as shown in FIG. 2, gallium (solid gallium) containing more impurities or gallium (solid gallium) containing more impurities above gallium (solid gallium) in the container main body 10 (hereinafter referred to as “impurity A portion 30 "). If the molten gallium in the container body 10 is solidified upward from the bottom in this way, the gallium expands upward with the solidification. Thus, it is preferable that the solidification direction be substantially constant.

When the gallium solidifies in the container body 10 as described above, the molten gallium in the container body 10 is reduced by rotating the magnet 27 around the container body 10 as shown in FIG. Stir. As a result, the impurities contained in gallium are more reliably segregated upward, and the effect of segregation can be enhanced.
When the magnet 27 is rotated around the container body 10 to stir the molten gallium, the band heaters 21, 22, 23 may be removed from the side surface of the container body 10.

The gallium solidified in a state in which the impurities are collected upward is conveyed together with the container body 10 so that the gallium can be separated from each other, for example, from a refining process to a casting process, or from a refining plant to a customer use place. Gallium can be easily transported to or stored at a location. In this case, it is necessary to maintain the gallium in a solid state by keeping the container body at about 30 ° C. or less, preferably 25 ° C. or less, which is the melting point of gallium. In transporting and storing, if the inside of the container body 10 is sealed, there is no contamination such as mixing of impurities from the outside. In addition, if an inert gas is sealed in the container body 10, deterioration of gallium can be effectively prevented, and air or the like in a clean room may be sealed in the container body 10 instead of the inert gas. In this case, it is desirable that air having a class of 1000 or more (class 1000, class 100, etc.), a temperature of 25 ° C. or less, and a relative humidity of 50% or less be sealed in the container body 10.

Next, when gallium is taken out of the container body 10, first, a heater 20 is attached around the container body 10 and heated, and the gallium housed in the container body 10 is heated to a temperature higher than the melting point. To melt the gallium again. Heat sources for melting include electric heating, hot water or hot air.
Heat transfer from a heat source is good, and a heating method having an effect of stirring molten gallium, such as induction heating, is not preferable. It is desirable that the melting be performed so that the heat is gradually and uniformly distributed throughout the entire body, and that the impurities collected above are not dispersed again in the gallium melt by performing the melting in a stationary state. Or desirable. Thus, the portion 30 containing more impurities above the molten gallium in the container body 10 can be maintained as it is.

When gallium is taken out of the container body 10 in a place where gallium is used, for example, in a casting step, the gallium is heated at a temperature of 100 ° C. or lower and 30 ° C. or higher, preferably 60 ° C. or lower and 30 ° C. or higher by a heat source such as the heater 20 described above. . At the time of this heating, it is desirable that the heat be gradually and uniformly distributed over the whole so that the impurities collected above as described above are not dispersed again in the molten gallium.
For this reason, the container body 10 is heated in a stationary state, and the heating method is preferably a method of conducting heat from a heat source such as electric heating, hot water or hot air, and a heating method having an effect of stirring molten gallium, such as induction heating. Is not preferred.

Then, the portion 30 containing more impurities
Is maintained, the molten gallium is taken out from the bottom of the container body 10. In this case, gas is supplied from outside to the upper space 18 in the container body 10 through the supply pipe 17. Then, as the gas is injected, the liquid level of the molten gallium is pushed down inside the container body 10, and the container body 10
The molten gallium flows into the pipe 16 from the opening 16a arranged at the bottom of the inside. Thus, the molten gallium sent through the pipe 16 is discharged from the opening 16 b of the pipe 16, and the molten gallium is discharged from the container body 1.
It is taken out of 0.

The molten gallium thus taken out of the container body 10 contains the gallium impurities contained in the container body 10 at an average value (the average value of the contents of all the gallium impurities contained in the container body 10). Not only does it not lower the purity, but also segregates impurities above the gallium in the container, so that gallium with higher purity can be obtained.

When the molten gallium is taken out from the container body 10 as described above, the molten gallium can be weighed at the same time. In this case, the amount of molten gallium taken out of the container through a pipe or the like may be measured and weighed, or the weight may be taken out while measuring the weight including the container, and the weight loss may be measured. The molten gallium may be weighed based on the amount of gas injected into the inside.
The molten gallium weighed and taken out of the container body 10 in this way is cast, solidified, supplied to the customer in the form of an ingot, and used for manufacturing compound semiconductor crystals and the like. A method is also conceivable in which the material is supplied to a customer, where the above-mentioned melting is performed and the product is directly used without going through a casting process.

When the molten gallium is taken out from the container body 10 as described above, the portion 30 containing more impurities collected upward is not supplied to the next step as it is,
Leave in container. These contain segregated impurities, which can be prevented from being lost by separately collecting and purifying them and converting them into high-purity gallium again. In this case, the portion 30 containing more impurities is the pipe 16a.
By observing the inside of the container body 10 through the window 19 provided in the container lid so as not to flow into the container, the amount of gas injection is controlled while monitoring the liquid level of the molten gallium in the container. As shown in Fig. 4, part 3 containing more impurities
When 0 moves to the bottom of the container body 10, the injection of gas from the air supply pipe 17 is preferably stopped. In addition to the visual observation through the window 19, a certain weight of gallium can be left in the container body 10 by measuring and monitoring the weight including the container body 10 when taking out the molten gallium. It is. With these methods, it is possible to prevent the portion 30 containing a large amount of impurities from being supplied to the next step.

The gallium containing a large amount of impurities (the portion 30 containing a large amount of impurities) and dross are surely removed from the container body 1.
It is important to check the remaining amount in the container main body 10 in order to leave it in 0 and not to supply it to the next step or the like as it is. For this purpose, the liquid level of the molten gallium in the container body 10 can be monitored, for example, by looking inside the container body 10 through a window 19 provided in the lid 15 of the container body 10, and a portion containing a lot of impurities can be monitored. It is possible to stop the removal of molten gallium before the 30 or dross is supplied to the next step as it is. Of course, in addition to monitoring by providing a window 19, when the molten gallium is taken out,
It is also possible to leave a fixed weight of molten gallium by taking out while measuring and monitoring the weight including zero.

By using the storage container 10 described in this embodiment to transport, store, and remove Ga in accordance with the above-described steps, gallium stored in the container body 10 can be removed with high stability. . The pipe 16
It is desirable to stop taking out the gallium liquid in the container body 10 until the liquid level of the gallium in the container body 10 reaches the tip opening 16a of the container.
By adjusting the height of the opening 16a at the tip end of the pipe 16 (the height from the bottom of the container body 10), the portion 30 containing more impurities remains in the pipe 16 even if the timing of stopping the removal is missed. It is possible to prevent inflow. Further, in order to prevent such a portion 30 containing more impurities from flowing into the pipe 16, the tip 16a of the pipe 16 is cut obliquely, or
A notch may be provided above the tip 16 a of the pipe 16.

In the case of solidifying gallium in the container body 10, the same effect can be obtained by solidifying the gallium in one direction by any method, not limited to the lower part to the upper part.

[0044]

(Embodiment 1) Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described. As shown in FIG. 1, a band heater was attached to the outer peripheral surface of a container body made of stainless steel having an outer diameter of about 270 mm and a capacity of 25 liters in three rounds, one by one, to constitute a storage container according to the embodiment of the present invention. A lining made of a fluororesin having a thickness of 5 mm was formed inside the container body. A total of 50 kg of 10 kg of 6N (purity 99.9999%) molten Ga was put into this container, and the lid was closed. The molten Ga was charged into the storage container at 25 ° C in a clean room, class 1
000 atmosphere, and thereafter kept in the same atmosphere.

First, the temperature of the heater was set to 35 ° C.
It was allowed to stand for 2 hours to melt Ga in the storage container. next,
Cooling water having a water temperature of 15 ° C. was passed through the cooling pipe of the cooling plate, and molten Ga was gradually solidified upward from the bottom of the container body over 12 hours. After confirming the solidification, the temperature of the heater was set to 50 ° C., and the mixture was allowed to stand for 12 hours to perform re-melting. Thereafter, a high-pressure gas of nitrogen is supplied to the upper space in the container body through an air supply pipe, and 100 g is supplied through a pipe 16.
By weighing each, Ga was divided into 450 pieces to obtain. At this time, about 5 kg of gallium was left, and the level of the remaining liquid was
Is located above the discharge inlet 16a. Table 1 shows the impurity concentrations of Ga after weighing at this time.

[0046]

[Table 1]

(Example 2) In the same manner as in Example 1, the cooling water having a water temperature of 15 ° C was passed through the cooling pipe of the cooling plate, and molten Ga was directed upward from the bottom of the container body for 12 hours. And gradually solidified. After closing the intake pipe to prevent contamination, transport it to the warehouse outside the clean room room for about 10 m, store it for half a day, transport it again into the clean room,
The temperature of the heater was set to 50 ° C., and allowed to stand for 12 hours to perform re-melting. After that, nitrogen high-pressure gas is supplied to the upper space in the container body through an air supply pipe, and is supplied through the pipe.
0 g was weighed at a time to obtain 400 pieces of Ga. At this time, about 1 kg of gallium was left. At this time, the impurity concentration of Ga after the weighing was performed 10 times as shown in Table 1. The gallium obtained by weighing was equivalent to that in Table 1. This operation was repeated 10 times in the same container. The gallium obtained by weighing was equivalent to that shown in Table 1. Even if the same operation was repeated, contamination was always prevented.

Example 3 As in Example 1, molten gallium was placed in a container body. A magnetic stirrer is provided on the side of the container body, and while stirring, a cooling water having a water temperature of 15 ° C. is passed through the cooling pipe of the cooling plate, and molten gallium is gradually increased from the bottom of the container body upward over 12 hours. Coagulated. After confirming the solidification, set the temperature of the heater to 50 ° C.
The mixture was allowed to stand for 2 hours and re-melted. Then, nitrogen high-pressure gas is supplied to the upper space in the container body through the air supply pipe,
Weigh 100 g each through a pipe and add 450 gallium.
Obtained separately. At this time, about 5 kg of gallium was left. Table 2 shows the impurity concentrations of gallium and the remaining gallium after the weighing.

[0049]

[Table 2]

[0050]

According to the present invention, Ga contained in a container is
Can be taken out with stable high purity, and gallium purified with high purity can be stored and transported without contamination between processes.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view for explaining a structure of a storage container according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which a Ga layer containing more impurities is formed above Ga.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory view of a magnet that stirs molten gallium in a container body.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory view showing a state in which a Ga layer containing more impurities has moved to the bottom of the container body.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Storage container 10 Container main body 11 Lining 15 Lid 16 Ga extraction pipe 17 Air supply pipe 18 Upper space 19 Window 20 Heater 21, 22, 23 Band heater 25 Cooling plate 26 Cooling pipe 27 Magnet

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) B65D 81/20 B65D 81/20 E

Claims (12)

[Claims] 1. Gallium contained in a container is allowed to stand in a molten state, and solidified gradually from the bottom to the upper portion of the container to collect impurities upward.
A method for removing gallium, wherein the gallium is melted again by heating in a stationary state, and the molten gallium is removed from the bottom of the container. 2. Gallium contained in a container is stirred in a molten state, and solidified gradually from the bottom to the top of the container to collect impurities upward.
A method for removing gallium, wherein the gallium is melted again by heating in a stationary state, and the molten gallium is removed from the bottom of the container. 3. The method for removing gallium according to claim 1, wherein the molten gallium is removed from the container while being weighed. 4. A gas inserted into an upper space in a container and a liquid level of the molten gallium is depressed, with a tip end of a pipe inserted into the molten gallium in the container being arranged inside the container, 4. The method for removing gallium according to claim 1, wherein the molten gallium is taken out of the pipe by flowing the molten gallium through the opening at the tip. 5. The method according to claim 1, wherein all the molten gallium in the container is not taken out.
5. The method for removing gallium according to claim 1, wherein a certain amount of gallium is left in the container. 6. A container used in the method for removing gallium according to claim 1, wherein at least a bottom surface or a side surface of the container is formed as a heat-conductive surface, and the gallium is removed. Gallium, characterized in that the gallium is provided with a pipe whose tip opening is located near the bottom inside the vessel and whose other end is open outside the vessel and means for injecting gas into the upper space inside the vessel. Storage container. 7. The gallium storage container according to claim 6, further comprising a window for viewing the inside of the container. 8. The gallium storage container according to claim 6, wherein a heater is mounted around the side surface of the container. 9. The apparatus according to claim 6, further comprising a stirring mechanism for stirring the molten gallium contained in the container.
Or the storage container of gallium of any one of 8. 10. The gallium container according to claim 6, wherein the container is made of a material having good heat conductivity and not reacting with gallium. 11. The gallium stored in the gallium storage container according to any one of claims 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10, is allowed to stand in a molten state, and gradually solidifies upward from the bottom of the container. A gallium storage method in which impurities are collected upward by storage and stored in a solidified state. 12. The gallium stored in the gallium storage container according to any one of claims 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10, is allowed to stand in a molten state, and gradually solidifies upward from the bottom of the container. A method of transporting gallium in which impurities are collected upward by transport and transported in a solidified state.